The Piedmont Publishing Symposium
The Piedmont Publishing Symposium is organized by Clemson University Press, Hub City Press, University of North Georgia Press, and University of South Carolina Press. This event will be held at Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina, May 20-21, 2026. During the two days of programming, we will offer multiple sessions appealing to different constituencies: academic writers, non-academic writers, publishing professionals, and students and recent graduates who want to know more about publishing.
Read a participant’s write-up of her experience at the 2025 Piedmont Publishing Symposium here.
Registration is now open! Purchase Tickets
Location: Rosalind Sallenger Richardson Center for the Arts
Schedule:
Day 1
8:30 am Registration
9:00 am Introduction and Welcome
9:30 am Session 1 [Students] Publishing Programs: Are they worth it? (Richardson Theater)
Dawn Durante, (UNC Press)
Maliea Ruby, (University of Tennessee Press)
Kate McMullen, (Hub City Press)
Amanda Rosa, (Hub City Press)
9:30 am Session 2 [Publishers] Accessibility in digital publications (Classroom 112)
Ana Bichanich (USC Press)
Michelle Wallen (UNC Press)
Corey Parson (UNG Press)
Emily Hills (Virginia Tech Publishing and Press)
10:30 am Coffee Break
11:00 am Session 3 [Authors] [Publishers] Copyright and Intellectual Property in Publishing (Classroom 112)Drew Griffin (Clemson University Press)
Elizabeth Adams (UGA Press)
John Morgenstern (Emory University)
Jayne Stevens (Layman Group)
SPONSORED BY LAYMAN PUBLISHING PARTNERS
11:00 am Session 4 [Authors] Southern Literature (Richardson Theater)
Kyler Campbell (author of Everything that We’ve Buried)
Scott Gould (author of Peace Like a River)
Meagan Lucas (author of Here in the Dark)
P.M. Raymond (author of Things as They Should Be)
SPONSORED BY THE USC PROVOST’S OFFICE
12:00 pm Lunch Break
1:30 pm Keynote:
Anne Trubek (Belt Publishing)
Publishing as a Creative Act
3:00 pm Coffee Break
3:30 pm Session 5 [Authors] Student-led publishing: Atheneum Press as a case study (Richardson Theater)
Alli Crandall (Atheneum Press, Coastal Carolina University)
Students from Atheneum Press (Coastal Carolina University)
SPONSORED BY ATHENEUM PRESS
3:30 pm Session 6 [Publishers] Printing (Classroom 112)
Craig Ragsdale (Martin Printing)
Sallie Gold (TruColor Printing)
Lucina Schell (Ingram Lightning Source)
Reception at Hub City Bookshop
Day 2
9:00 am Session 7 [Authors]Self-publishing (Classroom 112)
Gloria Aragon (Clemson University Press)
Kelly Durham (author of The Movie Star and Me)
Dakota McElhinny (author of The Realm series)
SPONSORED BY THE SOUTH CAROLINA WRITERS ASSOCIATION
9:00 am Session 8 [Publishers] Lessons from starting a small press (Richardson Theater)
Annette Flavel (Lucky Rabbit)
John Burbage (Evening Post Books)
Lib Ramos (Good Printed Things)
Anne Trubek (Belt Publishing)
SPONSORED BY CHARLESTON LITERARY FESTIVAL
10:00 am Coffee Break
10:30 am Session 9 [Publishers] The business of publishing (Classroom 112)
Kourtnay King (Layman Publishing)
Michael McGandy (USC Press)
Meg Reid (Hub City Press)
Anne Trubek (Belt Publishing)
10:30 am Session 10 [Authors] Author-driven marketing (Richardson Theater)
Alexa Bigwarfe (Women in Publishing), moderator
Mary Martha Green (author of The Cheese Biscuit Queen Tells All)
Gary Machlis (author of Sustainability for the Forgotten)
Otis Pickett (author of Southern Sheperds, Savage Wolves)
SPONSORED BY UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA PRESS AND LONGLEAF SERVICES
11:30 am Final remarks
