Humor Author Celia Rivenbark Dishes Out the Southern Sass

Step right up and take a ride through the wild backcountry of the Great American South, described in vivid detail by your tour guide, humor writer Celia Rivenbark. Celia’s fifth (hilarious) book, You Can’t Drink All Day If You Don’t Start In the Morning, will have you rolling in the aisles (of both church AND Wal-mart).

WordHustler sat down with this funny vixen to get her thoughts on writing, landing her dream agent, and why people need to stop dressing their six-year-olds like skanks. That’s right, it’s Southern charm, courtesy of Celia Rivenbark.

But wait: there’s more! Read the interview carefully because there will be a trivia question at the end! Everyone who answers correctly will be in the running to win a free copy of Celia’s newest book, Drink All Day, complete with an audio version to boot! Now that would be cause for some real Southern-style celebration!

WordHustler: How did you get your first big break? I know you have a journalism background- what was the first piece you ever published?

Celia Rivenbark: Wow. That was a really long time ago. The first piece I ever got published in a newspaper was a freelance story about Jimmy Carter campaigning in our town when he was running in the presidential primary in ‘76. I, of course, was barely 2, so it was quite an accomplishment. Hmmm. From there, I got a full-time job at my local paper and spent eight years taking pictures of oddly-shaped produce and big snakes. It was a blast. Seriously.

WH: How did you get to transition to writing humor after spending your reporter days covering weddings and dead bodies?

CR: My boss at the daily paper I was working at by this time was too cheap to agree to let me do restaurant reviews, which I had researched and pitched to him. He saw how disappointed I was and said, “Hey! You’re kinda funny. Why don’t you just write some funny stuff and we’ll see if people like it.” So I did. And, mercifully, they did.

WH: Now for the part everyone wants to hear about: how did you land an agent? I know your first book, Bless Your Heart, Tramp, was culled from your newspaper humor column. How many agents did you approach before landing one? Or did they come after you?

CR: I was so incredibly lucky on this one. Bless Your Heart, Tramp was my first humor collection and it was published by a tiny local press. I basically sold it out of the trunk of my car between church services and at the grocery store. My friend, Nan Graham, who was doing the same thing, suggested we peddle our books in Charlotte. We ended up on “The John Boy & Billy Big Show” and that resulted in a wonderful boost in sales in the Charlotte area for both of us. I kept plugging away with local signings for Tramp and it ended up on the SEBA best-seller list for a few weeks.

Jenny Bent, who represents Jill Conner Browne and many others, called me one day out of the blue and asked if I had another book in me. I said, “Sure,” and she said she’d like to represent me. She sold that second collection, We’re Just Like You, Only Prettier, in about a week and we’ve been together ever since.

WH: What is it like working with an editor? Is it hard to let someone else into your creative process?

CR: I’ve been lucky in that regard, too. Jennifer Enderlin, my editor at St. Martin’s Press, makes very few changes in the manuscript. The copy editor who line edits for typos and things like that is also easy to work with. They catch things I’d never catch and I’m exceedingly grateful. We haven’t had any arguments whatsoever about content and I think it’s because they know me and trust me and I feel the same way about them.

WH: Do you have any say/input over your amazing book covers?

CR: Yes. The folks who design the covers at SMP are terrific and I love their concepts. I think the current cover for You Can’t Drink All Day If You Don’t Start In The Morning is my favorite but I like all of them. They usually send me three or four versions of the same idea and I’ll pick the one I like best. That said, I always believe that it’s their job to know design, not mine. Their decision is the one I trust.

WH: Speaking of Drink, your glorious and hilarious fifth book just came out on September 1. So let me be (possibly) the first annoying person to ask: are you working on your next book yet?

CR: You bet! I’m finishing a sixth book right now and have a contract for a seventh one next year. Two of my contracts have been two-book contracts: the one for Stop Dressing Your Six-Year-Old Like A Skank and Belle Weather: Mostly Sunny with a Chance of Scattered Hissy Fits and the one for “untitled 6 and 7.” Belle Weather was the first time I’d done an audio book and that was a lot of fun. I recently recorded the Drink book and hope to do the audio versions of the next two.

WH: What is your preferred writing method? Do you have a certain writing spot/technique?

CR: I always write in my upstairs office at home. It’s a very small room with Carolina blue walls and three windows for lots of light. My view is of the very quiet street below. A magnolia tree branch sways just outside the window and, in midsummer, smells wonderful. The only art on the walls are my framed book covers and Tarheels signed “Sports Illustrated” covers. It’s very peaceful in here, really. And tidy. I don’t do clutter.

WH: I know you are an avid cook, as Drink is sprinkled with amazing Southern recipes. Do you feel that gives you a writing release?

CR: If you mean a break from writing, yes, I do. I also like to take a long walk around the neighborhood or mow the grass to clear things out a bit.

WH: What are three things you’d advise aspiring writers to do?

CR: Read good writing. Surround yourself with clever people to bounce ideas off of and feed them well in return. Pay attention to everything around you, take notes, use them later.

WH: What are three things you’d advise aspiring writers to NEVER do?

CR: Never try to be something you’re not (on paper or in person). Never think that you’re too good to start small. (If you want to be published, write for free if you have to.) Don’t take yourself too seriously. It’s not like you’re holding a human heart in your hand, for God’s sake.

WH: Shameless plug alert: Do you think WordHustler is a valuable resource in helping writers successfully get their work out there, professionally and effectively?

CR: WordHustler is a terrific resource for writers and anyone else associated with publishing. Thanks for inviting me to your table.

The Southern lady has spoken, ya’ll! Hopefully, Celia’s humor and wit have inspired you to work on your own projects so you can submit them to great agents and publishers, too! WordHustler can help- consider us your digital personal assistant.

AND NOW,  for the special Trivia Question: What Southern university do Celia’s beloved Tarheels play for?

Put your answer in the comments and next week we’ll take all the correct responses and pull a winner from the stack. The winner receives a FREE copy of Celia’s latest masterpiece, You Can’t Drink All Day If You Don’t Start In the Morning, complete with bonus Audio CD narrated by Celia herself!

Enter today and you could start “Drinking” tomorrow!