I'm Not From the South, But I Got Down Here as Fast as I Could

by Tony Vanderwarker

I’m Not From the South, But I Got Down Here As Fast As I Could . . . How a Connecticut Yankee Learned To Love Grits and Fried Green Tomatoes And Lived To Tell About It. Imagine being booted out of a high-flying advertising job by your partners and then moving South to try your hand at becoming a writer—and quickly discovering that your neighbor is bestselling author John Grisham. Could it possibly get any better than that? Well . . . yes and no. In 1992, Tony Vanderwarker went through a life-changing experience that is becoming more and more common in America—forced retirement and relocation. Out of the blue his partners in the Chicago-based advertising agency he had helped create exercised the buy-out option in their partnership agreement and sent him packing. Married, with four children (two in college, two in high school), he didn't know where to turn next. He went up to the fourth floor of his residence and started writing a book, thinking that would solve all his problems. After six months or so, when the book writing didn't pan out, he and his family relocated to Charlottesville, Virginia, where his wife, Anne, had family she could fall back on for support. Little did they know it would not only be a new venue but it would change all of them for the better. They learned to slow down and say “Y’all”, survive week-long blackouts and hot weather, they gave up the Bears and Cubs and became rabid ACC football, basketball and lacrosse fans and learned to love foods they’d never even seen before. They found ourselves leaving their snotty and uppity Northern attitudes behind and gradually turning into relaxed, play-it-as-it-lays Southerners who valued watching the finches turn from brown to yellow, watching ants help peonies blossom and lightning bugs sparkle against the night sky. They reveled in the history, stories, people and beauty of the South and though they had been confirmed Northerners, they never once looked back. Incredibly, one of his neighbors was bestselling author John Grisham. Because their children attended the same school, Grisham generously advised him on his writing, showed him how to write an outline, referred him to his literary agent, and took Vanderwarker and his family on trips in his private jet. And the people of the South and their stories! Chita who would give cans of pop to her pet bear Betsy and delight in watching her perch on her haunches and glug the soda down. Or her husband Chet who trained his parrot to say salacious things. Once an encyclopedia salesman came to the door, the parrot invited him in and then said, “Sic him” to the Doberman who chased the terrified guy off the farm.

230 pages, Paperback

Published November 13, 2016

About the author

Author John Grisham took me under his wing and taught me the secrets of novel writing. Writing With The Master is my story of working with this famous writer to craft a nuclear weapons thriller, the newly released Sleeping Dogs. With John’s actual critiques and margin notes, my book pulls back the curtain on John’s amazing plot development techniques, giving the reader an inside look on what makes John one of the all-time bestselling novelists. This article in Virginia Living has more about my writing.

I discuss this in an interview on the public radio program With Good Reason , a available for download here. The interview also is here. I also discuss this once-in-a-lifetime experience with Wisconsin Public Radio . The interview can be downloaded and heard here. Another radio interview is here .

Television interviews are at WTVR , WVIR , and WSLS .

My books are reviewed at

http://tonyvanderwarker.com/writing-m...

I've also had the privilege of discussing my experience with the Los Angeles Review of Books , Literary Inklings , The Daily Progress , and KYMN Radio .

Others kind enough to interview me include Authorlink.com , Writer's Digest , the Memphis Flyer , and Examiner.com. The American Library Association Booklist reviewed Sleeping Dogs.

Reviews

[Krista · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lots of local references; set in Charlottesville and Keswick. A bit snarky.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good read about our local area with lots of laughs.