Spring Literary Series Continues April 26  

SALISBURY, MD---Cary Holladay, non-fiction author and second place winner of the 1999 O. Henry Award, reads from her works at Salisbury State University, Thursday, April 26 at 8 p.m. as part of the Writers-on-the-Shore Series Spring Literary Festival. Admission is free and the public is invited.

Author of two collections of short stories, The People Down South and The Palace of Wasted Footsteps Holladay has received fellowships from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts and the Tennessee Arts Commission. She is now at work on a novel and another collection of stories.

“When I write, I am fascinated by the individuals character’s struggles and the decisions they make,” she said.

One of her stories, "Merry-Go-Sorry," won 2nd prize in the 1999 O. Henry Awards. Stephen King, one of the contest judges, wrote the introduction that appears with that story in the O. Henry Prize Stories volume.

Her story  “passionate and yet carefully controlled narration” contains “inspired (and sometimes eccentric) tracing of lives,” he said.

She received her undergraduate degree from the College of William & Mary and an M.A. from Pennsylvania State University.  From 1985-88, she lived in Salisbury, teaching English at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore and SSU. 

“I’m looking forward to seeing how the Eastern Shore has changed and visiting my old friends,” Holladay said.

She has taught creative writing at a number of schools, including La Salle University and the University of Pennsylvania.  

Currently she lives in Memphis, Tennessee, where she serves as the Public Affairs Manager for the City of Memphis Division of Park Services.

For information call 410-543-6540 or visit the University’s Web site at www.salisbury.edu.