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William Christy Smith

Home Featured Authors & Panelists Featured Participant Lineup 2026 William Christy Smith

Skylark is William Christy Smith’s first novel. He is primarily a short story writer who specializes in Southern Gothic themes based on the horrors of the AIDS crisis of the 1980s. Smith holds degrees from Westminster College, the University of Chicago, and the University of New Orleans. He is a regular participant at the Tennessee Williams/Saints & Sinners literary conferences. He is a member of the Saints & Sinners Hall of Fame and serves as editor of The Triangle, the online literary journal of the Publishing Triangle.

 

Schedule

10:30 am to 11:30 am
Bienville Building, First Floor, Conference Center 173
Shadows of the Past: Historical Novels of Tragedy, Heritage, and Resilience
Phil Oakley, Austin Sunrise
William Christy Smith, Skylark: A Novel
Shannon Terry Wiley, Yellow September: A Novel
with moderator Joy E. Rancatore

11:45 am to 12:30 pm
Cavalier House Books Tent
Book Signing

Skylark: A Novel

Beston Barnett, a newly minted creative writing graduate from Tulane University, cannot find a job in his field. He takes a volunteer position leading a writer's group consisting of men who are HIV-positive. His students, who represent all walks of New Orleans life, were supposed to document their experiences for future generations. They have a lot of fun, but don't produce much. Beston decides he will document their lives. In the process, he falls in love with the city, the neighborhood, the restaurant, and his students. He discovers who he is in the midst of a horrific epidemic.