His first book is a collection of poetry and lyrics, published by Cool Dog Sound
Writer and musician Will Griffith, a.k.a. The Great Dying, will celebrate the release of his new book with an official release party on Sunday, May 31, featuring live music, a brief reading, and a post-show signing.
The event will include Bark! opening for The Great Dying. Will plans to share a short reading—potentially including a few poems—and will be available before and after the show to sign books. The event will take place at Proud Larry’s, with a start time to be announced.
Presales are available now through CoolDogSound.com.
“I am very excited. I’m exhausted, but his is a surreal thing. When I was younger, all I ever wanted to do was have some records out on vinyl, which I did . . . I wanted to play at Proud Larry’s and play Double Decker. I’ve done those two things. And having something at Square Books is like a dream come true on top of all that.” Will’s upbringing in the Mississippi Delta, in and around Cleveland, informs the book’s imagery—small towns, roads, the levee, and the Mississippi River—alongside themes of sadness and heartbreak that draw from both personal experience and stories he imagines about the people he has served.
“A lot of that is from my life, but also it’s from . . . observing people and writing in their shoes. So, it’s not all about me. Sometimes I assume people’s narratives, and kind of write from there. I don’t want [everyone] to think that I have been done that dirty that many times. I’m also taking characters I have [observed] and I write little stories about them.”
Will credits a high school creative writing teacher in Memphis named Rita Gorman for pushing him to expand beyond writing punk rock lyrics into poetry. When he began working in the service industry, waiting tables and bartending, he started writing down bits and pieces, sometimes just single lines, on guest checks, hoarding them in boxes to eventually become his songs and poems.
“I refer to the Delta as the sea of towns; The Oddest Sea is all about the Delta, just a ton of little bitty towns all on top of each other. A lot of the imagery absolutely comes from the aesthetics of the Delta.”
The book’s cover, a snippet from a painting of Will’s, ties together the creative forces that comprise his many talents. In fact, Will expects to do more painting in the near future, when he can find time outside his busy schedule of bartending, playing shows, and recording music. A new album is also currently in the works, recorded and mixed at Dial Back Sound in Water Valley, which he expects to be out sometime this fall.
So, go ahead and pre-order a copy of the book and make plans to celebrate alongside Will Griffith at Proud Larry’s on May 31.
Will Griffith’s words hold the power of a gospel hymn, rising and falling, and carrying you on the wind of a great spiritual lyricism. He joins you in your woes, holds you in your grief, and rides shotgun in your joy. A real guy writing about real people in the real world. A true wordsmith and storyteller.
— Michael Farris Smith, author of Lay Your Armor Down and Desperation Road
About the Author
YAAAAAAYYYYYYY, WILL!!!