Egan’s Bar will host a release party Friday for “Tuscaloosa Runs This,” an anthology depicting what local writers love about Tuscaloosa and what it means to them to rebuild after the April 27 tornado.
Brian Oliu, a University of Alabama English professor, released the original e-book anthology 10 days after the damaging tornado in an effort to raise money for recovery.
“I’m not one to use a chainsaw but wanted to help out in some way,” Oliu said. “We had over 1,200 downloads of the e-book.”
The anthology is a collection of essays, poetry, fiction and nonfiction pieces created by Tuscaloosa writers. Oliu said it was pretty easy to recruit the writers by asking close friends, posting on Facebook and spreading the news by word-of-mouth.
After showing the e-book to Bob Weatherly, a friend and owner of Egan’s, the two decided to print hardcopies of the book to distribute.
“I read the e-book and was so impressed by it that I wanted to get it in a printed form,” Weatherly said.
Weatherly offered to pay for the printing costs of “Tuscaloosa Runs This” as his way of contributing to the cause.
“What really surprised me was when Brian contacted the authors asking if they wanted their works included in the printed edition. Only one said no, and another wanted to revise,” Weatherly said. “This author then decided to leave his work as is, unedited. I was impressed the writers could step away from their work and just enjoy it.”
Oliu said he contributed an introduction to each piece in the collection, as well as an introduction to the anthology.
“I had to reassemble the whole book and write a re-introduction,” Oliu said. “There is an original introduction, then one for the hardcover. [The new one] is about the idea of looking back on the tornado.”
Oliu said the process of changing the book from an e-book to hardback was difficult, but he is proud of the finished product.
“Dealing with artists and writers is like herding cats. It takes a while to get them all together, and some turn things in late,” Oliu said.
The book includes over 41 different writers and their pieces reflecting on experiences and emotions after the tornado. The cover features a photograph, taken by a friend of Oliu, depicting a dark setting with people gathering together with an overlay of the state of Alabama painted in crimson.
“I didn’t know the first thing about putting together a book,” Oliu said. “Then, after finding someone to print the books, I sent him my PDF, and the next thing you, know I had 33 boxes shipped to my house.”
A release party will be held this Friday to celebrate the completion of “Tuscaloosa Runs This” hardback edition. The event will start and 7 p.m. and will include book signings by contributing writers, food and beverages, T-shirts and posters for sale and some late-night DJ mixes by Oliu himself.
“It’s going to be a lot of fun to have all the contributors here together and have people thank them for the work they did,” Weatherly said. “I was so happy I could do this for them.”
What: ‘Tuscaloosa Runs This’ launch party
When: Friday, April 13 at 7 p.m.
Where: Egan’s Bar
How Much: Free admission to bar, $12 to purchase book
