Me and The Palmetto State

One of my all-time favorite authors is Pat Conroy. When I read The Prince of Tides for the first time, it knocked me out. I devoured his other novels as well, and The Great Santini, if I were forced to choose, is probably my all-time favorite book. Much of Conroy's fiction takes place in South Carolina and through his books, I developed a fascination with the state.

The places I've lived -- California, Arizona, Colorado and now Texas -- are so different from the areas he writes about in his books, and every time I paged through one of his books, I felt this need to go and visit. (And, to let an embarrassing secret out into the open -- I've always harbored this strange ambition to write one of those big, sweeping family sagas and set in the south. It would probably resemble nothing more than a Conroy rip-off, but I'm sure that one day I'll sit down and attempt it.)

Six years ago, my wife and I headed to South Carolina to celebrate our anniversary and, for me, to see what Conroy was talking about. We stayed on Hilton Head Island, but visited many of the places Conroy has written of -- Beaufort, Charleston, The Citadel. I wasn't disappointed. The coast of South Carolina rivals the coast I grew up on in California, and the places we encountered during our weeklong visit felt like they were straight out of Conroy's novels. It was easy to see why Conroy has such a strong connection to the state and why it is such a part of who he is. We've been talking since that trip about going back, but hadn't found the opportunity.

So I was thrilled to receive an invitation to this year's South Carolina Book Festival. Takes place in Columbia at the end of February, and I'll be there chatting about books with a few of my friends. Of all the invitations I've received over the last couple of years, this is right up at the top of the list and I'm looking forward to attending.

Maybe I'll start that sweeping family saga while I'm there…

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