Hello, my darlings. Thank you for visiting my site today. Scroll down to check out my upcoming books, appearances, and random thoughts—you know I have plenty!
Looking for the best places to launch your kayak? Need to know where to find your next Joe Cain Day outfit? Craving fire-roasted oysters? Fret no more! 100 Things to Do in Mobile Before You Die is your guide to everything fun, funky, and fabulous in Mobile, Alabama, brought to you by Jodie Cain Smith and Reedy Press.
In Huet Pointe, ambition is as dangerous as the brackish water that surrounds the sliver of land. But, the women of this antebellum hamlet yearn for more than society insists they be—devout, feminine, and content with living according to cultural norms. So, what's a girl to do? She could employ poison, perhaps a bit of adultery, and drowning in alligator-infested waters is always a choice—whatever it takes to achieve her goal. A novel-in-stories, Bayou Cresting: The Wanting Women of Huet Pointe, tells the stories of ten women brought together by proximity, forever entangled by the actions they take.
One shot fired deep in the pine forests of her youth was all it took to change Hattie's life forever. At the age of fourteen, Hattie learns that her mother, Addie, is dead, and her father, Hubbard, stands accused of Addie's murder, along with countless other shocking betrayals. Overnight, Hattie becomes mother to her three siblings while still very much a child herself. The life she had dreamt of now seems impossible to achieve. How will Hattie break away from the father who prevents her from living the life she desperately wants? Will her heart ever be able to heal in the height of The Great Depression?
This interview was so much fun. When one of your BFF's hosts a radio show, how can it not be fun?
The book that gave me hope through the 2020 election, pandemic stress, and general life chaos. (I receive no compensation for reviews or purchases.)
Gators and snakes and wild boars...Oh my! (I receive no compensation for reviews or purchases.)
Not for the faint of heart. (If you buy this book, I get nothing in return other than the hope that you love it like I did.)
Learn how two women drive Nazis crazy on a tiny island during WWII. This is the WWII story you've never heard. (I receive no compensation for reviews.)
I probably shouldn't have read this in January 2021, but I couldn't resist.
Together, Kathleen Rodgers and Michelle Williams are the talent behind the audiobook of The Flying Cutterbucks. Lots of takeaways for those of us who dream of having an audiobook of our own.
Mobile
Super smart 8th Graders. School-wide project. Will I keep them entertained? Fingers crossed!
Mobile
Spanish Fort, AL
Sharing the love of writing with the future Southern writers of lower Alabama.
Spanish Fort, AL
Ice Box, 755 Monroe Street, Mobile
Celebrate the release of 100 THINGS TO DO IN MOBILE BEFORE YOU DIE with me the Mobile way—with a cold drink, karaoke, fun people, good food,...
Ice Box, 755 Monroe Street, Mobile
12747 Padgett Switch Road, Irvington, AL
Join me at the Bayou La Batre Library for a lively author chat with fiend and fellow author Amy Delcambre (Secret Mobile). Have your questio...
12747 Padgett Switch Road, Irvington, AL
Haunted Book Shop downtown Mobile, Alabama
Get your holiday shopping done in style at Artwalk!
Haunted Book Shop downtown Mobile, Alabama
As a teen in Mobile, Alabama, my grandmother told me the gripping story of an adolescence spent in 1930’s rural Alabama, the rumors surrounding her parents, and the murder trial that would alter her life. The tale took root until at last it becameThe Woods at Barlow Bend, my debut novel, first released in 2014.
While attending the University of South Alabama, where I earned a BFA in Theatre Arts, I met Jay, the husband. We spent fifteen years moving here and there with the Army. Jay chased the bad guys, and I chased my dream of becoming a storyteller. Along the way I earned my Master's and had one baby—a little boy who turns me into a puddle with a flash of blue eyes and bright grin. In 2016, we bid military life farewell and moved home. Now, I spend my days writing and editing and my nights in the land of Legos and superheroes.
My second long work came out of this rollercoaster life and the need for a bit of creative writing therapy. A novel-in-stories, Bayou Cresting: The Wanting Women of Huet Pointe is my latest book baby and asks the question, "What does a woman have to do to succeed?" Well, I found the answer wasn't always ladylike. My imagination took over, and I learned that when left to its own devices, my imagination can be quite wicked.
Before and after the novels, I attempt to sharpen my skills with short works such as those featured in Chicken Soup for the Military Wife's Soul, the Petigru Review, Pieces Anthology, and the Savannah Morning News.
As the founder of the Mobile Literary Festival, I believe reading and writing can cure all sorts of ills, from the confused and brokenhearted to injecting society with a good dose of empathy. If you are looking for a creative writing or publishing workshop, message me below.