Welcome to episode 18 of From the Front Porch, a collection of conversations on books, small business and life in the south.

I'm Annie Jones, owner of the bookshelf. Small Business and Life in the South.

I'm Annie Jones, owner of the Book Shelf

in downtown Thomasville, Georgia.

And today I'm joined by journalist and author

Jody Helmer, who's back in town

for a writing workshop at the store.

We'll be talking about her tips for writers seeking publication

and why the best writers are often readers first.

Hey Jody,

Hi Annie.

Welcome back to Thomasville.

Thank you for having me.

We are so excited to host you back in the store and we can't wait.

We've had a great response for the

writing workshops we can't wait to get some of your wisdom. Before we get

started I want to know besides the writing workshop what keeps you coming

back to this neck of the woods?

What keeps go back here?

For starters it's 75 degrees in the sunny hour which is always a great reason to come to Thomasville but I love the town.

I love the people who are so friendly and I love the

vibe and that y'all are so good about supporting local businesses which means

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