Tortured in Tulsa

June 22, 2012

tags: booksmart tulsa, ponyboy curtis, s.e. hinton, the outsiders, Tortured Artists, tulsa

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The literary organization Booksmart Tulsa was kind enough to invite me to speak at an event at the Philbrook Museum of Art next month.

I’m so excited to do be doing an author event in the hometown of one of my favorite tortured writers from adolescence, S. E. Hinton, who penned the indelible teens-gone-wild novel The Outsiders when she herself was still a teenager.

Legend has it that Hinton drew inspiration for the book after witnessing real-life violence between two rival gangs at Tulsa’s Will Rogers High School, where she attended in the 1960s. Viking Press published The Outsiders while Hinton was a freshman at the University of Tulsa. Not too shabby, considering the book still sells some 500,000 copies every year. Of course, Hinton also gets a mention in Tortured Artists, what with her book being inspired by teen violence and all.

Booksmart Tulsa was founded by Jeff Martin and Mary Beth Babcock, who wanted to make their Oklahoma hometown a more reading-friendly city. The group holds signings, launch parties, and other book-related events at various Tulsa locations. Speaking of, I’ve also heard great things about the Philbrook Museum of Art, so I can’t wait to see it in the flesh.

The free event takes place on Tuesday, July 24. If you’re in the area next month, I really hope you’ll stop by. Just don’t show up in a Mustang or madras shirt — unless you’re looking for a rumble, that is.

Click the picture for the full event details, or check out the Facebook invite here.