a mississippi writer

 
 
Rusty Van Reeves is a writer from Madison, Mississippi. He was born in the small town of Newton, MS. He excelled at music (piano, trumpet, French Horn & guitar) & sports. Like his father, he was fast and fearless on the field. A combination that ultimately stopped him nearly “literally” dead in his tracks. A tragic High School Football accident (Forest, MS) in 1975 left him permanently paralyzed (Quad C4 level) from the shoulders down. The former Eagle Scout, Lifeguard and Middle Linebacker found himself broken and directionless after a routine tackle ended badly. After over a year of confinement in the Baptist hospital and the Methodist rehab center he returned to the real world a very different man. No longer the muscle bound athlete, he struggled to do the simplest everyday things. The world he knew and once dominated was gone. His father, devastated by the prognosis, committed suicide less than six months after the accident. His mother, faced with mounting medical bills and raising two sons (Tim 11 & Rusty 15) never floundered. Her strength, love and resilience kept the family intact emotionally and financially. After taking and passing his GED and SAT, Mr. Reeves attended Mississippi State University in 1978 in an effort to keep moving forward with his life. He began writing aggressively at that point in an effort to cope with his newfound physical limitations. The happy go lucky kid with the long hair continued writing and painting as he had done all of his life. But he was living a lie. A lie even he didn’t realize existed. One winter day spent in the soaking rains of Starkville, (as his electric wheelchair shorted-out) a barrage of emotional demons took him into a minor meltdown. The inner pain that had gone unseen but boiled below the surface, had erupted. He abandoned college and sought refuge back in Jackson... sleeping days, writing nights, finding solace in part time friends and the numbing embrace of alcohol. He found himself at war with God. A war of blame and hurt that would last for several years.   In his 20’s on an old IBM electric typewriter he wrote an unpublished novel titled, Reservoir. It took several years and countless bottles of cheap wine to complete. The manuscript would never see the light of day but it was a learning experience that would help lay the foundation for his next effort. Like most, he faced a wall of rejection from literary agents and publishers. As the rejection letters rolled in, it only strengthened his resolve to succeed. Along the way he reached a crossroads of sorts - and reconnected with his spiritual side... blending a Christian foundation with Taoist overtones. For several years Mr. Reeves wrote a biweekly column called "A Southern Son" for The Madison County Herald newspaper. He is the author of several novels including Beneath the Velvet Skies, Revealing the Covenant and Lightning Tree. His essays have been published in many prominent literary reviews including The Dead Mule School of Southern Literature, Prose Toad Literary, The Rose and Thorn, SNReview and The International Literary Review MAG (Muse Apprentice Guild). Rusty is completing work on a book of poetry spanning 35 years. A hardback book titled “A Groundswell of Angels” will be available in the winter of 2010.  All of his books are available for purchase online at Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million, Border's, Amazon, Target and other fine retailers. To purchase books just click on the “BUY at Amazon” link below each book’s description. http://www.msstate.edu/shapeimage_1_link_0
    Name: Rusty Van Reeves Gender: Male Age: 50 Birthday: April 14th Status: In a Relationship Residence: Madison, MS Born: Newton, MS     VISIT MY BLOG     Quote: “If I leave here tomorrow - Would you still remember me?...” Lyrics by Collins, Allen VanZant / from the song Free Bird Musicians: Counting Crows, Rolling Stones, Allman Brothers Band, Seether, Norah Jones, Lucinda Williams, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Kid Rock, John Mellencamp, BTO, Jackson Browne, Muddy Waters, ZZ Top     rusty@rustyreeves.comAnnie.htmlhttp://rustyreeves.blogspot.com/mailto:rusty@rustyreeves.comshapeimage_3_link_0shapeimage_3_link_1shapeimage_3_link_2

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