Look and Listen

Biography

Sandra Jones Cropsey writes in a variety of genres. Her children’s story, “The Legend of White Wolf,” placed in the Porter Fleming Literary Competition and was published in The Snake Nation Review in 2003. Her radio drama, “Life Like A Fair,” aired in 2006 nationwide and into parts of Canada and Australia. Her first novel, Who’s There, was a finalist in the 2008 “Georgia Author of the Year Awards” as well as ForeWord Magazine’s “Book of the Year Awards.” In 2010, Who’s There was produced by the Main Street Players. Her first children’s book, Tinker’s Christmas, aired as a radio drama in 2008. Her song lyrics “Someone Cries and Someone Knocks” were included in the 2010 anthology, Hope Whispers. Her play, “Playmate” recently enjoyed a successful reading with the Main Street Players and is being considered for production.

Inspiration

My love for writing began in grade school with a homework assignment, and from that point, I was hooked. Writing would become for me a place to escape, one where I could enjoy a little control over life. Love for theater came with that first childhood nativity scene and continues today. A few years ago, when I offered to assist with the Christmas program at church, the director asked how I would feel about playing the role of Mary. “Oh, I don’t know. How do you feel about being struck by lightning?” God spared the director, and I was cast as Mary, a very old Mary. Inspiration comes from reading great literature like Madame Bovary and To Kill a Mockingbird, and the plays of Eugene O’Neill. I particularly love southern authors like O’Connor, Welty, and Faulkner. Some years ago, I had the opportunity to study with John Gardner at the Breadloaf Writer’s Conference. Writing for the theater will always be a first love, as there is no magic quite like that of theater. Some of my shorter works have been produced on the campuses of Emory University and DeKalb College, where I met Pulitzer prize-wining playwright Alfred Uhry. My play Jesus Called had won first place in the professional division of the Georgia Theater Conference’s one-act play competition and was to be produced. The day of the opening, I was at Piedmont Hospital giving birth to our second son. With my doctor’s approval, I secretly left the hospital, albeit very medicated, to attend the play. At the intermission, I whispered to Paul, “You know you’re not in good shape when you visit the restroom and discover your underwear is on backwards.”