R.L. Stine may have cornered the market on scary books for children, but there’s another “R.L.” out there publishing books with stories that might give even older readers the heebie-jeebies — and his stories are all true.
As part of an Author’s Talk Program held in the Public Library at Tellico Village on Wednesday, May 1, R.L. “Pete” Wyatt recounted stories from his nearly four decades working for the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency or TWRA.
The audience of about 30 people heard tales that involve Wyatt getting electrocuted in the snow, walking a man shackled in chains to court, AND coming to the aid of a naked fellow who’d been held captive by the twin daughters of a supposed witch.
‘IN THE WILDERNESS’
“I recognize how unique my job was because I was in the wilderness up there in northeast Tennessee,” Wyatt told the audience. “And so I thought it would be interesting to catalog my experiences — the characters, places, and adventures needed to be preserved.”
Friends of the Tellico Village Library volunteer Gina Geremia introduced Wyatt to the room, recalling how she and volunteer Susan Benson had the pleasure of listening to him speak at the Rose Glen Literary Festival in Sevierville.
“I just thought he was a hoot, and everyone in the room laughed,” she said. “And I said, ‘This is what we want to kick off our Author’s Talk Program here at the library.’”
Indeed, there were many moments of everyone in the room laughing. Like when Geremia, Wyatt’s plant in the audience, revealed what the TWRA acronym “actually” stands for: Talking While Riding Around. Or when he used the phrase “seven years of darkness and misery” to describe his time as an administrator for the agency.
Across his TWRA career, the U. S. Air Force Vietnam veteran also worked as a boating officer, game warden, wildlife biologist and wildlife manager. Those experiences are what he mined for his book series, “An Appalachian Gamekeeper’s Soliloquy of Humorous Tales: Game Warden Stories of People and Places of Upper East Tennessee.”
The soliloquy part of the title was inspired by a scene in “The Andy Griffith Show,” a TV show Wyatt recommends people watch to learn more about the Appalachian culture. There’s an episode where Opie asks his Pa what soliloquy means, and Andy says it’s “where you kinda look a way off and kinda talk to yourself.”
“So I thought, even though it comes from Shakespeare, that my stories would be a soliloquy because I have to talk to myself when I’m writing,” said Wyatt, who wrote his books in an Appalachian dialect.
‘… SQUIRREL!’
A self-proclaimed “hoarder of dead people’s stuff” who relates in ways to Forrest Gump, Wyatt is originally from Concord, Tennessee. He has graduated from Blue Grass Elementary School, Farragut High School, Roane State Community College, University of Tennessee and East Tennessee State University.
One story he told came with a disclaimer at the beginning: “If I get too rowdy, just raise your hand, and I’ll stop.” No hands were raised, but someone commented aloud that the picture he described wasn’t going to leave their head.
When Wyatt took questions at the end, someone asked what it is that people do with squirrel. You see, Wyatt had mentioned squirrel hunting a few times during his talk.
“Well, they eat them,” he responded.
He was then asked if squirrel tastes like chicken, and answered that it doesn’t — it tastes like squirrel. In fact, Wyatt’s cookbook — “Appalachian Heritage Cookery” — features a recipe for squirrel with barley and mushrooms that won him and a friend fourth place at The World Championship Squirrel Cook-Off in Arkansas in 2013.
Getting resistance to the idea of eating squirrel, he asked how many people there were native Tennesseans. Only two people — who were sitting together — raised their hands.
“Your ancestors, and my ancestors, would not have made it if it hadn’t been for tree rats,” he said, exhibiting a protective love for those that he describes in his books as “my people.”
‘EVERYONE HAS A STORY’
Hosting Wyatt was a part of an effort to reach audiences who may not be frequent library users yet. Benson, the volunteer who was with Geremia when they first heard Wyatt speak, said she was pleased with how it went.
“We’re always trying to look for things that people might be interested in,” Benson said. “The focus of this is to bring people who don’t normally come to the library to introduce them to the concept. And hopefully they become members, and become members of the Friends.”
Other events for the Author’s Talk Program are still being developed, but ideas include a children’s books reading during the summer when grandkids are visiting and a talk on how to write and publish a book — something Wyatt happened to advocate for during his presentation.
“Everyone in this room has a great story, and I highly suggest that you write it down.
“Do a memoir,” he said.
“It may not be for your daughters or sons — but (for) your granddaughters and your grandsons and a third cousin that lives in Waco, Texas, who would like to read your memoir.”
