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FARRAH AUSTIN
Farrah Austin, Assistant Travel Editor for Southern Living Magazine, prides herself on knowing how to find and tell a good story.
She leaves no hamlet, holler, town, or event undiscovered. Her current duties as a travel writer for the South Central region of the United States have led her to everything from old fashioned catfish
cook-outs to Zorbing adventures in the Smoky Mountains, the grand stands of the Kentucky Derby and the chilly waters of the Shenandoah River. Her expert travel coverage in the southern
states of Arkansas and Mississippi have led to numerous accolades. Always one to keep her bags packed, notebook handy, and passport guarded, this travel maven is currently making plans to stop in a town near you. |
RICHARD BANKS
Raised in Memphis, Richard honed his skills in local media. In May
2000, he joined Southern Living as the online editor. A few years
later, he joined SPC's Custom Publishing unit, where he worked as
editorial director for almost five years. In June of 2007, he jumped
the agency ship and rejoined Southern Living's editorial staff, as the
Livings Editor. In that role Richard edits Florida Living and works
with a staff of six additional editors who conjure up the magazine's
seven other Livings sections. "It's a blast working with one of the
country's finest magazines that itself covers the country's richest
region," says Richard. "My roots have grown deep in Southern soil, yet
I'm constantly surprised how a fertile a land it is. It's home to many
of the world's brightest writers, musicians, business people, and
culinary magicians, as well as all-around genuine people…and I get to
meet and write about many of them." |
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MATT BIGELOW
Affectionately dubbed the "Web-tern," Matt Bigelow likes to consider himself at the intersection of new media and travel. Before interning at Southern Living, previous lives included Shakespearean acting, planning concerts in Hamburg, Germany, and tending horses near his hometown in sleepy, southern Michigan. |
TAYLOR BRUCE
Georgia-native Taylor Bruce joined the Southern Living Travel staff in autumn 2007 after three years of independent writing for such
magazines as Coastal Living, National Geographic Adventure, Oxford American, and Paste. When out on the road - which usually takes him to Louisiana,
Texas, Arkansas, and Missouri - Taylor seeks out the lesser-known, local's spots. Music joints, chef-driven restaurants, indie art galleries, running
trails, restored hotels. And, he's fallen in love with New Orleans. "There's no city like it in America," he says. "I go as often as I can." |
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JENNIFER COLE
Mississippi-born Jennifer V. Cole grew up in the red clay hills of Neshoba County before making her way to Yankeeland to work as an
editor for Travel + Leisure. She's climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, ridden elephant-back through the jungles of Thailand, sailed on gulets
over the Aegean Sea, and eaten her way across Europe. But now, this Mississippi girl has returned to her roots as Associate Travel
Editor for Southern Living where she is putting her intrepid sense of adventure and "gypsy feet" to work for Southern Living readers.
Look for her on the road, where you're just as likely to find her cheering at a NASCAR race as putting hotels to the test or unwinding
with a glass of bourbon (neat). |
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TANNER LATHAM
In his nine years with the magazine, Associate Travel Editor Tanner
Latham has burned up the highways in search of the best inns, barbecue
joints, and quirky destinations all over the South. He's an expert at
absolutely nothing, but you might run into him out there hiking a
trail, paddling a kayak, or sampling the local beer on tap. He's not
afraid to open any door. Especially if there's a great story on the
other side of it. |
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CAROLANNE GRIFFITH ROBERTS
Been there, done that—and ready for more! That's Carolanne's story at Southern Living. She signed on in 1985 after a career as
an entertainment writer (movie star glitz and glam). First step: proving to the editor that a West Virginian can qualify as Southern
(she came up with her great-great somebody's Confederate Army papers); Next step: anything/everything on the horizon spanning the
Mid-Atlantic to the Southwest. From tracking the tales of Olympic hopefuls (in advance of the Atlanta games) to finding the perfect
morsel for Southern mouths to savor, Carolanne operates on the theory that the best story is always around the next corner. |
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ANNETTE THOMPSON
Associate Travel Editor Annette Thompson grew up with our magazine. She started editing Southern Living cookbooks beginning with the
original Annual Recipes in 1979. As a member of the Travel section since the mid 1990s, she has traveled and written in every state, from the
Big Bend of Texas to the Eastern Shore of Maryland to the sugar sands of southwest Florida. Her gypsy nature won out during the middle of her
tenure and she ran away to the beach for a few years. The allure of traveling the South and meeting its people brought her back to the home fold.
The award-winning journalist is a member of the Society of American Travel Writers, and holds degrees in English Literature from Stetson
University and the University of Alabama in Birmingham. |
Blogs are what they are—personal riffs. This one represents
the opinion and research of an individual writer, not that of Southern
Living magazine.
