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More structured than a hangout or casual dinner party, and oftentimes an evolution of a successful book club, salons can spark lively discussions and help develop a joyful, intentional community. Learn how to cultivate deep conversations and authentic connection using Barrett’s clear guidelines and real-life examples, including helpful suggestions for handling even challenging scenarios. Readers will also hear directly from members of Linda-Marie’s own Black Swan Salon, who share their perspectives along with advice for how to build a better salon. As a bonus, this book includes 14 salon starter kits, each on a different theme, to help readers host with confidence. Agate Publishing, September 2025.
Praise for Creating a Salon “Drawing upon her experience as a bookseller and her own story of how bringing women together into literary salons elevated her own life from anxiety and disconnection to vibrancy and joy, Barrett has written more than a simple how-to book here; she has delivered a call to reclaim the joy of presence, dialogue, and the transformative power of story. Creating a Salon is a generous, intelligent, and deeply loving guide to building spaces where real people can gather for real conversation about real topics.” – Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat Pray Love |
“Linda-Marie Barrett is your guide and mentor as you resurrect the art of conversation and create the kind of soul-deep connection we’re all longing to have. This is a book to cherish and share.”
–Patti Callahan Henry, NYT Bestselling author
“A good salon is a circle where truth shows up in stories, where hearts and the messy, beautiful business of being human finds its voice—Linda-Marie Barrett's Creating a Salon lights the lantern for those ready to host that kind of magic.”
-Mary Gauthier, author of Saved by a Song
"Before reading this book, I thought of salons as a lost art--a relic of a literary and cultural past that I wished I had known. Linda-Marie Barrett shows us how we can create our own safe places for deep discussion, sharing examples from her salon and a selection of starter kits for the neophyte host. If you want to make your social life more intentional and meaningful, Linda-Marie has written you an invitation."
–Laura Stanfill, author of Imagine a Door
“On rare, rare days, a book comes along that you didn't know you needed. Linda-Marie Barrett's book is such a book. On the surface, it's a wonderfully developed guide for organizing your own salon, a place where you can "bring community into your own living room." But it's so much more. With complete vulnerability, she shares how creating a salon saved her, gave her a chance "to take back my dreams." And, guess what? She wants the same for us. I can't recommend this book enough.”
–Bren McClain, author of One Good Mama Bone
“Creating a Salon goes far beyond the useful tips and templates; it’s a beautiful invitation to meaningful connection in a world that too often settles for small talk. This book feels like a warm hug and a spark of inspiration all at once.”
–Shari Stauch, owner and founder of Main Street Reads, Summerville, SC
"We need community and ideas now more than ever, and in her new book Linda-Marie Barrett walks readers through the importance of both. This is a hopeful, reassuring book about the importance of coming together and centering conversation at a time when those things too often seem impossible. Barrett's book is a roadmap, a diagnosis, a prescription, and a balm."
-Wiley Cash, NYT Bestselling author of When Ghosts Come Home
"With this beautifully vulnerable work, Linda-Marie Barrett emerges as a wisely poetic new sage for today’s solitary souls seeking authentic connection. Offering simple ideas for facilitating thoughtful gatherings that foster truly meaningful conversations, this book reads like a timely tonic for the isolation that ails us, a gentle reminder that we’ll find the cure in one another.”
-Kimberly Brock, award-winning author of The Fabled Earth
“Linda-Marie Barrett’s Creating a Salon could not have come at a better time. As a bookstore owner who prioritizes meaningful connection with and among our community members, this book will help me structure group conversations we ourselves host.”
-Janet Geddis, owner and founder of Avid Bookshop
This book is that rare combination of inspiring and immensely useful. Linda-Marie Barrett guides us through every aspect of setting up and leading a salon and includes anecdotes and candid feedback from long-time members. Some stories brought me to tears and others made me vow to try new ways of living and connecting.”
-Sarah Goddin, McIntyre’s Books
“Reading this book feels like entering a sacred space—one that captures the quiet power of gathering with intention, where those who enter are met with curiosity, warmth, and grace. Linda-Marie Barrett illustrates how meaningful conversation can shift a life, deepen a friendship, or plant the seed for a new beginning.”
-Mitchell Kaplan, owner of Books & Books in Coral Gables, FL
–Patti Callahan Henry, NYT Bestselling author
“A good salon is a circle where truth shows up in stories, where hearts and the messy, beautiful business of being human finds its voice—Linda-Marie Barrett's Creating a Salon lights the lantern for those ready to host that kind of magic.”
-Mary Gauthier, author of Saved by a Song
"Before reading this book, I thought of salons as a lost art--a relic of a literary and cultural past that I wished I had known. Linda-Marie Barrett shows us how we can create our own safe places for deep discussion, sharing examples from her salon and a selection of starter kits for the neophyte host. If you want to make your social life more intentional and meaningful, Linda-Marie has written you an invitation."
–Laura Stanfill, author of Imagine a Door
“On rare, rare days, a book comes along that you didn't know you needed. Linda-Marie Barrett's book is such a book. On the surface, it's a wonderfully developed guide for organizing your own salon, a place where you can "bring community into your own living room." But it's so much more. With complete vulnerability, she shares how creating a salon saved her, gave her a chance "to take back my dreams." And, guess what? She wants the same for us. I can't recommend this book enough.”
–Bren McClain, author of One Good Mama Bone
“Creating a Salon goes far beyond the useful tips and templates; it’s a beautiful invitation to meaningful connection in a world that too often settles for small talk. This book feels like a warm hug and a spark of inspiration all at once.”
–Shari Stauch, owner and founder of Main Street Reads, Summerville, SC
"We need community and ideas now more than ever, and in her new book Linda-Marie Barrett walks readers through the importance of both. This is a hopeful, reassuring book about the importance of coming together and centering conversation at a time when those things too often seem impossible. Barrett's book is a roadmap, a diagnosis, a prescription, and a balm."
-Wiley Cash, NYT Bestselling author of When Ghosts Come Home
"With this beautifully vulnerable work, Linda-Marie Barrett emerges as a wisely poetic new sage for today’s solitary souls seeking authentic connection. Offering simple ideas for facilitating thoughtful gatherings that foster truly meaningful conversations, this book reads like a timely tonic for the isolation that ails us, a gentle reminder that we’ll find the cure in one another.”
-Kimberly Brock, award-winning author of The Fabled Earth
“Linda-Marie Barrett’s Creating a Salon could not have come at a better time. As a bookstore owner who prioritizes meaningful connection with and among our community members, this book will help me structure group conversations we ourselves host.”
-Janet Geddis, owner and founder of Avid Bookshop
This book is that rare combination of inspiring and immensely useful. Linda-Marie Barrett guides us through every aspect of setting up and leading a salon and includes anecdotes and candid feedback from long-time members. Some stories brought me to tears and others made me vow to try new ways of living and connecting.”
-Sarah Goddin, McIntyre’s Books
“Reading this book feels like entering a sacred space—one that captures the quiet power of gathering with intention, where those who enter are met with curiosity, warmth, and grace. Linda-Marie Barrett illustrates how meaningful conversation can shift a life, deepen a friendship, or plant the seed for a new beginning.”
-Mitchell Kaplan, owner of Books & Books in Coral Gables, FL
But wait, there’s more:
Linda-Marie Barrett is a contributor to Spinning Toward the Sun: Essays on Writing, Resilience, and the Creative Life, a guidebook for writers that blends inspiration, insight, and practical advice from an array of nationally-acclaimed and diverse authors. Contributors share personal stories and advice, offering both inspiration and hands-on guidance to fellow creatives and anyone dealing with tough times. 100% of the proceeds from every book will be evenly split between Beloved Asheville and World Central Kitchen, two key organizations dedicated to both long-term community rebuilding and immediate support for frontline workers and residents in the aftermath of Helene.
The anthology was curated by award-winning Asheville-based author Nora Shalaway Carpenter and published by Burlwood Books. March 2025
The anthology was curated by award-winning Asheville-based author Nora Shalaway Carpenter and published by Burlwood Books. March 2025
Linda-Marie Barrett edited and contributed to Naked Came the Leaf Peeper, published in 2011 by Burning Bush Press of Asheville. Called a zany Southern Appalachian take on The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Naked Came the Leaf Peeper is a serial collaborative novel representing the collective wit and genius of twelve western North Carolina authors. The novel was an immediate success and became a regional bestseller. Ron Rash, author of Serena, praises, "Naked Came the Leaf Peeper is a delight, laugh-out-loud funny and appealingly irreverent.”
More praise:
“There may be places in the world where people are better natural storytellers than the state of North Carolina–but I have yet to encounter such places or such people. This book is a blur, a buzz, a local-grown tall tale, and an absolute delight.” Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat Pray Love.
“Some of WNC’s best writers…let their hair down and run a literary relay race. Except, in place of the baton, they pass along lit firecrackers, greased pigs, whoopee cushions, rubber chickens, and loaded tater guns. Hugely entertaining…” Charles Frazier, author of Cold Mountain
More praise:
“There may be places in the world where people are better natural storytellers than the state of North Carolina–but I have yet to encounter such places or such people. This book is a blur, a buzz, a local-grown tall tale, and an absolute delight.” Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat Pray Love.
“Some of WNC’s best writers…let their hair down and run a literary relay race. Except, in place of the baton, they pass along lit firecrackers, greased pigs, whoopee cushions, rubber chickens, and loaded tater guns. Hugely entertaining…” Charles Frazier, author of Cold Mountain