Author Rylan Hynes ’11 presents debut novel

Hiden Barn Books hosts author Rylan Hynes ’11 and COA Professor Emeritus Bill Carpenter to discuss Hyne’s luminous debut novel, Grafting (Islandport Press, 2026), a story of second chances, forbidden love, and the courage to cultivate beauty in unforgiving soil.

Hynes (they/them) and their work have been a finalist for Proximity’s 2024 Essay Contest, the 2024 Maine Chapbook Series, Tin House’s 2024 Summer Residency for Trans Writers, and longlisted for The Masters Review’s 2023 Novel Excerpt Contest. Hynes has received multiple accolades from the Maine Writers & Publishers Alliance, such as a Martin Dibner Fellowship and an inaugural Maine Lit Fest Fellowship. Most recently, Hynes was a writer-in-residence at Monson Arts and they are an alum of the Tin House Workshop.

Hynes studied creative writing, theatre, and visual art at College of the Atlantic, and has worked at independent bookstores and publishers across the country. They serve on the Community Advisory Board for the Maine Writers & Publishers Alliance and are the communications & editorial director at The Telling Room, a nationally recognized youth-serving creative writing nonprofit based in Portland, Maine. When they aren’t busy writing, Hynes enjoys spending time with their spouse, making art, and gardening. You can find their visual art on display at the Michel Paul Artist Studio in Hallowell, Maine.

Bill Carpenter grew up in Waterville, Maine, graduated from Dartmouth, received a PhD at the University of Minnesota, and began teaching at the University of Chicago where he was assistant professor of English and humanities and the Inland Steel Postdoctoral Fellow. In 1970 he saw the startup announcement from College of the Atlantic and decided to change his life, becoming COA’s first faculty member and going on to teach at COA for 48 years. In 2019, the Maine State Legislature recognized Carpenter with a “legislative sentiment,” an honor given to Mainers for their notable achievements. Said then-Senator Erin Herbig at the Statehouse ceremony, “Over the past half century, Bill has taught world literature, Shakespeare, creative writing, history, film, Maine mythology, poetry and more to generations of students. Thank you for inspiring present and future leaders, instilling a passion for literature and creative writing in your students and enriching the great State of Maine we all know and love.”