Sean Dietrich aka "Sean of the South".jpg, Sean Dietrich is a columnist, novelist, and stand-up storyteller known for his commentary on life in the American South.] Sean Dietrich, nicknamed "Sean of the South", is an American writer of books and newspaper columns. His focus is on the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

and its people. Dietrich was born in

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

but after his father's suicide, when he was 12, he moved with his family to

Walton County, Florida Walton County is located on the Emerald Coast in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Florida, with its southern border on the Gulf of Mexico. As of the 2020 census, the population was 75,305. Its county seat is DeFuniak Springs. The co ...

, at age 14. He dropped out of school and worked construction and other jobs, then became a professional musician. After going back to school he discovered writing. He has published more than ten books (some of them self-published), and has written columns for the ''

Mobile Press Register The ''Press-Register'' (known from 1997 to 2006 as the ''Mobile Register'') is a thrice-weekly newspaper serving the southwest Alabama counties of Mobile and Baldwin. The newspaper is a descendant of one founded in 1813, making the ''Press-Regi ...

'', ''

Tallahassee Democrat The ''Tallahassee Democrat'' is a daily broadsheet newspaper. It covers the area centered on Tallahassee in Leon County, Florida, as well as adjacent Gadsden County, Jefferson County, and Wakulla County. The newspaper is owned by Gannett Co., ...

'', and ''

The Bitter Southerner ''The Bitter Southerner'' is a digital publication that was created on August 6, 2013, by Chuck Reece, Dave Whitling, Kyle Tibbs Jones, and Butler Raines. The publication is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. The website publishes feature leng ...

''. He lives in Birmingham, Alabama, and has gained a following, especially in Alabama (his wife Jamie is a chef from

Brewton, Alabama Brewton is a city in and the county seat of Escambia County, Alabama, Escambia County, Alabama, United States. At the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 5,276. Brewton is located in south central Alabama, just north of ...

) and identifies with its people. Since 2014 he has written a blog called "Sean of the South". He writes a blog entry every day read by an estimated 125,000 people. Dietrich has written more than 1,500 columns which have been published in seven books. Don Noble, professor of American literature and critic who reviewed ''Whistling Dixie'', praised the funny and quirky titles and the uplifting spirit of the 500-word pieces, though he noted that one should read only one a day, "any more gets cloying".

Works

Fiction

* ''Lyla'' (2014) * ''The Other Side of the Bay'' (2015) * ''Stars of Alabama'' (2019) * ''The Incredible Winston Browne'' (2021) * ''You Are My Sunshine'' (2022)

Short story collections

* ''Sean of the South: Volume 1'' (2015) * ''Sean of the South: Volume 2'' (2015) * ''Sean of the South: Whistling Dixie'' (2015) * ''Small Towns, Labradors, Barbecue, Biscuits, Beer, and Bibles'' (2016) * ''On the Road with Sean of the South'' (2016) * ''Caution: This Vehicle Makes Frequent Stops For Boiled Peanuts'' (2016) * ''The South's Okayest Writer: The Adventures of a Boy Columnist'' (2018) * ''The Absolute Worst Christmas of All Time'' (2020)

Memoir

* ''Will the Circle be Unbroken?'' (2020)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dietrich, Sean Living people Writers from Missouri People from Walton County, Florida Writers of American Southern literature 1982 births