The Wilma Dykeman Writer-in-Residence Program, an initiative that champions voices dedicated to societal betterment, is a fitting platform for Vercher and his commitment to uplifting the stories of marginalized people.
“If we're not telling this story, somebody else is going to do it for us. And they're probably not going to do it right. To me, that is the importance,” Vercher said. “I think it's as simple as that: we have the right to our own stories and we should be able to tell them.”
Vercher’s first book, “Three-Fifths,” tells the story of a young man who reckons with his biracial identity after being involved in a hate crime. His most recent novel, “After the Lights Go Out,” follows the story of Xavier, a mixed-race MMA fighter, struggling with his traumatic brain injuries as well as his father’s battle with Alzheimers.
He was drawn to telling a story through the lens of an MMA fighter due to his own time training in the sport. His time as a physical therapist granted him a window into the realities of sports injuries and memory-loss.
“It's often clear when something on the page doesn't feel authentic, and I think the way you achieve that authenticity is through, at the very least, channeling your own experience, whether or not you're using pieces of your own experience. Especially for young, early writers, I think relying on things that you've experienced is certainly going to make your stories feel more realistic and more relatable,” Vercher said.
In general, Vercher balks at the idea of giving any one piece of advice, preferring instead to say find what works best for you as an individual and persevere. But through talking to him, you learn what has worked for him: reading often and reading widely, observing people, and being open to new possibilities.
“It's really just listening, keeping my ear out for stories that I feel like I'd love to know more about myself or would like to take on the idea of creating a story within that story. Writers have to be observers to be a good writer. You really have to take notice of the smaller details, not just big picture stuff. I would say just be open to all possibilities,” Vercher said.
Taking his own advice on being open to new ideas, his next work will be a shift in genre, delving into surrealism and magical realism. Continuing to take notes from Toni Morrison as well as authors like Han Kang and Percival Everett, he draws inspiration from their mastery of form and surrealistic narratives.
"I've been looking at books sort of the same way I look at paintings; they're both works of art but sometimes books feel confined to a certain narrative structure,” Vercher said. “There's only so much you can do with words on the page, but I feel like some of the books that have stuck out the most in my mind are the ones that really try to break out of that structure."
The book will unearth the twisted roots of history, aiming to explore and shed light on the practice of using enslaved people as human capital.
"That horrific foundation was used to create some of the largest banks and finance the expansion of the South and the North as well,” Vercher said. “I'm looking for a way to bring that to light in a fictional realm, that really points to just how absurd that idea of human capital is."
To Vercher, writing these stories is important not only as a means of creating a diversity of voices in literature but also using fiction as a portal to empathy.
"Through fiction, people tend to be more readily willing to put themselves in the character's shoes,” Vercher said. “And sort of when they inhabit that character's life they look at the world in a different way and I think that's one of the ways fiction can be really really powerful."
The Wilma Dykeman Writer-in-Residence program provides the recipient time to write in the quiet comfort of the former home of author and activist Wilma Dykeman in Asheville, North Carolina. A collaboration between the University of North Carolina Asheville and the Wilma Dykeman Legacy, the residency honors the legacy of Wilma Dykeman, a groundbreaking environmentalist, pioneering civil rights reporter, best-selling author, founder of Appalachian Studies, and a beloved daughter, wife, and mother.
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