Mary Hood is a fiction writer of predominantly Southern literature, who has authored three short story collections – How Far She Went, And Venus is Blue and A Clear View of the Southern Sky – two novellas – And Venus is Blue and Seam Busters – and a novel, Familiar Heat. She also regularly publishes essays and reviews in literary and popular magazines.

Sylvester is the county seat of Worth County, Georgia, United States. The population was 5,644 in 2020. The city is the county seat and business center of Worth County and is claimed to be the Peanut Capital of the World due to its peanut production.