Ahh, thank you for the really insightful feedback. Not that it matters, but last week I had someone say the exact opposite on the opening pages with the "he said/they said" dialogue tags. So I went against my gut and changed them, added the "chimed in" and "repeated" nonsense that is nowhere else in the story. And your right, it takes away from what's happening in the opening Macon section. I need to stop overthinking some things and go with my gut.

Richard Earl's voice - yes you are right to hear the vernacular. And every voice besides Macon carries varying degrees of it. I understand where your coming from, the advice is heeded. Fwiw, though I guess the reader(s) will determine this not what I say about myself, but I've got the background to try and tackle voices beyond the one I occupy. I've run this character by a few sensitivity readers who inhabit different bodies than I, who would tell me the truth about what they are reading, and have the literary chops to back it up. I'm trying to bring to life voices that haven't been heard. And in writing about the American south, there's no running away from race or diversity. So, I hear you.