Acclaimed author to serve as MSU writer-in-residence
Contact: Karyn Brown
STARKVILLE, Miss.鈥擜ccomplished author and speaker Dorothy Allison will join Mississippi 海角淫母乱伦as this year鈥檚 guest for the College of Arts and Sciences Institute for the Humanities鈥� third annual Writer-in-Residence February 29 鈥� March 4.聽
A public reading will be held March 1 at 7:30 p.m.聽in the Colvard Student Union Foster Ballroom.聽
An author of fiction, essays and poetry, Allison is best known for the bestselling novel 鈥淏astard Out of Carolina鈥澛�(1992), a finalist for the National Book Award.聽In the book, Allison offers an honest and dispassionate portrayal of a girl from a poor family who experiences and survives sexual abuse at the hands of her stepfather.
The week-long event is a collaboration with the Department of English, Gender Studies, and the College of Arts and Sciences鈥� Institute for the Humanities, along with support from a Mississippi Humanities Council grant.聽
During her visit, Allison will meet with creative writing students and participate in an informal discussion session in the聽Gender Studies program. She also will hold office hours during her stay to work with students.聽
聽鈥淥ur Writer-in-Residence program has been very successful over the past few years, and we鈥檙e delighted to have Dorothy Allison at 海角淫母乱伦.聽It鈥檚 a great opportunity for campus and community,鈥� said William Anthony Hay, Institute for the Humanities director.聽
鈥淲e welcome the public to hear Allison discuss her work at the聽Tuesday聽evening reading.聽Other parts of the聽five-day program allow students and faculty to discuss writing with an author known for her enthusiasm at taking over the creative process,鈥� he added.
Born in 1949 in Greenville, South Carolina, Allison is the oldest child born to a poor, unmarried fifteen-year-old. Raised in poverty and subjected to years of abuse, Allison has used her experiences and talent to become a voice for those who feel they don鈥檛 have one.
Among her numerous honors are the 2007 Robert Penn Warren Award, two Lambda Literary Awards, and the American Library Association Prize for Lesbian and Gay Writing.
Her work has been anthologized in both 鈥淭he Best American Short Stories鈥� and 鈥淭he Best New Stories from the South.鈥� In 1998, Allison founded聽The Independent Spirit Award, designed聽to support writers who champion small presses and independent bookstores.
Becky Hagenston, MSU associate professor of English, said Allison 鈥渁pproaches the subjects of gender, violence, class and family with compassion, directness and disarming humor.聽 In all of her work鈥攏ot just her fiction, but also her poems and essays鈥攕he鈥檚 a storyteller whose powerful voice hooks you from the get-go.鈥澛犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅犅�
For more information about Allison鈥檚 campus visit, contact Hay at whay@history.msstate.edu or Karyn Brown, College of Arts and Sciences communication director, at kbrown@deanas.msstate.edu or 662-325-7952.
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