Four writers of national or international reputation are invited to read from their works each academic year, usually in October, November, March, and April.
Michael Thomas
Michael Thomas, author of Man Gone Down, a New York Times Notable Book, and winner of the IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, will read fiction at Pittsburg State University as a Distinguished Visiting Author. His reading is at 8 p.m. Thursday, November 5, in Grubbs Hall 109, and is free and open to the public.
In June of this year, Thomas was awarded the prestigious IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, one of the most lucrative literary prizes in the world-his novel was selected from 145 books nominated by libraries around the globe, of which four were from the US. The New York Times writes, "The IMPAC Dublin award is often described as 'the largest and most international' literary prize in the world after the Nobel." In a Booklist starred review of Man Gone Down, Donna Seaman wrote, "Thomas has written a rhapsodic and piercing post-9/11 lament over aggression, greed, and racism, and a ravishing blues for the soul's unending loneliness."
Thomas received his MFA from Warren Wilson College and is currently a full-time Professor of English at Hunter College in Manhattan. In an excerpt from Man Gone Down, Thomas writes of 9-11: "C's on his bunk, looking out the window. I see his face. He's a child, then he's not, at least not in his face: It's wiped clear-no chocolate, no jam smears, no innocence. Then the child returns, which is worse, because that face can't absorb the horror of the fire across the river."
Novelist Karen Stolz, Assistant Professor of Creative Writing and Literature at PSU, says, "I am thrilled we were able to get internationally recognized author Michael Thomas to come read here. Our creative writing students are really looking forward to this event." Thomas' reading is sponsored by the Distinguished Visiting Writer Series and Student Fee Council. A reception will follow Thomas' reading.
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg
Caryn Mirriam-Goldberg, Poet Laureate of Kansas from 2009-2011, will read on Thursday, September 17. Her reading, the first Distinguished Visiting Writers Series event of the year, will be held in Grubbs Hall 109 at 8 p.m. and is free and open to the public. Goldberg's books include four collections of poetry, a memoir, a writing guide, and several anthologies she edited. Her most recent books are Landed, a collection of poetry, and The Sky Begins At Your Feet, a memoir on cancer, community and coming home to the body. Former Kansas Poet Laureate Denise Low says Mirriam-Goldberg "has the ability to connect with audiences both in her writings and in person. She is warm, smart, and funny."
On becoming the 2009-2011 Kansas Poet Laureate, Mirriam-Goldberg said, "Over many years teaching and leading writing workshops in communities throughout Kansas and the U.S. and Mexico, I've continually witnessed how powerful our stories and writing can be when we speak in our own words and tell our own truths. My Poet Laureate project - 'Poetry Across Kansas: Reading and Writing Our Way Home' -- offers communities opportunities for not just readings and writing workshops, but support for ongoing writing circles facilitated by local writers, teachers, artists and community members."
Mirriam-Goldberg founded Transformative Language Arts, a master's degree in social and personal transformation through writing, storytelling and performance, which is part of Goddard College's Individualized MA program. Mirriam-Goldberg has taught at Goddard since 1996, and she received her Ph.D. and MA in English from the University of Kansas. Her monthly radio show, "Write From Your Life," is part of High Plains Public Radio's "High Plains in Words" series, and she offers writing prompts and links to podcasts of the radio show at her blog. Her website is www.CarynMirriamGoldberg.com.
Mirriam-Goldberg's reading is sponsored by the Distinguished Visiting Writers Series and the Student Fee Council. A reception will be held after the reading.
Victor J. Emmett, Jr., Memorial Lecture
Each year in September, the winner of the Victor J. Emmett Memorial Prize for the best essay on a literary topic submitted to The Midwest Quarterly is invited to Pittsburg State to receive the Emmett Prize and to deliver a scholarly lecture. The award is given in memory of the late Dr. Victor J. Emmett, Jr., who, before his death in 1990, was for twenty-three years a Professor of English at Pittsburg State. He also served as editor-in-chief of MQ from 1976-1981. The award is sponsored by the Emmett family, The Midwest Quarterly, and the English Department of Pittsburg State.