2022 Festival
Highlights
The Mississippi Book Festival’s eighth edition was proof of its resilience. Back in-person and at full force, the festival welcomed a healthy sum of 6,200 book lovers to see and hear from 164 authors on 50 official panels and writing workshops, plus over 90 in Authors Alley. Fans delighted in the friendly conversation between Alice Walker (The Color Purple) and Kiese Laymon (Long Division), the open charm of Candice Millard (River of the Gods), Lauren Groff’s (Matrix) meticulous detailing, Jennifer Egan’s (The Candy House) methodology, the unwavering wisdom of Jericho Brown (The Tradition), and the candor of Ellen Gilchrist (Victory Over Japan) discussing her illustrious writing career. The debut of live streaming from the Galloway Sanctuary expanded the festival-day audience exponentially. Leading up to and through the festival, Matt de la Peña (Milo Imagines the World), and Andrew Aydin with Nate Powell (RUN: Book One) engaged 24,000-plus students at events in downtown Jackson and live webinars in classrooms across the state, with more than 3,300 free books put into the hands of students. Gulf Coast and Delta kick-off events along with school visits rounded out a total outreach of more than 30,000 in a 72-hour celebration of the written word. 2022 Funders >
Video
Panels
- (Re)shaping Public Discourse: Robert E. Luckett Jr., Eddie S. Glaude Jr., James Kirchick, Imani Perry
- Blackout: Ebony Lumumba, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk
- Book Club Picks : Lyn Roberts, Sarah Adlakha, Jennifer Fawcett, Katherine St. John
- Catalysts for Change: Gwendolyn Harmon, Aram Goudsouzian, Chris Joyner, Robert S. McElvaine, Jodi Skipper
- Civil Rights: Pamela Junior, David J. Dennis, Jr., David J. Dennis, Sr., Dr. Leslie-Burl McLemore
- Crime & Narrative: Michael Morris, Beverly Lowry, Jerry Mitchell, Curtis Wilkie
- Debut: Jerid P. Woods, Morgan Jerkins, Juhea Kim, Brendan Slocumb, Mecca Jamilah Sullivan
- Decidedly Southern: Patrick Dean, David Crews, Josh Foreman, Julie Hines Mabus, Chris McLaughlin, Ty Pinkins
- Food & Faith with Michael W. Twitty: Marcie Cohen Ferris, Michael W. Twitty
- Grisham Writers in Residence: Tom Franklin, Mary Miller, Aimee Nezhukumatathil, January Gill O’Neil, Steve Yarbrough
- Historical Fiction: Snowden Wright, Matt Bondurant, Taylor Brown, David Wright Faladé, Sadeqa Johnson
- History on the Open Sea: Matthew Casey, Eric Jay Dolin, Ben Raines
- Humor & Hope : Harrison Scott Key, Todd Doughty, Helen Ellis, Mary Laura Philpott
- In Conversation with Alice Walker: Kiese Laymon, Alice Walker
- In Conversation with Candice Millard: Katie Blount, Candice Millard
- In Conversation with Ellen Gilchrist: Holly Lange, Ellen Gilchrist
- In Conversation with Jericho Brown: Beth Ann Fennelly, Jericho Brown
- In Conversation with Jonathan Martin: Steve Hayes, Jonathan Martin
- KidNote: Crafting Stories with Matt de la Peña: Matt de la Peña
- KidNote: Drawing History: Margaret McMullan, Andrew Aydin, Nate Powell
- Literary Fiction: Katy Simpson Smith, Laird Hunt, Mesha Maren, Antoine Wilson
- Memoir: C. Liegh McInnis, Kendra Allen, Jami Attenberg, Susan Annah Currie, David Magee
- Middle Grade Dreams: Clara Martin Hammett, Jimmy Cajoleas, Alda P. Dobbs, Linda Williams Jackson, Angela May
- Mississippi Sports Legends: Mike Frascogna, Jr., James R. Crockett, Steve Robertson, Neil White
- Photography: A Picture of History: W. Ralph Eubanks, William R. Ferris, Andrew Feiler, Berkley Hudson
- Picture This!: Ellen Ruffin, Lesa Cline-Ransome, Erin Napier, Carmen Oliver, James Ransome, Carlie Sorosiak
- Poetry: Adam Clay, James Dickson, Saddiq Dzukogi , Melissa Ginsburg, Joshua Nguyen, Catherine Pierce
- Pride & Prejudice: Sarah Heying, torrin a. greathouse, Casey Parks, C.T. Salazar
- Reflecting Mississippi : Stuart Rockoff, W. Ralph Eubanks, Kiese Laymon, Mary Miller, Aimee Nezhukumatathil
- Remembering Willie Morris: Sid Salter, Jack Bales, David Rae Morris, Lawrence Wells
- Rhythms of a Region: Scott Barretta, Scott Billington, Daniel de Visé, Marissa R. Moss
- Ride The Overground Railroad: Ellen Ruffin, Lesa Cline-Ransome, James Ransome
- Short Stories: Tracy Carr, Becky Hagenston, Ladee Hubbard
- Southern Fiction: Lauren Rhoades, Mark Barr, Eli Cranor, Olivia Clare Friedman, Steve Yarbrough
- Speculative Fiction: Shaun Hamill, Andy Davidson, Tim Fielder, Jenn Lyons
- Talk From the Start: Susan Garrard, Erin Napier, Brittney Newell, Kyle Zimmer, Ruth W. Patterson, Michael Cormack
- Taste of the South: Beth Ann Fennelly, Vishwesh Bhatt, Marcie Cohen Ferris, Matt Haines
- The Art and Life of Walter Anderson: Julian Rankin, John Anderson, Jason Bouldin, Robert St. John, Anthony Thaxton
- The Art of Bookmaking: Lee Harper, Ke Francis, William Lester, Claire Whitehurst
- The Great Migration: Ryan N. Dennis, Morgan Jerkins, Imani Perry, Dr. Willie Wright
- The State of Political Journalism: Alan Lange, David M. Drucker, Jonathan Martin, Steve Hayes
- The Writing Matrix with Lauren Groff: Lauren Groff
- Uniquely American History: Chris Goodwin, Rinker Buck, Brian Castner, Jeff Guinn
- Welty Foundation Speaker: Jennifer Egan: Jennifer Egan
- World War II from the Air: Marshall Ramsey, Kevin Maurer, James M. Scott
- Young Adult: Sami Thomason-Fyke, Kathleen Glasgow, Bethany Mangle, Adrienne Young
Activities
In Conversation with Ellen Gilchrist
Presented by Mississippi Library Commission; Jordan & Jim Perry
Mississippi Book Festival’s former executive director and lifelong Gilchrist fan looks back over a lifetime of work with the acclaimed novelist, short story writer, poet, Mississippi native, and National Book Award winner.
- Holly Lange (moderator)
- Ellen Gilchrist
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In Conversation with Jericho Brown
Presented by Jones Walker LLP; University of Mississippi College of Liberal Arts
Jericho Brown sits down with former Mississippi Poet Laureate Beth Ann Fennelly for a conversation about his latest poetry collection The Tradition, which won the Pulitzer Prize in 2020.
- Beth Ann Fennelly (moderator) – Heating & Cooling: 52 Micro-Memoirs
- Jericho Brown – The Tradition
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Civil Rights
Presented by Mississippi Humanities Council; Pigott Law Firm
COVERAGE PROVIDED BY C-SPAN
ROOM BY BUTLER SNOW
A Civil Rights organizer and his son, the prize-winning journalist who recorded their shared story, speak with a fellow author and activist about the movement that molded a nation.
- Pamela D.C. Junior (moderator)
- David J. Dennis, Jr. - The Movement Made Us: A Father, a Son, and the Legacy of a Freedom Ride
- David J. Dennis, Sr.
- Dr. Leslie-Burl McLemore – In the Name of Emmett Till: How the Children of the Mississippi Freedom Struggle Showed Us Tomorrow
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KidNote: Crafting Stories with Matt de la Peña
Presented by The Phil Hardin Foundation; Fay B. Kaigler Children’s Book Festival
Newberry Medalist and Caldecott Award winner Matt de la Peña brings readers Milo Imagines the World, a poignant picture book with a surprising conclusion.
- Matt de la Peña - Milo Imagines the World
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Ride The Overground Railroad
Presented by USM de Grummond Children's Literature Collection; Mississippi Museum of Art
Join the award-winning husband and wife team who created Before She Was Harriet for a family-friendly trip on the Overground Railroad and a discussion of This is the Rope to see the Great Migration through the eyes of children.
- Ellen Hunter Ruffin (moderator)
- Lesa Cline-Ransome - Overground Railroad
- James Ransome - Overground Railroad / This is the Rope: A Story from the Great Migration
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In Conversation with Candice Millard
Presented by Louisa Dixon & Jerry Johnson; Friends of the Library of the University of Mississippi
Mississippi Department of Archives and History director Katie Blount joins bestselling author Candice Millard for a conversation about her journey uncovering one of the greatest quests in history: the search for the source of the Nile.
- Katie Blount (moderator)
- Candice Millard – River of the Gods: Genius, Courage, and Betrayal in the Search for the Source of the Nile
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Mississippi Sports Legends
Presented by Mississippi State University Libraries; Marie & Brian Sanderson
Three sports writers discuss several of the most memorable events in Mississippi’s athletic history.
- Mike Frascogna, Jr. (moderator) – Y'all vs. Us: Thrilling Tales of the Hottest High School Football Rivalries
- James R. Crockett – Rulers of the SEC: Ole Miss and Mississippi State, 1959-1966
- Steve Robertson – Dawg Pile: A Celebration of Mississippi State’s 2021 National Championship Baseball Season
- Neil White
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Middle Grade Dreams
Presented by Cornerstone Consulting Group
Four middle grade authors celebrate resilient young characters who craft dreams of equality and adventure.
- Clara Martin Hammett (moderator)
- Jimmy Cajoleas - Gussy
- Alda P. Dobbs - Barefoot Dreams of Petra Luna
- Linda Williams Jackson - The Lucky Ones
- Angela May - Search for Treasure
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Historical Fiction
Presented by Natchez Literary & Cinema Celebration
History resurfaces with new urgency in the work of four novelists whose books will thrill those interested in flight, fight, and freedom.
- Snowden Wright (moderator) – American Pop: A Novel
- Matt Bondurant – Oleander City
- Taylor Brown – Wingwalkers
- David Wright Faladé – Black Cloud Rising
- Sadeqa Johnson – Yellow Wife
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Picture This!
Presented by Janet & Luther Ott; Sara & Bill Ray
Families are invited to join the authors and illustrators of best-selling picture books for an incredible learning experience about animals, home, and history.
- Ellen Hunter Ruffin (moderator)
- Lesa Cline-Ransome - Before She Was Harriet
- Erin Napier - The Lantern House
- Carmen Oliver - The Twilight Library
- James Ransome - Sonny Rollins Plays the Bridge
- Carlie Sorosiak - Everywhere with You
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(Re)shaping Public Discourse
Presented by Mississippi Humanities Council; University of Mississippi Center for the Study of Southern Culture
Panelists use the written word to explore the negative impact the first amendment right to free speech can have on specific groups and the positive potential of civil discourse.
- Robert E. Luckett Jr. – Redefining Liberal Arts Education in the Twenty-First Century (moderator)
- Eddie S. Glaude Jr. – Begin Again: James Baldwin’s America and Its Urgent Lessons for Our Own
- James Kirchick – Secret City: The Hidden History of Gay Washington
- Imani Perry - South to America: A Journey Below the Mason-Dixon to Understand the Soul of a Nation
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Food & Faith with Michael W. Twitty
Presented by Holly & Bucky Crystal; H.T. White Family Fund
Join the James Beard Award-winning author of The Cooking Gene, Michael W. Twitty for a personal journey through African and Jewish culinary traditions.
- Marcie Cohen Ferris (moderator)
- Michael W. Twitty – Koshersoul: The Faith and Food Journey of an African American Jew
Meet this author in the signing tent at 12:15 pm.
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Memoir
Presented by Pyron Group Insurance
Unpack the cathartic power of reflection with four memoirists whose books explain how a handful of pivotal moments can shape a life.
- C. Liegh McInnis (moderator)
- Kendra Allen - Fruit Punch: A Memoir
- Jami Attenberg – I Came All This Way to Meet You: Writing Myself Home
- Susan Annah Currie - The Preventorium
- David Magee - Dear William: A Father’s Memoir of Addiction, Recovery, Love, and Loss
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Humor & Hope
Presented by PATH Company; Bethany & Lucien Smith
Prepare for a wild ride with some of the festival's funniest panelists who incorporate wit and tenderness to shed light on personal struggles and illuminate the power of a joke well-told.
- Harrison Scott Key (moderator) - Congratulations, Who Are You Again?
- Todd Doughty - Little Pieces of Hope
- Helen Ellis - Bring your Baggage and Don’t Pack Light
- Mary Laura Philpott - Bomb Shelter
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Speculative Fiction
Presented by University of Southern Mississippi Center for Writers
Children embrace monsters, rulers risk nations, and preachers save witches in the works of these speculative writers, who speak on their use of sci-fi, horror, and fantasy to construct stories of survival.
- Shaun Hamill (moderator) - A Cosmology of Monsters
- Andy Davidson - The Boatman’s Daughter
- Tim Fielder - Infinitum: An Afrofuturist Tale
- Jenn Lyons – The Discord of Gods
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KidNote: Drawing History
Presented by The James & Madeleine McMullan Family Foundation
Collaborators discuss bringing John Lewis’s Civil Rights journey to life in graphic novel form.
- Margaret McMullan (moderator) – Where Angels Lived: Our Family’s Story of Exile, Loss, & Return
- Andrew Aydin – Run: Book One
- Nate Powell – Run: Book One
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Documentary Screening of “Promised Land: A Story of Mound Bayou”
Presented by Mississippi Heritage Trust; Red Squared, LLC; TELL Agency
In partnership with the Mississippi Heritage Trust, Red Squared has worked with community leaders and historians to create a film that tells the nationally significant story of Mound Bayou, MS. Join the filmmaker and special guest for a film sneak peek and discussion.
Poetry
Presented by Mississippi Center for the Book; Mississippi State University College of Arts & Sciences
Poets from Mississippi and elsewhere grapple with beauty, language, and loss on a panel that explores humanity’s place in a rapidly shifting world.
- Adam Clay (moderator) - To Make Room for the Sea
- James Dickson - Some Sweet Vandal
- Saddiq Dzukogi - Your Crib, My Qibla
- Melissa Ginsburg - Doll Apollo
- Joshua Nguyen - Come Clean
- Catherine Pierce - Danger Days
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Short Stories
Presented by Mississippi State University Department of English
Panelists demonstrate incredible range in short story collections on race, gender, and identity as they chronicle the experiences and abilities of female characters and the communities they love.
- Tracy Carr (moderator)
- Becky Hagenston – The Age of Discovery and Other Stories
- Ladee Hubbard – The Last Suspicious Holdout
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In Conversation with Alice Walker
* Alice Walker will now be joining us virtually this Saturday for her live conversation with Kiese Laymon. Please join us in the Galloway Sanctuary at 12:00 pm for her real-time, historic talk with Kiese Laymon! *
Presented by Jackson State University and Margaret Walker Center
To celebrate the fortieth anniversary of her Pulitzer Prize-winning book The Color Purple, Alice Walker joins Jackson native and Carnegie Medalist Kiese Laymon for a conversation about the book’s legacy as well as the release of her journals which cover her time living in Jackson.
- Kiese Laymon (moderator) – Long Division
- Alice Walker – The Color Purple / Gathering Blossoms Under Fire: The Journals of Alice Walker, 1965-2000
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Pride & Prejudice
Presented by LGBTQ Fund of Mississippi; Beard + Riser Architects
Gender and identity claim center stage for these panelists who emphasize language as a means of personal and poetic expression.
- Sarah Heying (moderator)
- torrin a. greathouse – Wound from the Mouth of a Wound
- Casey Parks – Diary of a Misfit: A Memoir and a Mystery
- C.T. Salazar- Headless John the Baptist Hitchhiking
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Literary Fiction
Presented by Mississippi Humanities Council
Listen in as Katy Simpson Smith leads a panel discussion on character driven stories that are powerful and haunting.
- Katy Simpson Smith (moderator) - The Everlasting: A Novel
- Laird Hunt – Zorrie
- Mesha Maren – Perpetual West
- Antoine Wilson – Mouth to Mouth
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World War II from the Air
Presented by University of Southern Mississippi Dale Center for the Study of War & Society
COVERAGE PROVIDED BY C-SPAN
ROOM BY BUTLER SNOW
Marshall Ramsey sits down with three bestselling authors for a new take on the biggest war in history. This panel surveys devastating air operations, cities laid bare, and the ones who lived to tell the tale.
- Marshall Ramsey (moderator) – Drawing the Line
- Kevin Maurer – Damn Lucky: One Man’s Courage During the Bloodiest Military Campaign in Aviation History
- James M. Scott – Black Snow: Curtis LeMay, the Firebombing of Tokyo, and the Road to the Atomic Bomb
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Talk From the Start
Presented by Barksdale Reading Institute; Mississippi Children’s Museum
Five children’s literacy advocates shed light on ways to foster learning and literacy in your home and community.
- Susan Garrard (moderator)
- Ruth W. Patterson
- Erin Napier – The Lantern House
- Brittney Newell
- Kyle Zimmer
- Michael Cormack
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The Art of Bookmaking
Presented by Jane Hiatt / Hiatt Fund of Community Foundation for Mississippi
Four visual artists discuss their exploratory perspectives in the artistry of bookmaking.
- Lee Harper (moderator) - Tiny Oxford
- Ke Francis - numerous one-of-a-kind art books
- William Lester - The Goodness
- Claire Whitehurst - Mirror Drawings
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Book Club Picks
Presented by The Source by BankPlus; Wise Carter Child & Caraway
Three authors take the stage for a panel of page-turners in which the conversation covers Caribbean islands, French spies, and menacing houses.
- Lyn Roberts (moderator)
- Sarah Adlakha - Midnight on the Marne
- Jennifer Fawcett - Beneath the Stairs
- Katherine St. John - The Siren
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Grisham Writers in Residence
Presented by Nautilus Publishing; University of Mississippi Department of English
John and Renée Grisham’s residency program at the University of Mississippi selects emerging writers for a teaching and writing experience. This panel convenes past award recipients for a conversation on their latest literary endeavors.
- Tom Franklin (moderator) - Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter
- Mary Miller - Biloxi
- Aimee Nezhukumatathil - World of Wonders: In Praise of Fireflies, Whale Sharks, & Other Astonishments
- January Gill O’Neil - Rewilding
- Steve Yarbrough - Stay Gone Days
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Uniquely American History
Presented by Morella & John Henegan; Mississippi Department of Archives & History
COVERAGE PROVIDED BY C-SPAN
ROOM BY BUTLER SNOW
Explore American history with three nonfiction writers whose stories feature Pancho Villa’s raid on a US border town, the rush for Klondike gold, and one man’s trip down the Mighty Mississippi.
- Chris Goodwin (moderator)
- Rinker Buck - Life on the Mississippi: An Epic American Adventure
- Brian Castner - Stampede: Gold Fever and Disaster in the Klondike
- Jeff Guinn - War on the Border: Villa, Pershing, the Texas Rangers, and an American Invasion
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Debut
Presented by Bailey & Carr Families; Ellen & Greg Daniels
First time novelists bring fresh insights as their characters navigate poverty, heartbreak, and societal pressures to conform, with disarming honesty and aplomb.
- Jerid P. Woods (moderator)
- Morgan Jerkins - Caul Baby
- Juhea Kim - Beasts of a Little Land
- Brendan Slocumb - The Violin Conspiracy
- Mecca Jamilah Sullivan - Big Girl
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Photography: A Picture of History
Presented by Fischer Galleries; Mississippi Humanities Council
Featured panelists reveal photograph collections surveying the intricacies of race relations in the American South before and after the Civil Rights era.
- W. Ralph Eubanks - A Place Like Mississippi: A Journey Through a Real and Imagined Literary Landscape (moderator)
- William R. Ferris - I AM A MAN: Photographs of the Civil Rights Movement, 1960-1970
- Andrew Feiler - A Better Life for Their Children: Julius Rosenwald, Booker T. Washington, and the 4,978 Schools That Changed America
- Berkley Hudson - O. N. Pruitt’s Possum Town: Photographing Trouble and Resilience in the American South
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In Conversation with Jonathan Martin
Presented by Frontier Strategies; Pass Christian Books
NBC News Political Analyst Steve Hayes, co-founder and editor of The Dispatch, will sit down with New York Times national political correspondent Jonathan Martin to talk all things politics, including his bestselling book about covering the 2020 presidential campaign and the events of January 6—and how those 18 months of upheaval continue to shape the political landscape today.
- Steve Hayes (moderator)
- Jonathan Martin – This Will Not Pass: Trump, Biden and the Battle for America's Future
The Writing Matrix with Lauren Groff
Presented by The Crooks Foundation
Join Lauren Groff as she explores her latest novel, The Matrix, and shares insights on her writing life thus far.
- Lauren Groff – The Matrix
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Due to contractual agreements, a few panels are not available as recorded sessions, but we would be happy to tell you all about them!
Young Adult
Presented by Terry Hunt & Dick Molpus
Join three young adult authors for a conversation about the trials and tribulations of adolescence, including love, friendship, and belonging.
- Sami Thomason-Fyke (moderator)
- Kathleen Glasgow - You'd Be Home Now
- Bethany Mangle - All the Right Reasons
- Adrienne Young - Namesake
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Write What You Imagine
Presented by The James & Madeleine McMullan Family Foundation
Join Liz Egan, the director of the McMullan Young Writers Workshop, in this workshop for writers of all ages and skill levels. Starting with the poet John Keats’ idea of “negative capability,” writers practice exploring the viewpoint of someone (or something) other than oneself. Turning the “write what you know” adage on its head, this workshop invites participants to push the boundaries of what is known in order to write what you imagine.
The Great Migration
Presented by Mississippi Museum of Art; Chism Strategies
Acclaimed cultural critics trace the movement of Black communities during The Great Migration through interwoven stories of modern-day artists, immigrant laborers, and their own ancestors. In doing so, they uncover powerful truths about personal and national narratives.
- Ryan N. Dennis (moderator) - A Movement in Every Direction: A Great Migration Critical Reader
- Morgan Jerkins – Wandering in Strange Lands: A Daughter of the Great Migration Reclaims Her Roots
- Imani Perry – South to America: A Journey Below the Mason-Dixon to Understand the Soul of a Nation
- Dr. Willie Wright
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Welty Foundation Speaker: Jennifer Egan
Presented by The Eudora Welty Foundation
Jennifer Egan—winner of the Pulitzer Prize, the National Book Critics Circle Award, and many other honors—speaks on her latest novel The Candy House through the generous support of the Eudora Welty Foundation.
- Jennifer Egan - The Candy House
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Due to contractual agreements, a few panels are not available as recorded sessions, but we would be happy to tell you all about them!
Decidedly Southern
Presented by Friends of the Washington County Community Foundation; Mississippi Department of Archives & History
Southern culture is represented by the men and women who lived it in this panel featuring curated selections from a Southern beauty queen, a man who worked his way from picking cotton to sleeping in the White House, the founder of the largest post-Katrina grassroots pet rescue operation, and more.
- Patrick Dean (moderator) - A Window to Heaven: The Daring First Ascent of Denali: America's Wildest Peak
- David Crews – Mississippi Book of Quotations
- Josh Foreman – Death Along the Natchez Trace
- Julie Hines Mabus – Confessions of a Southern Beauty Queen
- Chris McLaughlin – Mississippi Barking: Hurricane Katrina and a Life that Went to the Dogs
- Ty Pinkins – 23 Miles and Running: My American Journey from Chopping Cotton in the Mississippi Delta to Sleeping in the White House
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History on the Open Sea
Presented by Bob Montgomery in memory of Margaret R. Montgomery; FORVIS, LLC
COVERAGE PROVIDED BY C-SPAN
ROOM BY BUTLER SNOW
Maritime historians tell true tales of rebellion and recovery on the open ocean.
- Matthew Casey (moderator)
- Eric Jay Dolin – Rebels at Sea: Privateering in the American Revolution
- Ben Raines – The Last Slave Ship: The True Story of How Clotilda Was Found, Her Descendants, and an Extraordinary Reckoning
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Blackout
Presented by Mississippi Humanities Council; Mississippi Today; Moore Media Group
Four of YA’s biggest names, including Jackson’s own Angie Thomas, come together for an afternoon of sparks as panelists discuss their collaboration on Blackout and the changing landscape of today’s Young Adult Literature.
- Ebony Lumumba (moderator)
- Tiffany D. Jackson - Blackout
- Nic Stone - Blackout
- Angie Thomas - Blackout
- Ashley Woodfolk - Blackout
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Crime & Narrative
Presented by Nancy & Cecil Brown; Forman Watkins & Krutz LLP
Follow three of the state’s most beloved writers down the dark trail of murder in Mississippi.
- Michael Morris (moderator)
- Beverly Lowry – Deer Creek Drive: A Reckoning of Memory and Murder in the Mississippi Delta
- Jerry Mitchell – Race Against Time: A Reporter Reopens the Unsolved Murder Cases of the Civil Rights Era
- Curtis Wilkie – When Evil Lived in Laurel: The “White Knights” and the Murder of Vernon Dahmer
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Rhythms of a Region
Presented by First Commercial Bank; Frankie & Roberts Wilson
Sound spans genres when a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, a Grammy Award-winning music producer, and a Rolling Stone Excellence Award-winning reporter unpack the stories of music legends.
- Scott Barretta (moderator)
- Scott Billington - Making Tracks: A Record Producer’s Southern Roots Music Journey
- Daniel de Visé - King of the Blues: The Rise and Reign of B.B. King
- Marissa R. Moss - Her Country: How the Women of Country Music Became the Success They were Never Supposed to Be
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Southern Fiction
Presented by Madison County Magazine; University of Southern Mississippi Center for Writers
Critically-acclaimed novelists, both long-established and recently-debuted, come together to exchange ideas about the future of Southern Fiction.
- Lauren Rhoades (moderator)
- Mark Barr – Watershed
- Eli Cranor - Don't Know Tough
- Olivia Clare Friedman - Here Lies
- Steve Yarbrough - Stay Gone Days
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Remembering Willie Morris
Presented by Carolyn & Chris Ray; Mississippi State University Department of Communication
Family members and collaborators address work on the influence of one of Mississippi’s best-known contemporary writers before delving into personal encounters with the man himself.
- Sid Salter (moderator) – Jack Cristil: Voice of the MSU Bulldogs
- Jack Bales - Conversations with Willie Morris
- David Rae Morris - Love, Daddy: Letters from My Father
- Lawrence Wells - In Faulkner’s Shadow
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Reflecting Mississippi
Presented by Mississippi Humanities Council
To celebrate its fiftieth anniversary, the Mississippi Humanities Council hosts “Reflecting Mississippi,” a panel that explores Mississippi’s history through a variety of genres.
- Stuart Rockoff (moderator)
- W. Ralph Eubanks - A Place Like Mississippi: A Journey Through a Real and Imagined Literary Landscape
- Kiese Laymon – Long Division
- Mary Miller – Biloxi
- Aimee Nezhukumatathil – World of Wonders: In Praise of Fireflies, Whale Sharks, & Other Astonishments
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Taste of the South
Presented by Carol Puckett & John Palmer; Robert St. John
Take a mouth-watering journey across the South with food writers and chefs whose recipes range from grilled pork tenderloin to Crescent City king cake.
- Beth Ann Fennelly (moderator)
- Vishwesh Bhatt - I Am from Here: Stories and Recipes from a Southern Chef
- Marcie Cohen Ferris - Edible North Carolina: A Journey Across a State of Flavor
- Matt Haines - The Big Book of King Cake
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Catalysts for Change
Presented by Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP; University of Southern Mississippi Center for the Study of the Gulf South
Join the conversation on racial justice with four authors whose work spans decades, from the grievances fought by James Meredith and Clarence Henderson to the rippling effects felt in America today.
- Gwendolyn Harmon (moderator)
- Aram Goudsouzian – Man on a Mission: James Meredith and the Battle of Ole Miss
- Chris Joyner – The Three Death Sentences of Clarence Henderson: A Battle for Racial Justice at the Dawn of the Civil Rights Era
- Robert S. McElvaine – The Times They Were a-Changin': 1964, the Year the Sixties Arrived and the Battle Lines of Today Were Drawn
- Jodi Skipper – Behind the Big House: Reconciling Slavery, Race, and Heritage in the U.S. South
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The Art and Life of Walter Anderson
Presented by The Roost & The Hemingway Boutique Hotels in Ocean Springs, MS
The life and work of Mississippi’s most beloved islander, Walter Anderson, is reflected upon by family and others who have been inspired by him.
- Julian Rankin (moderator) - Catfish Dream: Ed Scott’s Fight for His Family Farm and Racial Justice in the Mississippi Delta
- John Anderson
- Jason Bouldin
- Robert St. John - Walter Anderson: The Extraordinary Life & Art of the Islander
- Anthony Thaxton - Walter Anderson: The Extraordinary Life & Art of the Islander
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The State of Political Journalism
Presented by Capitol Resources, LLC and Fair and Paul Hurst, with special support provided by the Mississippi Humanities Council
COVERAGE PROVIDED BY C-SPAN
ROOM BY BUTLER SNOW
Bestselling political correspondents and consultants discuss their books which delve into the most relevant matters in American politics today.
- Alan Lange (moderator) – Kings of Tort
- David M. Drucker – In Trump’s Shadow: The Battle for 2024 and the Future of the GOP
- Steve Hayes
- Jonathan Martin - This Will Not Pass: Trump, Biden, and the Battle for America’s Future