Jayne Anne Phillips at Marshall

Pulitzer Prize-winning author and West Virginia native Jayne Anne Phillips will headline the A.E. Stringer Visiting Writers Series at Marshall University on Thursday, Oct. 23. The event begins at 7:30 p.m. in Brad D. Smith Foundation Hall.

Phillips is the author of six novels, including “Night Watch,” winner of the 2024 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and longlisted for the National Book Award. Her other works include “Quiet Dell,” “Lark and Termite,” “MotherKind,” “Shelter,” and “Machine Dreams,” along with two acclaimed short story collections, “Fast Lanes” and “Black Tickets.” A member of the American Academy and Institute of Arts & Letters, Phillips has also received Guggenheim, NEA, Howard, Bunting and Rockefeller Foundation fellowships.

“Bringing Jayne Anne to Marshall’s campus is a dream come true,” said Dr. Sara Henning, assistant professor of English and coordinator of the Stringer Visiting Writers Series. “Hailing from Buckhannon, right here in West Virginia, Jayne Anne’s remarkable journey and literary accomplishments serve as an inspiring testament to the heights that can be achieved through passion and an unwavering belief in one’s dreams. Her story has the power to inform our students of the boundless possibilities that exist within the literary arts and beyond, regardless of circumstance.”

This event is free and open to the public. It’s presented by Marshall University with support from the Department of English, University Libraries, HERD Humanities and Drinko Academy. For more information about the writers series, click here or follow the series on Facebook or Instagram