Staff

2010 Appalachian Writers Workshop Staff:

Darnell Arnoult is the prize-winning author of What Travels With Us: Poems and the novel, Sufficient Grace. Her works have appeared in a variety of journals and she has been a faculty member at several writing workshops. She is a recipient of the Weatherford Award for Appalachian Literature and has received numerous other awards. She has taught memoir writing for the Duke Writers Workshop and at other workshops throughout the Southeast.

Pam Duncan presently teaches creative writing at Western Carolina University. Her first novel, Moon Women and second novel Plant Life established her as a major new literary voice of the South. She is the recipient of the 2007 James Still Award for Writing about the Appalachian South, awarded by the Fellowship of Southern Writers. Her third novel, The Big Beautiful, was published in 2007.

Diane Gilliam is a poet from Columbus, Ohio. Her books include; Kettle Bottom, One of Everything and Recipe for Blackberry Cake. In 2003, she was the recipient of an Ohio Arts Council Individual Artist Fellowship. She has received several awards for her book Kettle Bottom. This book was made into an audio version and aired on West Virginia Public Radio. Diane was the winner of the 2008 Chaffin Award for Appalachian Literature.

Marc Harshman has lived his adult life in West Virginia. His most recent
co-authored children’s book, Only One Neighborhood, has been described as the “rich companion to his classic Only One.” He is also the author of 10 other children’s books including The Storm, a Smithsonian Notable Book for Children and Parent’s Choice Award winner.

Silas House is the author of four bestselling novels, two plays and co-author of a nonfiction book. His writings have also been published in several journals and magazines. He currently serves as writer-in-residence at Lincoln Memorial University and in the fall of 2010 he will become the NEH Chair in Appalachian Studies at Berea College. He has won numerous awards and is presently working on his fifth novel.

George Ella Lyon is the author of more than 30 books for children and adults. She considers poetry her most essential work. Mountain won the Lamont Hall Award, Catalpa was chosen as the Appalachian Book of the Year and Where I’m From, Where Poems Come From received critical acclaim. Her collection Back is just out from Wind and LSU Press will publish She Let Herself Go in 2012.

Karen McElmurray is the author of the novel, The Motel of the Stars, which has been nominated for The Weatherford Prize in Fiction. She is also the author of Surrendered Child: A Birth Mother’s Journey and Strange Birds in the Tree of Heaven, winner of the Chaffin Award for Appalachian Writing. Karen is Associate Professor in Creative Writing at Georgia College and State University.

Robert Morgan has published 11 books of poetry and eight books of fiction including the novel Gap Creek, winner of the Southern Book Award for 2000 and a New York Times bestseller. His book Boone: A Biography won the Kentucky Book Award in 2007. He received an Academy Award from the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 2007. A native of western North Carolina, he has taught at Cornell University since 1971.

Gurney Norman has been involved with the Appalachian Writers Workshop since 1978 and is presently Senior-Writer-In-Residence for the workshop. His books include the novel Divine Rights Trip and Kinfolks, a collection of short stories. He has taught creative writing for the past 30 years at the University of Kentucky and was recently named Poet Laureate of Kentucky for 2009-2010.

Mark Powell is the author of the novels Prodigals and Blood Kin (winner of the Peter Taylor Prize for the novel). He has just completed his third novel, The House of the Lord. Mark has received fellowships from NEA and the Breadloaf Writer’s Conference, and in 2009, he received the Chaffin Award for Appalachian Literature. 

Rita Quillen's latest book of poetry, Her Secret Dream, from Wind Press won Poetry Book of the Year from the Appalachian Writer’s Association in 2007. She is currently looking for a publisher for her novel Hiding Ezra. A veteran workshop leader and participant, she has been coming to the Appalachian Writer’s Workshop since 1980. 

Barbara Smith is a freelance writer/editor and medical ethicist. Her most recent books are On Golf and Various Other Sports and Non-sports (poetry) and Through the Glass, a novel. She coordinates the participant readings during the workshop. Barbara has participated in 32 of the 33 workshops.

Lee Smith is the author of 15 works of fiction. Her novel The Last Girls was a 2002 New York Times bestseller as well as winner of the Southern Book Critics Circle Award. She has received other awards including an Academy Award in Fiction from the American Academy of Arts & Letters. Her forthcoming collection of new and selected stories, Mrs. Darcy and the Blue-Eyed Stranger, will be published in March 2010.

Crystal Wilkinson is an award-winning author whose works include Blackberries, Blackberries and Water Street. She currently teaches writing and literature in the BFA in Creative Writing Program at Morehead State University. She has also taught in the brief residency MFA in Writing Program at Spalding University and the MFA in Creative Writing at Indiana University, Bloomington.

Jack Wright's work is strongly informed by the culture of the Appalachian mountains. A founding member of Appalshop, he is an actor, documentary filmmaker and musician whose work has appeared on National Public Radio, PBS, June Appal Recordings and in Hollywood films. His recent projects include producing Music Of Coal: Mining Songs From the Appalachian Coalfields. Jack will lead the music for the workshop.