COLUMBUS \u2014 Book lovers in Northeast Mississippi will have the opportunity to meet authors representing genres spanning nonfiction, poetry, romance and more on Aug. 16 at the second Possumtown Book Fest.<\/p>\n
The festival will feature eight literary panels throughout the day, starting at 9:15 a.m., as well as a children\u2019s program and local author showcase running concurrently during the morning.<\/p>\n
Marshall Ramsey will be the featured children\u2019s book author. A well-known editorial cartoonist whose work has appeared in Mississippi Today and the Clarion-Ledger for three decades and has been nominated for two Pulitzer Prizes, Ramsey is the author and illustrator of \u201cSaving Sam: A Banjo the Dog Story.\u201d Children attending storytime will receive a free copy of the book while supplies last, courtesy of Friendly City Books\u2019 nonprofit arm.<\/p>\n
In all, more than 50 authors are expected to participate at the Possumtown Book Fest, with more to be announced in the coming weeks. All panels and activities are free and open to the public. Last year, nearly 1,000 people attended the inaugural festival
The Possumtown Book Fest will be held at the Columbus Arts Council\u2019s Rosenzweig Arts Center at 501 Main Street and is being organized by Friendly City Books and the Friendly City Books Community Connection, a special project of the CREATE Foundation. Sales of festival author books will be conducted on site by Friendly City Books.<\/p>\n
Author Announcements:<\/p>\n
\u25a0 Nadia Alexis is a poet, writer, and photographer born to Haitian immigrants in Harlem. She teaches literary arts at the Mississippi School of the Arts and she is the author of \u201cBeyond the Watershed,\u201d published by CavanKerry Press in March.<\/p>\n
\u25a0 William Boyle is the author of eight books set in and around the southern Brooklyn neighborhood of Gravesend, where he was born and raised. His most recent novel is \u201cSaint of the Narrows Street,\u201d published by Soho Crime in February.<\/p>\n
\u25a0 Ellen Ann Fentress teaches creative nonfiction at Mississippi University for Women. A longtime journalist and the founder of the online publication Admissions Project, her memoir \u201cThe Steps We Take\u201d was published by the University Press of Mississippi in 2023.<\/p>\n
\u25a0 Robert W. Fieseler is a journalist and nonfiction author specializing in marginalized groups and forgotten histories. His second book \u201cAmerican Scare,\u201d published by Dutton in June has received starred reviews from Booklist, Kirkus, and Publishers Weekly.<\/p>\n
\u25a0 Adam Gussow is a professor of English and Southern Studies at the University of Mississippi and a professional blues harmonica player and teacher. The author of many books on the blues, his new memoir \u201cMy Family and I\u201d was published by Post Hill Press in February.<\/p>\n
\u25a0 Becky Hagenston is the director of the Creative Writing program at Mississippi State University. An award-winning author of four short story collections, her most recent book \u201cThe Age of Discovery\u201d was published by Mad Creek Books in 2021.<\/p>\n
\u25a0 Jen Julian teaches creative writing at Young Harris College and serves as the fiction editor of storySouth. Her debut novel \u201cRed Rabbit Ghost,\u201d which will be published this month, is one of the lead titles for the new horror imprint Run for It.<\/p>\n
\u25a0 Karol Lagodzki was named a finalist for the prestigious Pen\/Hemingway Award for Debut Novel for \u201cControlled Conversations,\u201d published by Milford House Press in 2024. A native of Poland, he received an MFA in creative writing from Mississippi University for Women.<\/p>\n
\u25a0 Karmen Lee is an author of diverse contemporary romance. Next month, Afterglow by Harlequin will publish \u201cThe Secret Crush Book Club,\u201d the third novel in the Peach Blossom series.<\/p>\n
\u25a0 T. K. Lee, an award-winning actor, poet, and playwright, is a core faculty member in the MFA programs in Creative Writing and Theatre Education at Mississippi University for Women. His most recent poetry collection \u201cScapegoat\u201d was released in 2022.<\/p>\n
\u25a0 Jason McCall teaches creative writing at the University of North Alabama. An award-winning author of multiple poetry collections, his newest work is the essay collection \u201cRazed by TV Sets,\u201d published by Autofocus Books in 2024.<\/p>\n
\u25a0 Marshall Ramsey is a nationally recognized editorial cartoonist and the author of several books for children and adults, including the picture book \u201cSaving Sam!\u201d released by Nautilus Publishing in 2024. He recently joined the University of Mississippi School of Journalism and New Media as the inaugural director of the Mississippi Media Lab.<\/p>\n
\u25a0 Lauren Rhoades is the director of grants at the Mississippi Arts Commission, a host of MPB\u2019s The Mississippi Arts Hour, and the founder of the online publication Rooted Magazine. She is the author of \u201cSplit the Baby,\u201d a memoir published by Belle Point Press in June, and holds an MFA in creative writing from Mississippi University for Women.<\/p>\n
\u25a0 Farrah Rochon is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of more than 40 adult romance and young adult novels, novellas, and short stories, including the popular Boyfriend Project series. Her newest novel \u201cPugs and Kisses,\u201d a standalone follow-up to \u201cPardon My Frenchie,\u201d was published this month by Forever Romance.<\/p>\n
\u25a0 Alexandra Vasti is a British literature professor by day and USA Today bestselling romance writer by night. \u201cLadies in Hating,\u201d the third book in her Belvoir\u2019s Library trilogy of historical romance novels set during the Regency era, will be published by St. Martin\u2019s Griffin in September.<\/p>\n
\u25a0 Jay Wesley is a member of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians and serves as the director for the Department of Chahta Immi, which promotes the cultural heritage of the Choctaw people. He is a co-author of the book \u201cChoctaw Traditions\u201d published by the University Press of Mississippi in May.<\/p>\n
\u25a0 Julie Liddell Whitehead is the author of \u201cHurricane Baby,\u201d a short story collection set in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. It was published last year by Madville Publishing. She holds an MFA in creative writing from Mississippi University for Women.<\/p>\n
\u25a0 Meryl Wilsner is the USA Today bestselling author of four romance novels, most recently \u201cMy Best Friend\u2019s Honeymoon,\u201d published by St. Martin\u2019s Griffin in April. Born in Michigan, Meryl has also lived in Jackson, Mississippi, and Portland, Oregon.<\/p>\n
\u25a0 Snowden Wright is the author of three books and has written for publications including The Atlantic, Esquire, and Salon. His latest novel \u201cThe Queen City Detective Agency,\u201d set in Meridian in the 1980s, was published by William Morrow last year.<\/p>\n
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