Mountain Heritage Literary Festival is June 4-5

Nikki LockhartOur Town Arts

The Lincoln Memorial University Mountain Heritage Literary Festival will take place virtually June 4-5 featuring bestselling author Silas House as the keynote speaker and a gifted staff for workshops in fiction, nonfiction, poetry and oral storytelling.

“We are thrilled to welcome back Silas House on this 15th year of the festival he helped create,” said Director Patrick Wensink. “House is one of the most inspirational and important voices in American literature today and is certain to fill our attendees with inspiration.”

House is The New York Times bestselling author of six novels as well as a book of creative nonfiction, Something’s Rising, co-authored with Jason Howard, 2009; and three plays.

House serves as the NEH chair at Berea College and on the fiction faculty at the Spalding School of Creative Writing. He is a former commentator for National Public Radio’s All Things Considered, host of the popular podcast On the Porch, and the founder of the MHLF at LMU. As a music writer he has worked with artists such as Jason Isbell, Kacey Musgraves, Lucinda Williams, Kris Kristofferson and others. He is a native of Eastern Kentucky and now lives in Lexington.

Patrick Wensink

“I am honored to be the new director of the Mountain Heritage Literary Festival,” Wensink said. “I am eager to keep building on the community, inspiration and creativity that has made us one of the premier writing festivals in the South. I am also eager to find new ways to welcome and celebrate the diverse voices that make Appalachia the unique place it is.”

Wensink is the bestselling author of seven books, including Fake Fruit Factory, which NPR named one of the best books of 2015. His nonfiction appears in The New York Times, Oxford American, Esquire and many others. He is also the author of two children’s books. He lives in Harrogate, Tennessee, and teaches creative writing at LMU.

Scholarships are available to cover the registration cost. To apply, simply write a short essay (1-2 pages) about why you want to come to the Mountain Heritage Literary Festival. (There is no need to explain why financial assistance is required, but applicants should be writers who find the festival difficult to afford.) A name, email address, full address and phone number are also required with the essay and should be sent by email to: patrick.wensink@LMUnet.edu. The subject line of the email should be “scholarship.” The deadline to apply is May 21, 2021.

Learn more and register here:

Nikki Lockhart is director of public relations at LMU.

 

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