The inaugural, 2022 Neuffer Lecturer was Jason Mott, recipient of the National Book Award for Fiction for his novel, Hell of a Book. Our 2023 Neuffer Lecturer was Ron Rash, American poet, short story writer and novelist and the Parris Distinguished Professor in Appalachian Cultural Studies at Western Carolina University. In 2024, the award-winning short story writer and novelist, Jill McCorkle will serve as our Neuffer Lecturer.
Join us for the Neuffer Lecture in Southern Literature at the University of South Carolina, where we celebrate the rich, complex tapestry of Southern life through the voices of its most esteemed writers.
Date: October 14, 2024
Time: 6 p.m.
Location: Capstone's Campus Room
RSVP today!
About Jill McCorkle
Jill McCorkle has the distinction of having published her first two novels on the same day in 1984. Of these novels, The New York Times Book Review said: “One suspects the author of The Cheer Leader is a born novelist. With July 7th, she is also a full grown one.” Since then she has published five other novels—most recently published is Hieroglyphics (2020, Algonquin Books)—and five collections of short stories (Old Crimes, 2024). Five of her books have been named New York Times notable books and four of her stories have appeared in Best American Short Stories. An essay, “Cuss Time,” originally published in The American Scholar, was selected for Best American Essays. McCorkle has received the New England Booksellers Award, the John Dos PassosPrize for Excellence in Literature, the North Carolina Award for Literature, and the Thomas Wolfe Prize; she was recently inducted into the NC Literary Hall of Fame. McCorkle has taught at Harvard, Brandeis University, NC State University, and the Bennington Writing Seminars.
About Neuffer Lecture in Southern Literature
Every Fall, the Institute for Southern Studies (ISS) in the College of Arts & Sciences hosts the Neuffer Lecture in Southern Literature. Through the generosity of the Neuffer family, ISS is able to bring to campus distinguished writers whose work deals with the US South and makes enduring and important contributions to southern literature.
The Neuffer Lecture in Southern Literature is designed to engage USC students and faculty as well as the general public. The Series exposes our community to some of the most influential literature about the US South and introduces it to some of the foremost writers working today.