Dorothy Allison
Born in Greenville, S.C., Allison now lives in Northern California. Her first novel, "Bastard Out of Carolina," was a finalist for the 1992 National Book Award, won an American Library Association Prize for Lesbian and Gay Writing and became an award-winning movie. The daughter of a 15-year-old unwed waitress, Allison was the first member of her family to graduate from high school, and is working on another novel, "She Who."
Mary Jo Bang
The author of six books of poems, Bang won the 2007 National Book Critics Circle Award for "Elegy," which was listed as a New York Times Notable Book. Her translation of "Dante's Inferno," with illustrations by Henrik Drescher, was published by Graywolf Press in 2012. Bang's poems have appeared in The New Yorker, The New Republic and more, and her work has been chosen three times for inclusion in the Best American Poetry series. She lives in St. Louis, Mo., where she is professor of English at Washington University.
Richard Bausch
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Past chancellor of the Fellowship of Southern Writers, Bausch is the Moss Chair of Excellence in the writing program at University of Memphis. A Georgia native, he is the author of 11 novels, including "Rebel Powers" and "Peace," which won the Dayton Literary Peace Prize. His stories have been collected in "Spirits," "Wives & Lovers: 3 Short Novels" and "Something is Out There." He has won two National Magazine Awards, a Guggenheim Fellowship and many other awards.
Nick Flynn
The author of three memoirs, Flynn wrote "The Reenactments," "The Ticking is the Bomb: A Memoir of Bewilderment" and "Another Bullshit Night in Suck City," which won the PEN/Martha Albrand Award. It also was made into a film, "Being Flynn," starring Paul Dano, Robert DeNiro and Julianne Moore. He has written poetry, and teaches at the University of Houston for one semester and spends the rest of the year elsewhere.
Tony Kushner
Born in New York City and raised in Lake Charles, La., Kushner is best known for his play "Angels in America," which won a Pulitzer Prize. He wrote the screenplays for Mike Nichols' HBO miniseries of "Angels in America," and the Steven Spielberg films "Munich" and "Lincoln." Kushner has won an Emmy, two Tony awards and three Obie awards and was nominated for an Oscar. He lives in Manhattan with his husband, Mark Harris.
Ed Bok Lee
The author of two books of poetry, "Real Karaoke People," winner of a PEN/Open Book Award, and "Whorled," winner of the American Book Award and the Minnesota Book Award in poetry, Lee was raised in South Korea, North Dakota and Minnesota. He has worked as a journalist, physical education instructor, bartender and translator, and teaches part-time at Metropolitan State University, St. Paul. He also writes plays and fiction.
Gary Shteyngart
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Born in Leningrad, Russia, Shteyngart came to the U.S. when he was 7. His novel, "The Russian Debutante's Handbook," won the Stephen Crane Award for First Fiction and many other awards, as did his novel, "Absurdistan." He was recognized as one of today's top fiction writers on The New Yorker's prestigious "20 under 40" list. His latest book is "Super Sad True Love Story." He lives in New York City and teaches at Columbia and Princeton.
Cheryl Strayed
Strayed, author of the acclaimed memoir "Wild," was revealed as the voice behind the "Dear Sugar" advice column on TheRumbus.net. "Wild" was chosen for Oprah's Book Club 2.0, and has been optioned for film by actress Reese Witherspoon. Strayed's work has been published in The New York Times Magazine, The Washington Post Magazine, Allure and The Best American Essays. Raised in Minnesota, Strayed now lives in Portland, Ore.
