Chris Offutt grew up in Haldeman, Kentucky, a former mining town of two hundred people in the Appalachian foothills. He is the author of two memoirs, The Same River Twice and No Heroes; two collections of short stories, Kentucky Straight and Out of the Woods; and one novel, The Good Brother. His latest book is My Father, The Pornographer. He lives on fourteen acres in Lafayette County, Mississippi.
Jamie Paige was born in Meridian, Mississippi. He is a graduate of the MFA program at the University of Mississippi and currently studies at the Center for Writers at the University of Southern Mississippi.
Andrew Paul grew up outside Jackson, Mississippi. Some of his more recent work is featured or forthcoming with Virginia Quarterly Review, Oxford American, VICE, Tablet, and The Bitter Southerner. He currently lives in New Orleans.
Jack Pendarvis is the author of five books. He is currently a writer for the Peabody Award — winning television show Adventure Time.
Michael Farris Smith is the author of Rivers, The Hands of Strangers, and Desperation Road. Rivers was named to “best of the year” lists by Book Riot, Esquire, Hudson Booksellers, and numerous other regional and national outlets. He is the recipient of the Mississippi Author Award for fiction, the Transatlantic Review Award for fiction, and the Brick Streets Press Short Story Award. He lives in Columbus, Mississippi, with his wife and daughters.
RaShell R. Smith-Spears grew up in Memphis, Tennessee. She is an associate professor of English at Jackson State University in Jackson, Mississippi. Smith-Spears earned a BA in English from Spelman College and an MFA from the University of Memphis. She has published creative works in Short Story, Black Magnolias, and A Lime Jewel. She recently completed her first novel.