Gurney Norman is the Keynote Speaker for this year's AHWS Symposium!
Find out about other great speakers set to present at the symposium by clicking on the photo above. Photo by Tim Collins.
Gurney Norman has been a member of the University of Kentucky Department of English since 1979 and currently serves as the department’s Director of Creative Writing. His first novel Divine Right’s Trip (1971) was published by The Dial Press, Bantam Books, and Pantheon Books of England. In 1978, Norman’s book of short stories Kinfolks, was published by Gnomon Press and subsequently by Avon Books as part of its Southern Authors Series.
Norman is co-editor, with Katherine Ledford and Dwight Billings, of a collection of essays, Back Talk: Confronting Appalachian Stereotypes, published by, The University Press of Kentucky in March 1999. He is also co-editor, with Sharon Hatfield and Danny Miller, of a collection of essays, An American Vein: Critical Readings in Appalachian Literature, published in 2005 by Ohio University Press. Norman’s novella-length folktale Ancient Creek, originally published as a spoken word album by June Appal Records at Appalshop, will be released as a book by Old Cove Press in 2012. A selection of critical writings on Ancient Creek will be included as well as a recorded reading of the tale produced by Appalshop.
In addition to his writing, editing and teaching at the University of Kentucky, Norman carries on an active service role in Kentucky and surrounding states as an advisor to community-based arts groups. He is a frequent presenter at colleges and universities and education conferences. Norman enjoys visiting small rural schools where Kentucky literature and culture are under discussion.Norman is widely recognized for his writing and cultural work in the Appalachian region.
