Award Winning Novelist to talk with Local Students

KENNESAW, Ga. (Mar 15, 2010) — Award winning novelist David Anthony Durham will give a series of talks to students at Kennesaw State University and Marietta High School in March and April, 2010. He will also talk to the general public in two presentations sponsored by Kennesaw State University’s College of Humanities and Social Sciences and English Department.

David Anthony Durham, 40, is the author of six award winning novels. Three are in the historical fiction genre and three are in the science-fiction fantasy genre. Durham’s novel, Gabriel's Story, about African-American migration to the West in the 1880s, won the 2001 First Novel Award from the American Library Association's Black Caucus and was named a New York Times Notable Book. His fourth novel, Acacia: The War With The Mein (June 2007), is a speculative novel set in an alternative world. It won the John W. Campbell award for best new writer. Other novels are about an escaped American slave, Hannibal the Carthaginian general, and more in the Acacia series.

Durham, a resident of Massachusetts, will visit Atlanta area students on March 30 through April 1. He will speak to several KSU English and American Studies classes, including Composition, World Literature, Creative Writing and African-American literature classes. Many of the students are reading one of his novels or short stories. On April 1, he will speak with students in the GEAR-UP program at Marietta High School. GEAR-UP encourages students to prepare for college study. Professor Tony Grooms, the organizer of the visit, noted, "Many times authors visit a school for just a few hours, but Mr. Durham’s visit will give students an opportunity to engage with the writer over a period of several days."

In addition to the school visits, Durham will speak at two public events. On March 30th at 7:15 PM, he will speak at the Decatur Library at 215 Sycamore Street, Decatur, Georgia, in a program jointly sponsored by The Georgia Center for the Book and KSU. He will speak about writing science fiction fantasy and read from his work. On April 1 at 6:30 PM, he will speak in University Room A at the Student Center on the KSU campus. Both public events are free of charge. Durham’s visit is a part of the English Studies Spring Festival, which includes student literary contests, faculty readings, and a celebration of Shakespeare's birthday.

For more information about the program contact Tony Grooms at tgrooms@kennesaw.edu or 770-423-6440. For more information about Durham and his work, go to his website at www.DavidAnthonyDurham.com