Spring Literary Festival

l writers together. Over the years, the series has hosted such distinguished local writers as Fred Chappell, Lee Smith, Kathryn Stripling Byer, and R.T. Smith; well-known American writers Li-Young Lee, Thomas Lux, Linda Hogan, Carolyn Chute, Leslie Silko, Ntozake Shange, Karen Shepard, Luis Rodriguez, Maxine Kumin, Sherman Alexie, and Clifton Taulbert; as well as internationally renowned authors like Eavan Boland, Mirosalv Holub, and Welsh poets Menna Elfyn, Iwan Llwydd, and Nigel Jenkins. For the past eight years, WCU’s Visiting Writers Series, the English Department, Lectures, Concerts, and Exhibitions, and the Office of the Chancellor have sponsored the Spring Literary Festival. In addition, local organizations and businesses work closely with festival coordinators to secure community involvement, and WCU students have the opportunity to work with nationally and internationally acclaimed authors on their own writing.