publications
Destiny Birdsong (MFA ’09) to publish two new works in 2027
Oct. 20, 2026—Destiny Birdsong (MFA ’09) has announced two forthcoming books. If I Told You I’d Have To Kill You follows a woman who runs an organization that promises revenge for survivors of violence, and she must face her past as her personal life and professional life threaten to collide. Publication is set with Roxane Gay Books...
Major Jackson edits new volume of poetry and recipes
Sep. 25, 2026—Professor and Director of Creative Writing Major Jackson will release an anthology of contemporary poems and soup recipes to nourish us, comfort us, and bind us together. “A Bowl of Goodness recognizes the care inherent in cooking and in writing. Poems feed us in ways nothing else can, and they continue to sustain us long...
Poet Elise Paschen joins Vanderbilt Reading Series – October 8
Sep. 24, 2026—Poet Elise Paschen will join the 2026-2027 Gertrude C. & Harold S. Vanderbilt Reading Series on October 8. The evening will begin with a literary salon at 6:30 PM, followed by a public reading at 7:00 and a book-signing at 8:00. Thursday, October 8 Vanderbilt Special Collections Library, 1101 19th Avenue South, Nashville Elise...
Professor Jay Clayton receives Chancellor’s Award for Research
Sep. 10, 2026—Jay Clayton, William R. Kenan, Jr., Professor of English, was recently celebrated with a Chancellor’s Award for Research for his book Literature, Science, and Public Policy: From Darwin to Genomics, published by Cambridge University Press. Dr. Clayton’s book explores how we don’t make sense of science through facts alone. Stories shape how we understand its possibilities—and...
Professor Emily Lordi set to release Whitney Houston biography
Sep. 1, 2026—Professor Emily Lordi will release her critical biography of Whitney Houston on September 29. In Holding Lightning: The Life, Loves, and Art of Whitney Houston, leading cultural critic and professor Emily Lordi has gained unique access to Houston’s innermost circle to show us the Whitney we’ve been unwilling to see—her fluid sexuality, her unapologetic love...
Gertrude C. & Harold S. Vanderbilt Reading Series kicks off September 10 with U.S. Poet Laureate Natasha Trethewey
Aug. 27, 2026—Former U.S. Poet Laureate and Pulitzer Prize-winner Natasha Trethewey will kick off the 2026-2027 Gertrude C. & Harold S. Vanderbilt Reading Series on September 10. The evening will begin with a literary salon at 6:30 PM, followed by a public reading 7:00 and a book-signing at 8:00. Thursday, September 10 Vanderbilt Special Collections Library, 1101 19th...
Poet Jane Huffman awarded 2026 VU Literary Prize
Aug. 4, 2026—Dilemma, by Jane Huffman, has been selected as the 2026 winner of the Vanderbilt University Literary Prize. The prize, which is awarded to the sole author of a full-length poetry collection, reflects the university’s ongoing commitment to discovering new voices and supporting the arts as transformative and essential to society. The recognition includes the publication...
Melissa Range to join Vanderbilt Reading Series – April 16
Apr. 9, 2026—VU Literary Prize Winner Melissa Range will join the Vanderbilt Reading Series, after publishing her new collection of poems, Printer’s Fist, with Vanderbilt University Press in April 2026. The Reading Series and The Press will co-host the event. Thursday, April 16 Alumni Hall 202 – 23rd Ave N, Nashville, TN 6:00 Literary Salon & Reception...
Second-year MFA student Lana Reeves announces book deal
Apr. 6, 2026—Penguin Random House will publish second-year MFA student Lana Reeves‘ debut poetry collection KAMA’ĀINA in 2027. Lana hails from O’ahu, Hawai’i and received her BA with honors from Harvard University, where her thesis, under the direction from former U.S. Poet Laureate Tracy K. Smith, was certified summa cum laude. Learn more about Lana and her work...
Jared Harvey to publish chapbook “Ten Islands”
Mar. 10, 2026—Lecturer Jared Harvey, whose pen name is Jared Joseph, will publish a new chapbook, Ten Islands, with Essay Press. The work is part of a larger project, One Thousand Islands, wherein the author eats a Reuben sandwich each week and documents the experience. “A juicy, idiotically thorough chronicle of one of the more important deli...