Visiting Writers Series concludes April 20 with poetry, fiction authors

Northwest Missouri State University’s Visiting Writers Series concludes this month with readings by three authors of fiction and poetry.

The event featuring Lisa Fishman, Jordan Dunn and Richard Meier begins at 7 p.m. Thursday, April 20, in the J.W. Jones Student Union Living Room. It is free and open to the public.

Fishman is the author of “World Naked Bike Ride,” her debut fiction collection in which she explores childhood, history and the construction of borders. In this book, several linked stories wrestle with memory and time in an unconventionally Jewish context; others explore the strangeness of identity and desire. She also is the author of poetry books, including “Mad World, Mad Kings, Mad Composition,” “24 Pages and Other Poems” and “The Happiness Experiment.” She is a Robert J. Dau Short Story Prize nominee and a Pushcart Prize nominee. Fisherman is an associate professor of English and creative writing at Columbia College in Chicago.

Dunn is the author of “Physical Geography as Modified by Human Action” as well as various chapbooks and ephemeral prints, including “Common Names,” “Reactor Woods” and “Cedar Lake: August 2, 2017.” He lives with his family in Madison, Wisconsin, where he is an editor and publisher of the Oxeye Press.

Meier is the author of five poetry books, including “In the Pure Block of the Whole Imaginary” and “Shelley Gave Jane a Guitar.” His 2001 book, “Terrain Vague,” was selected by Tomaz Salamun for the Verse Prize. He resides in Somers and Madison in Wisconsin, and he is an English professor, writer-in-residence and director of the creative writing program at Carthage College in Kenosha.

The Visiting Writers Series is designed to enrich Northwest’s educational mission while promoting the values of community, civil discourse and self-expression. Kawasaki Motors Manufacturing Corporation, Green Tower Press and the Department of Language, Literature and Writing sponsor the series.

For more information about the Visiting Writers Series, contact Daniel Biegelson, the series director and a senior instructor of English, at dbiegel@nwmissouri.edu or 666.562.1266.