American writer
Mitchell S. Jackson is an American writer.[ 1] He is the author of the 2013 novel The Residue Years , as well as Oversoul (2012), an ebook collection of essays and short stories.[ 1] Jackson is a Whiting Award recipient[ 2] and a former winner of the Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence .[ 3] In 2021, while an assistant professor of creative writing at the University of Chicago , he won the Pulitzer Prize [ 4] and the National Magazine Award for Feature Writing for his profile of Ahmaud Arbery for Runner's World .[ 5] As of 2021[update] , Jackson is the John O. Whiteman Dean's Distinguished Professor in the Department of English at Arizona State University .[ 6]
He has also been the recipient of fellowships from TED [ 7] and the Lannan Foundation .[ 8] Jackson is also a public speaker and documentarian.[ 1]
Jackson was born in Portland, Oregon.[ 1] He was raised by a single mother.[ 9] In his youth, he was arrested on drug charges and sent to prison,[ 10] where he took an interest in literature and began experimenting with autobiographical writing.[ 9]
Following his release in the summer of 1998,[ 10] Jackson received a Master of Arts in writing from Portland State University , as well as a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from New York University .[ 1]
Jackson is a father of two.[ 11]
In 2012, Jackson published Oversoul: Stories & Essays , an ebook compilation of short fiction and non-fiction.[ 1] His debut novel, The Residue Years , was released in the summer of 2013 and was praised by publications such as The New York Times ,[ 12] The Paris Review ,[ 13] and The Sydney Morning Herald .[ 14] Jackson is a Whiting Award recipient.[ 2] The Residue Years also won The Ernest Gaines Award for Literary Excellence[ 3] and was short-listed for the Center For Fiction's Flaherty-Dunnan First novel prize,[ 15] the PEN/ Hemingway award for first fiction,[ 16] The Hurston/Wright Legacy Award for best fiction by a writer of African descent;[ 17] it was short-listed for the William Saroyan International Prize for writing,[ 18] and named an "Honor Book" by the BCALA.[ 19] He has been the recipient of fellowships from TED,[ 7] the Lannan Foundation,[ 8] The Center For Fiction,[ 20] and The Bread Loaf Writer's Conference.[ 21]
Jackson is the co-director, writer, and producer of The Residue Years: A Documentary (2013), a documentary film exploring the autobiographical elements of his novel of the same name.[ 22] It was an Official Selection of the Portland Film Festival.[ 23] It premiered on the Web at the Literary Hub website.[ 22]
Jackson's short fiction, nonfiction, and poetry have been published in Vice , Esquire , Gigantic Magazine , Flaunt Magazine , The Frozen Moment: Contemporary Writers on the Choices That Change Our Lives , and New York Tyrant , among other publications. He was the first Black columnist for Esquire .[ 24]
Jackson is a former TED speaker.[ 7] He has also read and/or and lectured at institutions including Brown University,[ 25] Middlebury College,[ 26] and UMASS;[ 27] at events including The Brooklyn Book Festival,[ 28] and the Sydney Writers' Festival;[ 29] at various adult prisons and youth facilities;[ 1] and for organizations including The Pathfinders of Oregon,[ 30] The PEN/Faulkner Foundation,[ 31] and The Volunteers of America. He has served on the faculty of New York University,[ 32] Columbia University,[ 33] and the University of Chicago.[ 34] He is currently on the faculty at Arizona State University.[ 6]
Jackson published Survival Math: Notes on an All American Family in 2019.[ 35] It was selected for Time's 100 Must-Read Books of 2019,[ 36] NPR's Books We Love 2019,[ 37] and Buzzfeed's Best Books of 2019.[ 38]
Oversoul: Stories & Essays. The Collections House. 2012.
Short fiction and poetry [ edit ]
"Sixty, Seventy, Eighty." Gigantic Magazine . 2013.
"Oversoul." Vice – Fiction Issue. June 2012.
"An Exquisite Corpse." Gigantic Magazine . October 10, 2011.
"Presidents: An Epic" The Frozen Moment: Contemporary Writers on the Choices That Change Our Lives . 2011.
"Head Down, Palm Up." New York Tyrant . Fall 2011.
"Luminous Days: a novel excerpt." Tusculum College Literary Journal Vol 1. 2005.
"Post Script." Intimacy: Erotic Stories of Love, Lust, and Marriage by Black Men . 2004.
"Late Night". Sou’ Western Literary Journal . 2003.
"Luminous Days." Gumbo: An Anthology of African American Writing . 2002.
"Portrait of a Lifeguard." Dossier Journal . 2008.
"Interview With Emory Douglas." Dossier Journal . 2008.
"True to the Selves." aboutaword.com . June 29, 2012.
"No Blood Left Behind." Everyday Genius . November 15, 2012.
"My First Time." Davidabramsbooks.blogspot.com . August 26, 2013.
"The Name Game." Bookpage . September 2013.
"Growing Up Black in the Whitest City in America." Salon . March 17, 2014.
"How to Catch A Racist: The Donald Sterling Edition." Guernica Mag . May 6, 2014.
"Dear Gordon." Tin House Magazine . Spring 2015.
Survival Math: Notes on an All-American Family. Scribner, 2019.
Twelve Minutes and a Life. Runner's World, 2020.[ 39]
He Was My Role Model. My Mentor. My Supplier. New York Times Magazine, December 20, 2023.[ 40]
The Residue Years: A Documentary . 2013.
2004: Hurston Wright Foundation, Award For College Writers (Fiction)
2008: Urban Artist Initiative, NYC Fellowship
2011: Center For Fiction, Emerging Writers Fellowship[ 20]
2013: New York Times Book Review, Editor's Choice
2013: Center For Fiction, Flaherty-Dunnan First Novel Prize, Finalist[ 15]
2013: American Book Sellers Association, Debut Dozen
2014: Sydney Morning Herald, Pick of the Week[ 14]
2014: The New York Times Book Review, Paperback Row
2014: Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence, Winner [ 3]
2014: Lannan Literary Fellowship, Fiction[ 8]
2014: PEN / Hemingway Debut Fiction Award, Finalist[ 16]
2014: Hurston Wright Legacy Award, Finalist
2014: Saroyan International Prize For Writing, Shortlist [ 18]
2014: Black Caucus of the American Library Association, Honor Book[ 19]
2015: Portland Community College, Diamond Alumni Award
2015: Everybody Reads Selection, Multnomah County Library, Oregon[ 41]
2016: Whiting Writers’ Award, Winner [ 42]
2016: TED, Fellowship [ 7]
2021: National Magazine Award, Feature Writing [ 43]
2021: Pulitzer Prize, Feature Writing [ 44]
^ a b c d e f g "Bio: Mitchell S Jackson" . Mitchell S Jackson. Retrieved August 15, 2016 .
^ a b "Mitchell S. Jackson: 2016 Winner in Fiction" . Whiting Awards. 2016. Retrieved August 15, 2016 .
^ a b c Brasted, Chelsea (January 23, 2015). "Mitchell S. Jackson accepts Ernest J. Gaines Award for his debut, 'The Residue Years' " . The Times-Picayune . Retrieved August 15, 2016 .
^ "UChicago scholar Mitchell S. Jackson wins Pulitzer Prize for essay on Ahmaud Arbery" . University of Chicago News . Retrieved July 15, 2021 .
^ Jackson, Mitchell S. (June 18, 2020). "Ahmaud Arbery Went Out for a Jog and Was Gunned Down in the Street" . Runner's World . Retrieved July 15, 2021 .
^ a b "Pulitzer Prize winner Mitchell S. Jackson and Whiting Award winner Safiya Sinclair join ASU's Department of English" . ASU News . Retrieved May 29, 2022 .
^ a b c d "Meet the 2016 class of TED Fellows and Senior Fellows" . TED Blog . TED . December 8, 2015. Retrieved August 15, 2016 .
^ a b c "Mitchell S. Jackson" . Lannan Foundation . Retrieved August 15, 2016 .
^ a b Thomas, Cullen (March 31, 2014). "Conversations With Literary Ex-Cons #7: Mitchell S. Jackson" . The Rumpus . Retrieved August 15, 2016 .
^ a b Jackson, Mitchell S. "Re-Vision: Mitchell S. Jackson on why fiction matters" . The Center for Fiction. Retrieved September 19, 2021 .
^ Small, Tim (August 28, 2012). "Mitchell Jackson Has an Excellent Jump Shot" . Vice . Retrieved August 15, 2016 .
^ Gay, Roxane (August 16, 2013). "Nickel and Dimed: Mitchell S. Jackson's 'Residue Years' " . The New York Times . Retrieved August 15, 2016 .
^ Small, Tim (January 30, 2014). "Visible Man: An Interview with Mitchell S. Jackson" . The Paris Review . Retrieved August 15, 2016 .
^ a b Woodhead, Cameron (November 15, 2014). "Pick of the Week: The Residue Years" . The Sydney Morning Herald . Retrieved August 15, 2016 .
^ a b "Flaherty-Dunnan 2013 Short List" . The Center for Fiction. 2013. Retrieved August 15, 2016 .
^ a b "Pen-Hemingway Award Honorees" (PDF) . Squarespace . 2016. Retrieved August 15, 2016 .
^ Brown, DeNeen L. (October 25, 2014). "Hurston/Wright Foundation awards NoViolet Bulawayo for her debut novel, 'We Need New Names' " . The Washington Post . Retrieved August 16, 2016 .
^ a b Lee, Sonia (May 2014). "Press release: William Saroyan International Prize for Writing 2014 Shortlist" . Stanford University . Retrieved August 16, 2016 .
^ a b Washington, Michelle Harrell (February 7, 2014). "BCALA announces winners of 2014 Literary Awards" . American Library Association. Retrieved August 16, 2016 .
^ a b "The 2011 Center for Fiction Emerging Writers Fellows" . Center for Fiction. May 10, 2012. Retrieved August 16, 2016 .
^ "Bread Loaf Writers' Conference 2015 Fellow and Scholar Bios" (PDF) . Middlebury College. 2015. Retrieved August 16, 2016 .
^ a b "Mitchell S. Jackson's The Residue Years, Part One" . Literary Hub. April 19, 2016. Retrieved August 16, 2016 .
^ Jacobson, Rebecca (August 19, 2014). "Portland Film Festival: What's so Portland about this fledgling fest?" . Willamette Week . Retrieved August 16, 2016 .
^ "ASU Faculty Spotlight: Mitchell Jackson" . Retrieved May 29, 2022 .
^ "Reading by Mitchell S. Jackson: Literary Arts Program" . Brown University . Retrieved August 17, 2016 .
^ "Bread Loaf Writers' Conference Public Events Schedule" . Middlebury College. August 10, 2016. Retrieved August 17, 2016 .
^ Blixt, Wesley (September 10, 2014). "Novelist Mitchell S. Jackson to Kick Off 51st Season of Visiting Writers Series at UMass Amherst M.F.A. Program" . UMass Amherst. Retrieved August 17, 2016 .
^ "Brooklyn Book Festival: Why Fiction Matters" . The Center for Fiction. Retrieved August 17, 2016 .
^ "Omar Musa and Mitchell S. Jackson: The Wild Side" . Sydney Writers' Festival. Retrieved August 17, 2016 .
^ "The Residue Years: The Documentary Speakers Panel & Film Screening" . Pathfinders of Oregon. Retrieved August 17, 2016 .
^ "Feel Your Pain: An Evening with Mitchell S. Jackson and Leslie Jamison" . PEN/Faulkner Foundation. Retrieved August 17, 2016 .
^ "Faculty, Liberal Studies" . New York University . Retrieved August 17, 2016 .
^ "Mitchell S. Jackson" . Columbia University School of the Arts . Retrieved August 17, 2016 .
^ "About" . Mitchell S. Jackson . Retrieved September 28, 2020 .
^ Fredericksen, Devon (September 14, 2015). "Mitchell S. Jackson finds another Portland" . High Country News . Retrieved August 17, 2016 .
^ "The 100 Must-Read Books of 2019" . TIME . TIME USA, LLC. Retrieved February 26, 2022 .
^ "NPR Books We Love" . NPR . Retrieved February 26, 2022 .
^ Rebolini, Arianna; Obaro, Tomi (December 13, 2019). "These Are The Best Books Of 2019" . BuzzFeed News . BuzzFeed. Retrieved February 26, 2022 .
^ "Twelve Minutes and a Life" . Runner's World . June 18, 2020. Retrieved May 29, 2022 .
^ Jackson, Mitchell S. (December 20, 2023). "He Was My Role Model My Mentor My Supplier" . The New York Times . Retrieved December 20, 2023 .
^ Baker, Jeff (March 11, 2015). "Mitchell S. Jackson brings his story home at Everybody Reads event" . The Oregonian . Retrieved March 28, 2024 .
^ Williams, John (March 23, 2016). "Whiting Foundation Announces Winners of 2016 Awards for Writing" . The New York Times . Archived from the original on December 21, 2023. Retrieved December 21, 2023 .
^ "The American Society of Magazine Editors Announces Winners for 2021 National Magazine Awards" . ASME . Retrieved May 30, 2022 .
^ "The 2021 Pulitzer Prize Winner in Feature Writing" . The Pulitzer Prizes . Retrieved May 30, 2022 .