SC Connecticut News

The 2024 recipients of the Windham-Campbell Prizes, among the world’s most generous and prestigious literary prizes, will come to Yale next week for a four-day festival to celebrate reading and the craft of writing with the local community.

The annual fall festival, which runs from Sept. 17 through Sept. 20, will feature a keynote address by Lydia Davis, the renowned short story writer, novelist, and translator, as well as conversations with the latest Windham-Campbell honorees on a broad range of subjects and readings of their work. All events are free and open to the public.

“Each fall, we are immensely grateful and proud to come together at Yale University to celebrate the wealth of talent across the recipients of the Windham-Campbell Prizes,” said Michael Kelleher, director of the Windham-Campbell Prizes. “The brilliance of the 2024 recipients is staggering, and we are delighted to connect these eight writers with audiences across the campus to share experiences, insights, and readings.”

The 2024 recipients, announced on April 2, are Deirdre Madden (Ireland) and Kathryn Scanlan (United States) in fiction; Christina Sharpe (Canada/United States) and Hanif Abdurraqib (United States) in nonfiction; Christopher Chen (United States) and Sonya Kelly (Ireland) in drama; and m. nourbeSe Philip (Canada/Trinidad and Tobago) and Jen Hadfield (Canada/United Kingdom) in poetry.

Administered by the Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library at Yale University Library, the Windham-Campbell Prizes are conferred annually to eight writers working in English anywhere in the world in recognition of their literary achievement or promise. Each recipient is awarded $175,000 to support their work.

This year’s festival kicks off at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 17 with a welcome party under a tent on Cross Campus featuring music by DJ VNA and free refreshments served by local food trucks.

Yale President Maurie McInnis will confer the prizes at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 18 during a ceremony in the auditorium of the Yale University Art Gallery.

Davis will deliver a keynote lecture based on “Why I Write.” Her keynote will be part of the prize’s “Why I Write” series published by Yale University Press.

The festivities continue Thursday with poet m. nourbeSe Philip marking the 15th anniversary of her poetry cycle “Zong!” accompanied by Wes Lewis on saxophone at noon under Cross Campus tent.

At 12:30 p.m., novelist Deirdre Madden will discuss “Siblings in Art and Life” with multidisciplinary artist Julia Rooney ’18 M.F.A. At 4 p.m., poet Hanif Abdurraqib and writer Christina Sharpe will converse about Black artistry with Daphne Brooks at Beinecke Library.

On Thursday and Friday, Possible Futures bookshop will set up a “book bike” near Cross Campus tent for attendees to buy books.

Friday’s schedule includes a conversation between Sharpe and Nana Adusei-Poku about Sharpe’s collection “Ordinary Notes” at noon under Cross Campus tent followed by Kathryn Scanlan discussing Charles Sheeler's "American Interior" with Karin Roffman at Art Gallery's third floor at 12:30 p.m.

At 4 p.m., Abdurraqib will discuss his book “There’s Always This Year: On Basketball and Ascension” with James Jones at Beinecke Library.

The festival closes Friday evening with all eight prize recipients reading selections from their work in Art Gallery’s lecture hall.

For more information visit Windham-Campbell Prizes website.