Mitchell S. Jackson
Mitchell S. Jackson is an American writer based in New York City.[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] He has also been the recipient of fellowships from TED[4] and the Lannan Foundation.[5] Jackson is also a public speaker and documentarian.[1] He serves on the faculties of New York University and Columbia University.[1]
Mitchell S. Jackson | |
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Born | Portland, Oregon, United States |
Nationality | US |
Occupation |
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Awards |
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Personal life
Jackson was born in Portland, Oregon.[1] He was raised by a single mother.[6] In his youth, he was arrested on drug charges and sent to prison,[7] where he took an interest in literature and began experimenting with autobiographical writing.[6]
Following his release in the summer of 1998,[7] 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 currently lives in New York City.[1] He is a father of two.[8]
Career
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,[9] The Paris Review,[10] and The Sydney Morning Herald.[11] 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,[12] the PEN/ Hemingway award for first fiction,[13] The Hurston/Wright Legacy Award for best fiction by a writer of African descent;[14] it was short-listed for the William Saroyan International Prize for writing,[15] and named an "Honor Book" by the BCALA.[16] He has been the recipient of fellowships from TED,[4] the Lannan Foundation,[5] The Center For Fiction,[17] and The Bread Loaf Writer's Conference.[18]
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.[19] It was an Official Selection of the Portland Film Festival[20] It premiered on the Web at the Literary Hub website.[19]
Jackson's short fiction, nonfiction, and poetry have been published in Vice, Gigantic Magazine, Flaunt Magazine, The Frozen Moment: Contemporary Writers on the Choices That Change Our Lives, and New York Tyrant, among other publications.
Jackson is a well-regarded public speaker. He is a former TED speaker.[4] He has also read and/or and lectured at institutions including Brown University,[21] Middlebury College,[22] and UMASS;[23] at events including The Brooklyn Book Festival,[24] and the Sydney Writers' Festival;[25] at various adult prisons and youth facilities;[1] and for organizations including The Pathfinders of Oregon,[26] The PEN/Faulkner Foundation,[27] and The Volunteers of America. He serves on the faculty of New York University[28] and Columbia University Arts.[29]
Jackson published Survival Math: Notes on an All American Family(Scribner) in 2019.[30]
Works
Books
Fiction
- The Residue Years. Bloomsbury USA. 2013.
Collections
- Oversoul: Stories & Essays. The Collections House. 2012.
Short Fiction & Poetry
- "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.
Nonfiction
- "Dear Gordon." Tin House Magazine. Spring 2015.
- "How to Catch A Racist: The Donald Sterling Edition." Guernica Mag. May 6, 2014.
- "Growing Up Black in the Whitest City in America." Salon. March 17, 2014.
- "The Name Game." Bookpage. September 2013.
- "My First Time." Davidabramsbooks.blogspot.com. August 26, 2013.
- "No Blood Left Behind." Everyday Genius. November 15, 2012.
- "True to the Selves." aboutaword.com. June 29, 2012.
- "Interview With Emory Douglas." Dossier Journal. 2008.
- "Portrait of a Lifeguard." Dossier Journal. 2008.
Film
- The Residue Years: A Documentary. 2013.
Honors
- 2004: Hurston Wright Foundation, Award For College Writers (Fiction)
- 2008: Urban Artist Initiative, NYC Fellowship
- 2011: Center For Fiction, Emerging Writers Fellowship[17]
- 2013: New York Times Book Review, Editor’s Choice
- 2013: Center For Fiction, Flaherty-Dunnan First Novel Prize, Finalist[12]
- 2013: American Book Sellers Association, Debut Dozen
- 2014: Sydney Morning Herald, Pick of the Week[11]
- 2014: The New York Times Book Review, Paperback Row
- 2014: Ernest J. Gaines Award for Literary Excellence, Winner [3]
- 2014: Lannan Literary Fellowship, Fiction[5]
- 2014: PEN / Hemingway Debut Fiction Award, Finalist[13]
- 2014: Hurston Wright Legacy Award, Finalist
- 2014: Saroyan International Prize For Writing, Shortlist [15]
- 2014: Black Caucus of the American Library Association, Honor Book[16]
- 2015: Portland Community College, Diamond Alumni Award
- 2015: Everybody Reads Selection, Multnomah County Oregon
- 2016: Whiting Writers’ Award, Winner [2]
- 2016: TED, Fellowship [4]
References
- "Bio: Mitchell S Jackson". Mitchell S Jackson. Retrieved August 15, 2016.
- "Mitchell S. Jackson: 2016 Winner in Fiction". Whiting Awards. 2016. Retrieved August 15, 2016.
- 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.
- "Meet the 2016 class of TED Fellows and Senior Fellows". TED Blog. TED. December 8, 2015. Retrieved August 15, 2016.
- "Mitchell S. Jackson". Lannan Foundation. Retrieved August 15, 2016.
- Thomas, Cullen (March 31, 2014). "Conversations With Literary Ex-Cons #7: Mitchell S. Jackson". The Rumpus. Retrieved August 15, 2016.
- Jackson, Mitchell S. "Re-Vision: Mitchell S. Jackson on why fiction matters". The Center for Fiction. Retrieved August 15, 2016.
- 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.
- Woodhead, Cameron (November 15, 2014). "Pick of the Week: The Residue Years". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved August 15, 2016.
- "Flaherty-Dunnan 2013 Short List". The Center for Fiction. 2013. Retrieved August 15, 2016.
- "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.
- Lee, Sonia (May 2014). "Press release: William Saroyan International Prize for Writing 2014 Shortlist". Stanford University. Retrieved August 16, 2016.
- Washington, Michelle Harrell (February 7, 2014). "BCALA announces winners of 2014 Literary Awards". American Library Association. Retrieved August 16, 2016.
- "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.
- "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.
- "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.
- Fredericksen, Devon (September 14, 2015). "Mitchell S. Jackson finds another Portland". High Country News. Retrieved August 17, 2016.
External links
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- Official website
- Interview with "The Aesthete"
- "Oversoul" in Vice – Fiction Issue
- "Growing Up Black In The Whitest City In America" Essay for "Salon"
- Article on "Oregon Live"
- Interview with "Writermag.com"
- Oprah's Book Club Review of "The Residue Years"
- Jackson reviews "Song of the Shank" for New York Times
- "How to Catch a Racist"
- Portland Tribune article on public speaking
- Article on "Oregon Live"
- Podcast of Jackson speech
- YouTube video of Jackson speech
- PBS Podcast Appearance
- Jackson Interviewed by Tavis Smiley