Pulitzer Prize finalist and bestselling author Rebecca Makkai to speak at APSU Sept. 18

CLARKSVILLE, TN – Austin Peay State University’s Zone 3 Press, with support from the Center of Excellence for the Creative Arts, is hosting Pulitzer Prize nominee Rebecca Makkai at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 18, in the Mabry Concert Hall. This free public event will include a reading and book signing.

Makkai holds the prestigious Roy Acuff Chair of Excellence for the 2025-26 academic year. Established in 1985, the chair of excellence honors country music legend Roy Acuff and brings regionally and nationally acclaimed artists to APSU’s campus.

“We are thrilled to welcome Rebecca to campus,” said CECA Director and Co-Coordinator of Creative Writing Dr. Andrea Spofford. “Rebecca’s writing, in addition to her work with students, resonates deeply, and we are grateful for the Acuff Chair of Excellence and the possibilities it provides. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our students and our community.”

About Rebecca Makkai

Makkai is the author of the New York Times bestselling novel I Have Some Questions For You as well as four other works of fiction. Her third novel, The Great Believers, was named one of the New York Times’ Best Books of the 21st Century, was a finalist for both the 2019 Pulitzer Prize and the 2018 National Book Award, and won the ALA Carnegie Medal and the LA Times Book Prize, among other honors. A 2022 Guggenheim Fellow, Makkai teaches graduate fiction writing at Middlebury College, Northwestern University, and the Bennington Writing Seminars, and she is the artistic director of StoryStudio Chicago. Learn more about Rebecca’s work by visiting her website.

As the 2025-26 Acuff Chair of Excellence, Makkai will visit APSU creative writing classes, work directly with students and regional community members, and curate a reading at this spring’s Zone 3 Writers’ Festival (April 16-18, 2026).

To learn more about Zone 3 Press, contact Dr. Raymond Deeren, co-coordinator of APSU’s creative writing program, at deerenr@apsu.edu. For more information about CECA, contact Dr. Andrea Spofford at spofforda@apsu.edu.