Kiese Laymon

Kiese Laymon is a Black southern writer, born and raised in Jackson, Mississippi. He is currently a professor of English and Creative Writing at the University of Mississippi. Laymon attended Millsaps College and Jackson State University before graduating from Oberlin College. He earned an M.F.A. in Fiction from Indiana University. He is the author of the award-winning novel “Long Division” and a collection of essays, “How to Slowly Kill Yourself and Others in America.” Laymon has written for numerous publications, including the New York Times, NPR, the Los Angeles Times, Esquire, McSweeneys, and many others. He is a contributing editor of Oxford American. His memoir, “Heavy: An American Memoir” was released in 2018.