I grew up in small-town Georgia (about an hour's drive from Flannery O'Connor's Milledgeville and Alice Walker's Eatonton), which is probably why I decided to specialize in Southern literature. Reading Faulkner, O'Connor, Welty, and Walker is, for me, reading about people and situations I know. There is almost nothing I would rather do than talk with students about Southern literature. Everytime I teach Faulkner I take students to Oxford, Mississippi, so they can see Yoknpatawpha for themselves.

In addition to teaching, I am a photographer. My work have been exibited both nationally and internationally. Right now, I'm working on a book of photographs titled WITH ANIMALS which will be published in 2015.

Education

• Ph.D., Emory University
• M.A., Vanderbilt University
• B.A., Emory University