Flagler College welcomes writer and humorist Michael Martone

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Michael Martone

ST. AUGUSTINE, FL (09/12/2012)(readMedia)-- Michael Martone is a busy man.

The two-time NEA fellowship recipient and University of Alabama professor is one of the most widely-published fiction writers and essayists of the last two decades, with work anthologized in such prestigious collections as the "Pushcart Prize Stories," "Best American Short Stories" and "Best American Essays."

Martone, known for his funny readings and biting wit, will visit Flagler College on Sept. 26 at 7 p.m. for a reading and discussion of his work.

"I am looking forward to returning to St. Augustine," Martone said. "I made a visit there during a very stormy spring break of 1995."

Many Flagler College students are well acquainted with Martone's work through his co-editing of the renowned short fiction anthology "The Scribner Anthology of Contemporary Short Fiction," a mainstay in several creative writing courses at the College. The visit offers the community a chance to experience Martone reading his own work, in his famously humorous style.

"This time, I will probably be reading various short fiction pieces from the books 'Michael Martone,' 'The Blue Guide to Indiana' and the newest one, 'Four for a Quarter,'" he said. "Unless someone there would like me to read something else," he added congenially.

Martone was born and grew up in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He attended Butler University and graduated from Indiana University. He holds the MA from The Writing Seminars of The Johns Hopkins University, and he has won two Fellowships from the NEA and a grant from the Ingram Merrill Foundation. His most recent books are "Four for a Quarter;" "Not Normal, Illinois: Peculiar Fiction from the Flyover"; "Racing in Place: Collages, Fragments, Postcards, Ruins," a collection of essays; and "Double-wide," his collected early stories.

A professor at the University of Alabama, Martone has also been a faculty member of the MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College since 1988. He has taught at Iowa State University, Harvard University and Syracuse University.

The reading will be held in the Gamache-Koger Theater at the Ringhaver Student Center at 50 Sevilla Street. The event is free and open to the public, but seating is limited and is on a first-come, first-served basis. If you are a person with a disability and need reasonable accommodations, please contact Lynn Francisco at 904-819-6460. Sign Language Interpreters are available upon request with a minimum of three days' notice. Call (904) 819-6339 or visit www.flagler.edu/our-community/events/writers-in-residence for more information.

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Flagler College is an independent, four-year, comprehensive baccalaureate college located in St. Augustine, Fla. The college offers 24 majors, 29 minors and two pre-professional programs, the largest majors being business, education and communication. Small by intent, Flagler College has an enrollment of about 2,600 students, as well as a satellite campus at Tallahassee Community College in Tallahassee, Fla. U.S. News & World Report and The Princeton Review regularly feature Flagler as a college that offers quality education at a relatively low cost; tuition is $22,500, including room and board. A relatively young institution (founded in 1968), Flagler College is also noted for the historic beauty of its campus. The main building is Ponce de Leon Hall, built in 1887 as a luxury resort by Henry Flagler, who co-founded the Standard Oil Company with John D. Rockefeller. For more on Flagler College, visit www.flagler.edu.