Creative Writing Department to Host Author Neil White

September 6, 2024 (Jackson, Miss.) - Belhaven University’s Creative Writing Department will host author and publisher Neil White on Thursday, September 12 at 4 p.m.

White is the owner and publisher of Nautilus Press in Oxford, Mississippi, and has authored books such as “In the Sanctuary of Outcasts: A Memoir” and “Creating True Scenes that Read Like Fiction.” White will discuss creative writing and his book in Belhaven’s Student Center Theater, as well as have lunch with students and conduct a limited-seat workshop for creative writing majors.

White was born in Gulfport, Mississippi, but now lives in Oxford, Mississippi. He has written plays such as “Lepers & Cons,” “Symmetry,” “Clandestine,” and “Deviant,” and edited the anthology “Ten-Minute Plays from Oxford.” He was previously a newspaper editor and magazine publisher for The Oxford Times, Coast Magazine, and Louisiana Life.

In 1993, White was sentenced to 18 months in a federal prison in Carville, Louisiana, for check kiting, an experience he recounts in his memoir, “In the Sanctuary of Outcasts” (2009). The memoir details his time in prison, which was also home to the last U.S. leper colony, and the lessons he learned during his incarceration. Following his release, White rebuilt his life, running a small publishing company and continuing to write and speak about his experiences. He also publishes “Samir Husni’s Guide to New Magazines” and contributes essays, including “A Journey in Journalism: From Idealism to Bankruptcy” in “The Mission: Journalism, Ethics, and the World.”