Author Visit: Harrison Scott Key
Above: ANTICIPATION: Dr. Harrison Scott Key will visit Clarke Central High School on Oct. 17 in an interactive author visit hosted by the iliad Literary-Art Magazine in collaboration with the CCHS Media Center for students and staff. CCHS Media Specialists Angela Pendley and Naomi Craver have previously collaborated with the iliad for author visits at CCHS. “One thing that I always value whenever we have an author visit is that we always have so many kids who are interested in writing (and) asking questions about writing,” Craver said. “It always blows me away, because I don't realize we have all these kids who are aspiring writers in our community. The writing aspect of an author visit always comes out on its own, and I find that fascinating.” Graphic by Jay Braswell
Dr. Harrison Scott Key will be featured in an interactive author visit in the CCHS Media Center on Oct. 17 to speak about his experience as a writer.
Author and Executive Dean of Savannah College of Art and Design, Dr. Harrison Scott Key, will visit Clarke Central High School’s Media Center on Oct. 17 from 12:15 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. in an interactive author visit.
The visit will be a moderated Q&A hosted by the iliad Literary-Art Magazine and the CCHS Media Center for a group of CCHS students and staff members to hear directly from Key. iliad Editor-in-Chief Margo McDaniel, who previously co-hosted an author visit, and iliad Outreach Director Jay Braswell will be hosting the Q&A session with Key about his journey as a writer, then the floor will open for questions from the audience.
“One of (the main goals of the event) is for (students and staff) to learn about an author that they don't know about. I found that students (at the previous author visit) like to hear about what the author does that they can relate to. When students are engaged, (they will) be able to learn about ways that they can apply that (insight) to their own life,” McDaniel said.
Key has written three memoirs, “The World’s Largest Man” published in 2015, “Congratulations, Who Are You Again?” published in 2018, and “How To Stay Married: The Craziest Love Story Ever Told” published in 2023. He also has multiple short stories available to read for free on his website.
“I think for (a visit) where it's an author (like Key) who writes all different kinds of works, (hearing) about his process can help them think (deeper) next time they're writing,” McDaniel said. “(I hope) he'll give some advice that the students can carry with them and apply to their own work.”
According to CCHS Media Specialist Naomi Craver, frequent author visits are inspirational to students as they navigate life after high school.
“I think (author visits) really inspire students to think about what their next steps in life are when they have somebody come in and talk about the steps that they took to get where they are right now,” Craver said. “Having students engage in that process of listening to somebody's story, but then following up with questions about how (they) got there is valuable for (students) to hear that there are so many alternate paths in life.”
Story by Jay Braswell
Jay Braswell is a sophomore at Clarke Central High School in Athens, Georgia, and is the Outreach Director for the iliad Literary-Art Magazine. Braswell hopes that her contribution to the iliad will help inspire young artists around the Athens community. When they aren’t hanging out with friends, Braswell enjoys listening to music and painting.