Join the Friends of the Richland County Public Library and the University of South Carolina Institute for Southern Studies for a  the 2012 Southern Writers Series that features several of the South’s best authors. All events are held at the Main Library, 1431 Assembly St.

Jason Ryan, 6 p.m., Tuesday, February 28. Ryan is the author of Jackpot: High Times, High Seas, and the Sting That Launched the War on Drugs. Through interviews with kingpins, smugglers, investigators, prosecutors and defense attorneys, as well as research of trials and legal proceedings, news archives and government records, Ryan has created a narrative that details the rise and fall of the gentlemen smugglers. Ryan is a former staff reporter for The State and now lives in Charleston.

Nikky Finney, 6 p.m., Thursday, March 22. Finney’s fourth poetry collection, Head Off & Split, was awarded the 2011 National Book Award for poetry.  She is also the author of the story collection Heartwood, editor of The Ringing Ear: Black Poets Lean South and co-founder of the Affrilachian Poets. A native of South Carolina, Finney is currently a professor of English and creative writing at the University of Kentucky.

Michael Griffith, 6 p.m., Tuesday, April 17. Griffith is the author of three books of fiction, including Bibliophilia, Spikes and now Trophy, a new novel set in Lexington. His fiction and nonfiction have appeared in Virginia Quarterly Review, Southern Review, Oxford American, The Washington Post and many other periodicals. An associate professor of English at the University of Cincinnati, he also serves as editor of the Yellow Shoe Fiction Series for Louisiana State University Press.

The Friends of RCPL is a nonprofit organization that works to raise support for and awareness of the library. Friends’ memberships begin at only $25. Visit www.myRCPL.com/friends or call (803) 988-0885 for more details on membership or this special event.

The Institute for Southern Studies, which promotes the varied resources available at USC and in the community, is led by Dr. Walter Edgar. For more information on the Institute, call (803) 777-2340.

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The mission of the Richland County Public Library is to provide experiences that Inspire, Inform and Entertain.