Christopher John Offutt (born August 24, 1958) is an American writer. He is most widely known for his short stories and novels, but he has also published three memoirs and multiple nonfiction articles. In 2005, he had a story included in a comic book collection edited by

Michael Chabon Michael Chabon ( ; born May 24, 1963) is an American novelist, screenwriter, columnist, and short story writer. Born in Washington, DC, he spent a year studying at Carnegie Mellon University before transferring to the University of Pittsburgh, gr ...

, and another in the anthology ''Noir''. He has written episodes for the TV series ''

True Blood ''True Blood'' is an American fantasy horror drama television series produced and created by Alan Ball. It is based on '' The Southern Vampire Mysteries'', a series of novels by Charlaine Harris. A reboot is currently in development. The ser ...

'' and '' Weeds.''

Early life and education

Chris Offutt was born in Lexington, Kentucky, the son of

Andrew J. Offutt Andrew Jefferson Offutt V (August 16, 1934 – April 30, 2013) was an American science fiction, fantasy, and erotic fiction author. He wrote as Andrew J. Offutt, A. J. Offutt, and Andy Offutt. His normal byline, andrew j. offutt, has all his nam ...

, an author, and his wife Jodie. His brother Jeff Offutt is a professor of software engineering. He has two sisters: Scotty Hyde, who lives in Bowling Green, Kentucky, and Melissa Offutt, who lives in San Diego. They grew up in Haldeman, a small former

mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic ...

community located in Rowan County in the Appalachian Mountain foothills of eastern Kentucky. They all attended public schools. Offutt quit high school intending to join the army, but failed the physical. Offutt subsequently attended

Morehead State University Morehead State University (MSU) is a public university in Morehead, Kentucky. The university began as Morehead Normal School, which opened its doors in 1887. The Craft Academy for Excellence in Science and Mathematics, a two-year residential ...

and graduated with a degree in theater and a minor in English. After college, he hitchhiked around the country, taking more than 50 jobs, all part-time, and began writing. Offutt later attended the

Iowa Writers' Workshop The Iowa Writers' Workshop, at the University of Iowa, is a celebrated graduate-level creative writing program in the United States. The writer Lan Samantha Chang is its director. Graduates earn a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) degree in Creative W ...

Literary career

In 1992, Offutt published his first short story collection, ''Kentucky Straight''. His second book was the 1993 memoir ''The Same River Twice''. In 1997 he published his first novel, ''The Good Brother''. In 1999, he published his second collection of stories, ''Out of the Woods''. His next book was a memoir, ''No Heroes: A Memoir of Coming Home'' (2002), about a six-month return to Rowan County where he had lived as a child. Offutt’s story, “Chuck’s Bucket,” was included in ''McSweeney’s Mammoth Treasury of Thrilling Tales'' (2002), edited by Michael Chabon. In 2005, Offutt made his comic book debut when he wrote "Another Man's Escape" for ''

Presents: The Amazing Adventures of the Escapist''. A second comic is included in the anthology ''Noir'', from Dark Horse Comics. Offutt has been a visiting faculty member at the

, the

University of Montana The University of Montana (UM) is a public research university in Missoula, Montana. UM is a flagship institution of the Montana University System and its second largest campus. UM reported 10,962 undergraduate and graduate students in the fa ...

, the

University of New Mexico The University of New Mexico (UNM; es, Universidad de Nuevo México) is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Founded in 1889, it is the state's flagship academic institution and the largest by enrollment, with over 25,400 ...

Grinnell College Grinnell College is a private liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, United States. It was founded in 1846 when a group of New England Congregationalists established the Trustees of Iowa College. Grinnell has the fifth highest endowment-to-stu ...

, Morehead State University, and

Mercer University Mercer University is a private research university with its main campus in Macon, Georgia. Founded in 1833 as Mercer Institute and gaining university status in 1837, it is the oldest private university in the state and enrolls more than 9,000 s ...

. He is teaching at the

University of Mississippi The University of Mississippi ( byname Ole Miss) is a public research university that is located adjacent to Oxford, Mississippi, and has a medical center in Jackson. It is Mississippi's oldest public university and its largest by enrollment ...

as visiting faculty. In addition to his fiction, Offutt writes non-fiction articles, which have been published in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'', '' Men's Journal'', and the ''Oxford American'' and aired on

National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

. His work is widely translated, and it is taught in high schools and colleges. His stories are included in many anthologies, including ''Best American Short Stories'', and ''New Stories of the South'' (four works). They have twice been featured on "Selected Shorts" on

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

. He has also written screenplays for TV series.

Honors

His work has received awards from the Lannan Foundation, Guggenheim Foundation, the

American Academy of Arts and Letters The American Academy of Arts and Letters is a 300-member honor society whose goal is to "foster, assist, and sustain excellence" in American literature, music, and art. Its fixed number membership is elected for lifetime appointments. Its headqu ...

, and the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...

. He received a Whiting Award in Fiction and Nonfiction. In 1996 Offutt was named one of the twenty best young American fiction writers by ''

Granta ''Granta'' is a literary magazine and publisher in the United Kingdom whose mission centres on its "belief in the power and urgency of the story, both in fiction and non-fiction, and the story’s supreme ability to describe, illuminate and ma ...

'' magazine.

Works

Books

* ''Kentucky Straight'' (1992) * ''The Same River Twice: A Memoir'' (1993) * ''The Good Brother'' (1997) * ''Out of the Woods'' (1999) ** "Moscow, Idaho," Originally Published in ''Granta 54: Best of Young American Novelists'' * ''No Heroes: A Memoir of Coming Home'' (2002) * ''My Father, the Pornographer: A Memoir'' (February 2016) *''Country Dark'' (2018) *''The Killing Hills'' (2021)

Stories and articles

"Chicken Eggs", ''Oxford American'', Spring 2014

* ttp://www.oxfordamerican.org/magazine/item/550-trash-food "Trash Food", ''Oxford American'', Spring 2015

Television

*''

'' **"Burning House of Love" (1x07) **"I Don't Wanna Know" (1x10) *'' Weeds'' **"A Distinctive Horn" (5x08)

References

External links

"Chris Offutt bio"
Lannan Foundation
Profile at The Whiting FoundationStuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library
Emory University
Chris Offutt papers, circa 1980-2015
{{DEFAULTSORT:Offutt, Chris 1958 births Living people 20th-century American novelists 20th-century American memoirists American male novelists Screenwriters from Iowa Grinnell College faculty Writers from Santa Monica, California Writers from Lexington, Kentucky University of Montana faculty University of New Mexico faculty Iowa Writers' Workshop faculty Iowa Writers' Workshop alumni American television writers American male television writers American male short story writers American male screenwriters 20th-century American short story writers Screenwriters from Kentucky 20th-century American male writers Novelists from Kentucky Novelists from Iowa American male non-fiction writers Screenwriters from California Screenwriters from Montana Screenwriters from New Mexico