College of Arts and Sciences

Jon Billman Ad Spring 2006 Case Writer: Jon Billman

Jon Billman, author of “When We Were Wolves,” is the Western Illinois University Lola Austin Case Writer in Residence for Spring 2006. He will visit Western’s English and journalism department from Feb. 27-March 3.

Billman will present “Writing and the Environment,” a question and answer session, at 4 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 28 in Simpkins Hall 27. He will also read from his current work at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 1 in the University Union Sandburg Theater followed by a reception in the Lincoln Room hosted by Western’s Institute for Environmental Studies. Both events are open free to the public.

Previously a wildland firefighter, Billman was also a seventh grade teacher. He is a visiting professor of English at Iowa State University where he is helping to design a “writing and the environment” component in the MFA program. His writing has been published in “Esquire;” “The Paris Review,” a notorious and respected literary magazine; and “Zoetrope,” the short-fiction magazine founded by Francis Coppola. When not in Iowa, Billman lives in Kemmerer, WY where he is working on a new novel.

Billman’s visit to Western is made possible through the Fred E. Case and Lola Austen Case Endowment designed to nurture upcoming writers. The endowment provides learning for a lifetime through extended residencies for visiting writers and greater opportunities for more interaction between students and established writers.

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