Maurice Carlos Ruffin to receive Louisiana Writer Award
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.

Maurice Carlos Ruffin's new book, "The American Daughters," is due out in February. Photo: Arturo Holmes/Getty Images
Maurice Carlos Ruffin will receive the Louisiana Writer Award at the Louisiana Book Festival on Saturday.
Driving the news: The festival returns to downtown Baton Rouge for its 19th year. The free event features author talks, panel discussions and book signings.
We caught up with Ruffin in this Q&A, which has been edited for length and clarity.
Who dat? The New Orleans-born author has written two books — "We Cast a Shadow" and "The Ones Who Don't Say They Love You" — and his third, "The American Daughters," is due out in February.
Where he went to school: McDonogh 35, before graduating from law school at Loyola University.
- Once a full-time lawyer, Ruffin began focusing on his writing in the past several years.
What he's looking forward to at the festival: "A chance to see so many writers that I love and respect. … I've been going for years, so it feels like going home."
- Ruffin will be in conversation with Tad Bartlett at the State Library Seminar Center at 11am. He'll sign books at the Cavalier House Books Tent at noon.
A festival event he'll try to attend: A Louisiana Poets presentation at 2pm with "wunderkind" Karisma Price.
His forthcoming novel is … "a labor of love that comes from the stories of my ancestors and research I've done. It's a book about a bunch of Black women who form a spy ring to fight the Confederates during the antebellum period.
- "It was so much fun to write to imagine what my ancestors and their community were like in the 1840s and 1850s."
Something New Orleans is missing: "Good economic opportunities for young people, especially young Black kids. I would like to see more equity in education and the criminal justice system and in the companies that are a part of the community."
If he could roll with any Mardi Gras krewe: "Two: Zulu and Muses. … Those are the two parades I'm always happiest to see."
What he's reading: Amy Tan's "The Joy Luck Club," a graphic novel by Shelby Criswell called "Queer As All Get Out," and Karisma Price's "I'm Always So Serious."
Will he write a graphic novel? "It's gonna happen. It's only a matter of time."
