A Q&A with Mitchell Jackson & Ashrena Ali Ashrena Ali
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orn and raised in Portland, Oregon, Mitchell Jackson endured a harsh childhood and family life ravaged by drugs, prostitution, gangs, and imprisonment, which serve as the recurring foundation for his critically acclaimed work. His debut novel, The Residue Years (Bloomsbury, 2013), explored autobiographical strands through provocative prose, underscoring Faulkner’s most famous lines: “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.” Jackson is adamant about placing his history on paper, committed to digging up the memories of his formative years in a poetic and memorable fashion. He continues this style in his newest nonfiction book, Survival Math: Notes on an All-American Family (Scribner, 2019). Jackson showcases his talent by incorporating his former lifestyle in a multitude of genres, including a documentary based on his novel that he co-directed, wrote, and produced. Jackson, a Clinical Associate Professor of writing in Liberal Studies at New York University, holds a mass of literary awards and prizes—including the Whiting Award, the Ernest J. Gaines Prize for Literary Excellence, the PEN/ Hemingway Award for Debut Fiction—as well as fellowships from the Lannan Foundation, the Ford Foundation, PEN America, TED, NYFA, and The Center for Fiction. Along with his writing, he is a social and criminal justice advocate. Jackson is a formerly incarcerated person and he visits prisons and youth facilities in the United States and abroad as part of his advocacy work. Ashrena Ali, an MFA in Poetry candidate at Hofstra University, spoke with Jackson during his visit to campus for the 15th annual Great Writers, Great Readings Series held Great Writers, Great Reaings Series 65
