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Ƶ Hosts Public Lecture by Romance Author Beverly Jenkins on June 23

Award-winning historical romance writer Beverly Jenkins will present a public lecture on Saturday, June 23 during Ƶ University’s Writing Popular Fiction residency. The lecture, will be held at 7 p.m. in the Ƶ University Performing Arts Center, 100 Harrison Ave., Greensburg. The event is sponsored by Ƶ University’s Master of Fine Arts in Writing Popular Fiction program and the Westmoreland Library Network. Tickets are free through the Ƶ University Box office at 724-552-2929 or

Beverly Jenkins is the recipient of the 2017 Romance Writers of America Nora Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award, as well as the 2016 Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award for historical romance. She has been nominated for the NAACP Image Award in Literature and was featured in both the documentary Love Between the Covers and on CBS Sunday Morning. Since the publication of Night Song in 1994, she has been leading the charge for multicultural romance and has been a constant darling of reviewers, fans, and her peers alike, garnering accolades for her work from the likes of The Wall Street Journal, People Magazine, and NPR.

Ƶ’s unique Master of Fine Arts in Writing Popular Fiction program teaches students to write marketable novels in popular genres like mystery, romance, science fiction, horror, and fantasy. Additional specialties include literature for adolescents and cross-genre blends like romantic suspense or young adult mysteries. Students attend two weeklong, on-campus residencies each year to master the core elements of fiction writing and effective marketing and to gain inspiration from faculty mentors and special guests, all published authors in genre fiction. Established authors mentor students one-on-one as they work toward completing a market-ready manuscript from home. Readings, classes, and on-line discussion about the history, trends, and techniques of genre fiction add depth to the student's experience. For more information about the Master of Arts in Writing Popular Fiction program at Ƶ, visit or contact Ƶ’s Office of Graduate and Adult Studies at 724-838-4209.