The UPM First Author’s Initiative, established through generous gifts from our authors, supports the publication of books by emerging scholars, nontraditional authors, and authors from a wide variety of backgrounds. The UPM First Author’s Initiative, funded through the University Press of Mississippi New Horizons Fund at the Community Foundation for Mississippi, supports the work of these authors so they can achieve success regardless of their academic status or access to resources. Funds may be used to offset a variety of costs that might otherwise be a burden to an author and the Press.

By supporting these authors, your generosity helps University Press of Mississippi reach a broad audience of readers and researchers around the world.

Books already supported by the Initiative include:

• Mississippi Zion: The Struggle for Liberation in Attala County, 1865–1915
• Carnival in Alabama: Marked Bodies and Invented Traditions in Mobile

As part of this campaign, throughout the year our team will spotlight a few of the first-time authors whose books have garnered academic and popular recognition, celebrating them, and looking forward to the big ideas first-time authors will contribute to the future.

To learn more or make contributions to the UPM First Author’s Initiative through the University Press of Mississippi New Horizon Fund at the Community Foundation for Mississippi, visit our donation page.