Coleman Barks is an American poet, a former lecturer at the University of Georgia and a renowned interpreter of Rumi and other mystic poets.

He makes frequent international appearances and is well-known throughout the Middle East.

His work has contributed to the creation of a strong Rumi following in the English-speaking world and the dissemination of Sufi ideas across many cultural boundaries.

A native of Washington, D.C., Jean Toomer (1894–1967) took a four-month teaching job in Georgia in 1921.

Here the poet, playwright, and novelist reconnected with his African-American roots to create his best-known work, Cane, a book of prose poetry inspired by the people and landscapes of the Deep South.

Alice Walker won the Pulitzer prize and the American Book Award for The Color Purple. She is the author of many bestselling novels, essays and collections of poetry including Meridian, By the Light of my Father's Smile and The Third Life of Grange Copeland.

In addition to her worldwide bestselling Tuscany memoirs Under the Tuscan Sun, Bella Tuscany, and Every Day in Tuscany, Frances Mayes is the author of the travel memoir A Year in the World, illustrated books In Tuscany and Bringing Tuscany Home (with Edward Mayes), The Tuscan Sun Cookbook (also with Edward Mayes), and her most recent memoir, Under Magnolia.

She has published a novel, Swan, set in the South; The Discovery of Poetry: A Guide for Readers and Writers; and five books of poetry. She divides her time between Tuscany and North Carolina.