Thursday the Ulrich Museum of Art will host a creative writing event called Writing Now, Reading Now. The event is part of a series focusing on either poetry or prose.

This week’s event will feature visiting author Yannick Murphy. Murphy is an award-winning novelist and short story writer who was selected for her excellence in fiction writing, Creative Writing Director Margaret Dawe said.

Murphy has learned under many noteworthy teachers in her life. These teachers include Frank McCourt, James Baldwin and Gordon Lish, the latter of whom served as editor for her first collection of stories titled, “Stories in Another Language.” Murphy considers herself lucky to have had these mentors in her life.

Dawe said the Writing Now, Reading Now event will allow Murphy to carry out a similar mentorship role toward Wichita State students.

“Every year the creative writing program at Wichita State invites a visiting fiction writer to give a reading and to teach our undergraduate and graduate students in one-to-one tutorial sessions that last for a month,” Dawe said.

The reading is open to the public. There, Murphy will be selling, signing and reading her work. Murphy hinted that there may also be more to the event than what is advertised.

“I might have a book giveaway if someone can answer a stupid question like, what the name of one of the dogs is in one of my books, or I might just give a book away based on the pleasing color of someone’s scarf or their smart-looking shoes,” Murphy said.

Murphy also said that she may play the bagpipes or perform a standup routine, although it was unclear whether these suggestions were legitimate or merely comedic in nature.

The Writing Now, Reading Now event will be held at 5:30 p.m. this Thursday at the Ulrich Museum of Art.