Salem College, in partnership with BOOKMARKS, welcomes best-selling author Charlaine Harris for  “A Conversation with Charlaine Harris” on Monday, May 7, 7 p.m., at the Hanes Auditorium in the Salem Fine Arts Center at Salem College.

Harris, a New York Times bestselling author, is the prolific writer of the Sookie Stackhouse urban fantasy series, which serves as the basis of the wildly successful HBO series True Blood. Starring Stephen Moyer, Anna Paquin, and Alexander Skarsgård, True Blood will air its fifth season in the summer of 2012. Sookie’s adventures as a telepathic waitress in southern Louisiana (and her dealings with vampires, werewolves and other creatures of the night) has found international acclaim. Harris is also the author of the Aurora Teagarden books, Shakespeare mysteries and Grave Sight series.

Born and raised in the Mississippi River Delta area, Harris will be on tour for the hard cover release of Deadlocked, the twelfth book in her Sookie Stackhouse series. Harris has garnered an Anthony Award for Dead Until Dark, the first book in the Sookie Stackhouse series, and is a member of the Mystery Writers of America and the American Crime Writers League.  She is a member of the board of Sisters in Crime, and alternates as president of the Arkansas Mystery Writers Alliance.

Harris’ books will be on sale and a book signing will follow the event.

The program will be moderated by Dale M. Pollack, a film professor, writer and filmmaker. Pollack is based in Winston-Salem, after a 22-year career in Los Angeles as an award-winning newspaper reporter and feature film producer, with 13 movies to his credit. For seven years, Pollack was the Dean of the School of Filmmaking at the University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA), and co-founded the Producing Program at the American Film Institute in Los Angeles. He also brought the RiverRun International Film Festival to prominence in Winston-Salem. He is currently Professor of Cinema Studies and Professor of Producing at UNCSA.

Admission to “A Conversation with Charlaine Harris” is by ticket only. Tickets can be purchased through www.bookmarksnc.org or by calling Brown Paper Tickets 24/7 ticket hotline at 1-800-838-3006. Proceeds benefit BOOKMARKS, a Triad-based literary nonprofit organization. Ticket prices are:
$22 for general admission if purchased in advance and $30 if purchased at the door (this option may not be available if the event is sold out). General admission includes one ticket for the conversation event, followed by a book signing and reception. Doors open at 6:15 p.m. Program begins at 7 p.m.

BOOKMARKS brings writers and readers of all ages together as renowned authors, illustrators, storytellers and chefs share their work and insights through readings, presentations, panel discussions, workshops and book signings at an annual festival of books. This free festival partners with community organizations, reading related exhibitors, and food vendors. The eighth festival will be held on Saturday, September 8, 2012. Please visit www.bookmarksnc.org for more information.