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Jeffrey Blount is the award-winning author of three novels. His most recent book, The Emancipation of Evan Walls was the winner of the 2020 National Indie Excellence Award for African American fiction. His upcoming book, Mr. Jimmy from Around the Way was published on January 15, 2024.
About the book, Mr. Jimmy From Around the Way, from the publisher’s website https://www.beaufortbooks.com/mr-jimmy-from-around-the-way/
“After a highly publicized fall from grace, James attempts to flee from the chaos in his life. He ends up in a community he had never heard of before, one that has been neglected and ignored by everyone in rural Ham, Mississippi. A place of abject poverty, the neighborhood is commonly referred to as “Around the Way.” ... Mr. Jimmy From Around the Way is a story about failure, self-discovery, empowerment, and the possibility of redemption.”
Blount is an Emmy award-winning television director and a 2016 inductee to the Virginia Communications Hall of Fame. During a 34-year career at NBC News, Jeffrey directed a decade of Meet The Press, The Today Show, NBC Nightly News, and major special events. He is the first African- American to direct the Today Show.
Additionally, Jeffrey is an award-winning documentary scriptwriter for films and interactives that are now on display in the Smithsonian Museum of African American History and Culture. America I AM: The African American Imprint at the National Constitution Center, and others.
For the VCU Libraries book launch, Blount will be joined on stage by several VCU alumni and his wife, award-winning journalist and security analyst Jeanne Meserve. She will moderate the discussion among the author and fellow award-winning journalists Dabney Cortina (BS/’75/H&S) and Joe Cortina (BFA’80/H&S) and Emmy Award-winning director Jesse Vaughan (B.S.’80). . Beyond Blount’s book, they’ll discuss creativity and the power of longtime connections.
In 2017 and 2018, Jeffrey served as Journalist in Residence and Shapiro Fellow at the School of Media and Public Affairs at The George Washington University.
A Virginia native, he graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University with a degree in Communications/Broadcast Journalism.
Born and raised in Smithfield, Virginia, he lives in Washington, DC.
For special accommodations, or to register offline, please contact Ryan Pander, event manager, rbpander@vcu.edu or 804-828-0593.