Hogarth Press has acquired North American rights to two novels by Writing Program alum Woody Brown '24, the publisher announced. David Ebershoff will edit both books, with the deal brokered by Sarah Chalfant at the Wylie Agency.
The first novel, Upward Bound, which will be Brown's debut, follows the interwoven narratives of clients and caregivers at an adult day care center in Southern California. The publisher describes it as providing "an indelible, authentic, and deeply humane group portrait of autism and other disabilities, all illuminated by Brown's empathy, insight, and sly sense of humor."
The second book in the deal, Alfie, is described as a coming-of-age story exploring a young autistic man's relationships with his family and close friends.
"May I say that my success comes as a big surprise, as an autistic nonspeaking person," Brown said. "This isn't how my life was destined to go. The support and camaraderie I received as a Columbia MFA Writing student helped me to grow by leaps and bounds."
Brown, who was diagnosed with severe autism at age two, communicates through a letterboard system called Rapid Prompting Method (RPM). He holds an MFA from the School of the Arts and was the first nonspeaking graduate of UCLA.
Publication dates for both novels have not yet been announced.
