“Blacketter, 46, and his wife and son recently moved to Pittsburgh. He is the author of the critically well-received 2014 novel Down in the River (Slant Books). Like that book’s protagonist, 16-year-old Lyle Rettew, Blacketter had a strongly Christian upbringing in rural Lewiston, Idaho — “watching the 700 Club and trying to speak in tongues” — before moving to Eugene, Ore. He spent much of his youth as a hell-raiser, he says, moving from city to city and working odd jobs before discovering writing in his mid-20s. He got serious right away and would work for up to 10 hours a day, but learned that developing a voice takes time.”
"They looked eastward, landing on Pittsburgh due to its artistic community… and literary history." http://t.co/2EdgsFqwYJ @PGHCityPaper 🎉
— Littsburgh (@littsburgh) September 3, 2015