On Wednesday, April 17, students and teachers participating in The Origin Project took part in the 48th Annual John Fox, Jr. Literary Festival at Mountain Empire Community College in Big Stone Gap, Virginia.  Keynote speaker and co-founder of The Origin Project Adriana Trigiani was joined by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Barbara Kingsolver.  The two bestselling authors discussed the Appalachian region and writing before answering questions from students, teachers and guests.

In total, eleven members of The Origin Project family won awards for their writings in the categories of short story and poetry.