Louis Edwards is the author of four novels, including his latest, Ramadan Ramsey (Amistad/Harper Collins), which was selected as one of the best books of 2021 by NPR and Publishers Weekly. He has won both the Guggenheim Fellowship and the Whiting Writers Award. Born and raised in Lake Charles, Louisiana, Edwards attended Hunter College and LSU (B.A. in Journalism). He has had a decades-long career as a producer of many special events, most notably the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. He is the Chief Creative Officer and Chief Marketing Officer of Festival Productions, Inc.-New Orleans.