Norman was a fiction writer, essayist, teacher, and mentor often cited as an authority on the literary and cultural history of Appalachia.
There is something about being born and raised in mountains that shapes you.Gurney Norman, 1990 interview
The Kentucky Writers Hall of Fame inductee and former Kentucky poet laureate spent most of his career as the director of the University of Kentucky's Creative Writing Program, teaching students who included future poet laureate Frank X Walker.
In a 1990 interview published by Appalshop, Norman reflected on his upbringing in eastern Kentucky and southwestern Virginia.
"There is something about being born and raised in mountains that shapes you, I think, and leaves you with a permanent attachment to the landscape and maybe to the ways of being among people," he said. "That certainly had a lot to do with my ongoing ties."
The interview followed the publication of Norman's short story "Fat Monroe," which became a film starring Ned Beatty.
Norman passed away at 88.