Maurice Carlos Ruffin is the author of the national bestseller “The American Daughters,” as well as a short story collection, “The Ones Who Don’t Say They Love You.” His debut novel, “We Cast a Shadow,” was a finalist for the PEN/Faulkner Award, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize and the PEN America Open Book Prize. All three books were New York Times Editor’s Choice selections. He is the winner of the Iowa Review Award in fiction and the Louisiana Writer Award. Ruffin is an associate professor of creative writing at Louisiana State University.