Author and Lone Star College-Montgomery professor, Cliff Hudder, has been inducted into the Texas Institute of Letters (TIL). The Institute celebrates Texas literature and recognizes distinctive literary achievement.

“I was thrilled when I found out about being inducted,” said Hudder. “It’s the kind of honor that was on my bucket list. I had hoped to be included in the TIL one day, but when that day came my first reaction was shock.”

Hudder traveled to El Paso for the induction ceremony and, along with other inductees, read one of his short stories to an audience of some of the state’s most accomplished literary figures.

“This is one of the largest and most impressive groups of writers to come into the Texas Institute of Letters in a single year,” said Institute President Steven L. Davis. “For those elected it means that you have the respect and admiration of your fellow writers, which is a very significant level of recognition.”  In addition to Hudder, this year’s inductees included novelist and TV producer Attica Locke, Dallas journalist Cary Clack, singer-songwriter Joe Ely from the Panhandle region, and 11 other writers who work in a variety of genres.   

Membership is based on literary accomplishments and is granted only though an election by existing members.

“While here at LSC-Montgomery, I have been helping promote Texas writers once a month at our ‘Writers in Performance’ series,” said Hudder. “I think it was the combination of my fiction, nonfiction and community work with the ‘Writers in Performance’ series that put me on the Texas Institute of Letters’ radar.”

Hudder has written a novella, Splinterville, and a novel, Pretty Enough for You, that was named to Lone Star Literary Life’s “Top Ten Texas Fiction Favorites, 2015.”  He’s working on his Ph.D. at Texas A&M and hopes to get a publication from that as well.  “I think of my dissertation as a non-fiction book,” Hudder said. “It’s about Houston and the theory of place and the spirit of place in writing.”

Hudder has advice for students looking to get a degree in English.

“Have a passion for the subject,” he said. “If you follow your bliss and your bliss happens to be reading, writing and literature, then trust that you can find some way to do well. I realize how fortunate I have been; making a living helping people learn about something I love. It has been a great benefit to work at LSC-Montgomery, too. I’m surrounded by people who care about writing and that support has kept me going.”

To learn more about Hudder, visit cliffhudder.com.

Known for its leadership, innovation and steadfast commitment to student success, Lone Star College provides high-quality academic transfer and workforce education / career training programs to more than 83,000 credit students each semester, and a total enrollment of 95,000 students. LSC is training tomorrow’s workforce today and redefining the community college experience to promote student success and economic prosperity. Stephen C. Head, Ph.D., is the chancellor of LSC, the largest institution of higher education in the Houston area, which consists of six colleges, eight centers, two university centers, Lone Star Corporate College and LSC-Online. To learn more visit LoneStar.edu.