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James Tate Hill

Biography

James Tate Hill

James Tate Hill is the author of a memoir, BLIND MAN'S BLUFF. His fiction debut, ACADEMY GOTHIC, won the Nilsen Literary Prize for a First Novel. His essays were Notable in the 2019 and 2020 editions of Best American Essays. He serves as fiction editor for Monkeybicycle and contributing editor for Literary Hub, where he writes a monthly audiobooks column. Born in Charleston, WV, he lives in North Carolina with his wife.

James Tate Hill

Books by James Tate Hill

Blind Man's Bluff: A Memoir
by James Tate Hill - Memoir, Nonfiction

At age 16, James Tate Hill was diagnosed with Leber’s hereditary optic neuropathy, a condition that left him legally blind. When friends stopped calling and a disability counselor advised him to aim for C’s in his classes, he tried to escape the stigma by pretending he could still see. In BLIND MAN’S BLUFF, Hill discloses the tricks he employed to pass for sighted. For 15 years, Hill hid his blindness from friends, colleagues and lovers, even convincing himself that if he stared long enough, his blurry peripheral vision would bring the world into focus. At 30, faced with a stalled writing career, a crumbling marriage, and a growing fear of leaving his apartment, he began to wonder if there was a better way.