Breece Dexter Pancake, 1952 - 1979

 Short story writer Breece Dexter Pancake was born in Kanawha County, West Virginia (1952). He wrote stories set in Appalachia, about characters doomed to emptiness and isolation. In 1979, he shot himself to death. The Stories of Breece D'J Pancake appeared 4 years later (1983), and was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize