The Pittsburgh Contemporary Writers Series at the University of Pittsburgh has released its new season schedule. All readings are free and held at the Frick Fine Arts Auditorium and begin at 8:30 p.m. except where noted. The lineup:

Sept. 29 -- Tina May Hall, winner of the Drue Heinz Literature prize for her story collection, "The Physics of Imaginary Objects," reads with the contest judge, Renata Adler. 8 p.m.

Oct. 4 -- Mark Kurlansky is the William Block Sr. visiting writer. Author of "Cod," "Salt" and "The Last Fish Tale." 8:30 p.m.

Nov. 4 -- Poet Kimiko Hahn, author of the collections "Toxic Nature" and "Narrow Road to the Interior." 8:30 p.m.

Nov. 11 -- Novelist Michael Thomas, author of "Man Gone Down." He's the Fred R. Brown award winner. 8:30 p.m.

March 24 -- "Black Nature: Four Centuries of African American Nature Poetry" at 7 p.m. at the August Wilson Center for African-American Culture, Downtown.

April 7 -- Short-story writer and novelist Lydia Davis, author of "The End of the Story" and "Break it Down." 8:30 pm.

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