Low-Residency MFA in Creative Writing

Pam Jenoff
Spring 2026

Pam Jenoff is the author of several books of historical fiction, including the NYT bestseller The Orphan's Tale. She holds a degree in international affairs from George Washington University and a degree in history from Cambridge, and she received her JD from UPenn. Her novels are inspired by her experiences working at the Pentagon and as a diplomat for the State Department handling Holocaust issues in Poland. She lives with her husband and 3 children near Philadelphia, where she teaches law.

Nita Prose
Fall 2025

Nita Prose is the author of The Mystery Guest, The Mistletoe Mystery, and The Maid, which has sold over two million copies worldwide and was publishedin more than forty countries. A #1 New York Times bestseller and a Good Morning America Book Club pick, The Maid won the Ned Kelly Award for International Crime Fiction, the Fingerprint Award for Debut Novel of the Year, the Anthony Awardfor Best First Novel, and the Barry Award for Best First Mystery. The Maid was also an Edgar Award finalist for Best Novel. The grand finale of the Maid series publishes in April 2025, called The Maid’s Secret. Nita has two decades of experienceworking as an editor in the publishing industry, most recently as vice president and editorial director of Simon & Schuster

Mary Beth Keane
Spring 2024

Mary Beth Keane attended Barnard College and the University of Virginia, where she received an MFA. She was awarded a John S. Guggenheim fellowship for fiction writing, and has received citations from the National Book Foundation, PEN America, and the Hemingway Society. She is the author of The Walking People, Fever, and Ask Again, Yes, which spent eight weeks on the New York Times Best Seller List. To date, Ask Again, Yes has been translated into twenty-two languages.

Alyson Richman
Fall 2024

Alyson Richman is the USA Today bestselling and #1 international bestselling author of several historical novels including The Velvet Hours, The Garden of Letters, and The Lost Wife, which is currently in development for a major motion picture.  Alyson graduated from Wellesley College with a degree in art history and Japanese studies. She is an accomplished painter and her novels combine her deep love of art, historical research, and travel.  Alyson's novels have been published in twenty-five languages and have reached the bestseller lists both in the United States and abroad. She lives on Long Island with her husband and two children, where she is currently at work on her next novel. 

Nomi Eve
Program Director
nae28@drexel.edu

Nomi Eve is the author of Henna House and The Family Orchard, which was a Book-of-the-Month Club main selection and was nominated for a National Jewish Book Award. She has an MFA in fiction writing from Brown University and has worked as a freelance book reviewer for The Village Voice and New York Newsday. 

Her stories and essays have appeared in The New York Times, Glimmer Train Stories, The Voice Literary Supplement, Conjunctions, and The International Quarterly. She teaches fiction writing at Drexel University and lives in Philadelphia with her family.

Rachel Barenbaum

ATOMIC ANNA is Rachel's second novel. The New York Times Book Review said it was “masterfully plotted." And the LA Review of Books called it "propulsive and intimate." It was long-listed for the Massachusetts Book Award, was nominated for a Goodreads Choice Award, named an Honor Book by the Association of Jewish Libraries for their 2022 Fiction Award, and received a starred review from both Kirkus and Publishers Weekly. Rachel's debut, A BEND IN THE STARS, was named a New York Times Summer Reading Selection and a Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers selection.

Her radio show/podcast, Check This Out, is a partnership between New Hampshire’s NPR and the PEN/ Faulkner Foundation, and spotlights emerging authors. You can listen wherever you get your podcasts or on NHPR on Saturdays at 3pm.

Rachel is also a prolific writer and reviewer. Her work has appeared in Harper’s Bazaar, the LA Review of Books, and more. She has been a scholar in residence at the Hadassah-Brandeis Institute at Brandeis and her work has been supported by residencies at Ucross, Wildacres, Norton Island, and the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts.

Celia Bell

Celia Bell’s first novel, The Disenchantment, was published by Pantheon Books in 2023. She received an MFA from the University of Texas at Austin, and has published work in VQR, The White Review, Sewanee Review, and other venues. She lives in Philadelphia.

Eric Bell

Eric Bell (he/him) is the author of Alan Cole is Not a Coward (Katherine Tegen Books/HarperCollins, 2017) and Alan Cole Doesn’t Dance (Katherine Tegen Books/HarperCollins, 2018), two middle grade novels about a gay seventh grade boy dealing with bullies, crushes, the power of art, and coming out. The first book was nominated to the Rainbow Book List for GLBTQ Books for Children and Teens. The books have also been translated into multiple languages. Eric is also featured in the queer middle grade short story anthology This is Our Rainbow: 16 Stories of Her, Him, Them, and Us (Knopf). Eric is a teacher of writing classes, a virtual workshop leader, a freelance editor and writing coach, and an employee at a library. He lives and writes in Pennsylvania.

Isaac Blum

Isaac Blum (he/him) is an educator and author. His debut novel, The Life and Crimes of Hoodie Rosen, was longlisted for the National Book Award and a finalist for the William C. Morris Award. He’s taught English at several colleges and universities, and at Orthodox Jewish and public schools. He lives with his wife in Philadelphia where he watches sports and reads books that make him laugh while showing him something true about the world.

Denny S. Bryce

An award-winning author, Denny S. Bryce won the RWA Golden Heart® and was a three-time GH finalist, including twice for Wild Women and the Blues. She also writes book reviews for NPR Books and entertainment articles for FROLIC Media.

Julie Cantrell

Julie Cantrell is a multiple award-winning, New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author, editor, story coach, TEDx speaker, and ghostwriter. She served as editor-in-chief of the Southern Literary Review and has received the Mississippi Arts Commission Literary Arts Fellowship, the Rivendell Writer’s Colony Mary Elizabeth Nelson Fellowship, and the Pat Conroy Writer’s Residency Fellowship. Her novels have earned starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and Library Journal and have been featured in Top Reads lists by LitHub, Redbook, Southern Living Magazine, REAL SIMPLE, BookBub, HuffPost, USA TODAY, and more. As a novelist, she’s received two Christy Awards, two Carol Awards, and the Mississippi Library Association Fiction Award. She was named a short-list finalist twice for the Mississippi Arts & Letters Fiction Award as well as a two-time short-list finalist for the Pat Conroy Southern Book Prize. In addition to her work with survivors of abuse and her service as a literacy advocate, she’s a member of the Tall Poppy Writers and Her Novel Collective, two organizations that promote the power of story and elevate female voices.

Meagan Church

Meagan Church is the author of emotionally-charged, empathy-inducing novels, including The Mad Wife, The Last Carolina Girl, and The Girls We Sent Away, a Southern indie bestseller and North Carolina Reads state-wide book club pick for 2025. After receiving a B.A. in English from Indiana University, Meagan built a career as a freelance writer. She helps authors tell their own stories through editing, coaching, and workshops. A Midwesterner by birth, she now lives in North Carolina with her high school sweetheart, three children, and a plethora of pets. To follow her storytelling, visit MeaganChurch.com.

Kelly Creagh

Kelly Creagh is the author of Nevermore, Enshadowed, Oblivion (Atheneum,) and Phantom Heart (Viking.) Her titles, which revisit, incorporate, and reimagine the classic gothic works of Edgar Allan Poe and Gaston Leroux, have been translated into multiple languages and, in the instance of Phantom Heart, adapted for audiobook format. In addition to writing YA novels, Kelly crafts exclusive middle-grade, YA, and children’s short fiction, plays, and non-fiction pieces for notable technology-based educational companies that aim to develop student literacy and cultivate a love of reading in young people. She holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Spalding University and a BS in Theatre Arts from the University of Louisville. Based in Louisville, Kentucky, Kelly also works as a writing coach, a freelance writer, and a dance instructor. Currently, she is working on a second gothic-literature-inspired YA novel for Viking.

Julie Carrick Dalton

Julie Carrick Dalton is the author of The Last Beekeeper, longlisted for the Massachusetts Book Award, and Waiting for the Night Song, a Most Anticipated novel by CNN, USA Today, Newsweek, and Parade, and the winner of the New Hampshire Writer's Project People's Choice Award for Best Novel. A former journalist, organic farmer, and beekeeper, she is a frequent speaker on the topic of fiction in the age of climate crisis at universities and conferences. Julie also teaches undergraduates at Tufts University. Her writing has appeared in The Boston Globe, BusinessWeek, The Hollywood Reporter, Electric Literature, Lit Hub, Orion, and numerous other publications. When she isn't reading, writing, or trying to track down her four adult children, you can probably find Julie kayaking, skiing, gardening, or walking her dogs. Her third novel, The Forest Becomes Her, will be released by St. Martin's Press in early 2026, to be followed by a fourth novel in 2027. You can find her on IG @juliecdalton or at juliecarrickdalton.com.

J. R. Dawson

Dawson’s (she*/they) shorter fiction can be found in places such as The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, Lightspeed, The Year’s Best Science Fiction and Fantasy, Daily Science Fiction, and more. Her speculative stories focus on women’s issues, the queer community, and hope that maybe tomorrow can be better. In 2021, she collaborated with Institute of Holocaust Education and Circle Theatre to write When We Go Away, a TYA play that wove together four survivors' testimonies. She’s currently a teaching artist at Nebraska Writers Collective, and holds a BFA in Playwriting and Literature from The Theatre School at DePaul University, an MS in Second Education from University of Nebraska, and an MFA in Popular Fiction from Stonecoast. She lives in Omaha, NE, with her spouse and three dogs in the middle of a city park. Her debut novel about a magical circus, The First Bright Thing, will be released by Tor in Summer 2023. For more information, visit her at www.jrdawsonwriter.com or on twitter at @j_r_dawson.

Richard Fellinger

Richard Fellinger is an award-winning author of literary fiction, a former journalist, and writing fellow at Elizabethtown College. He's the author of the novels Summer of '85, winner of the Novel Excerpt Contest at Seven Hills Review and a finalist for an American Fiction Award, and Made To Break Your Heart. His story collection, They Hover Over Us, won the Serena McDonald Kennedy Award. He's a Pushcart Prize nominee and winner of the Flash Fiction Contest at Red Cedar Review. He earned his Bachelor's Degree at the University of Pittsburgh and MFA in Creative Writing at Wilkes University, where he won the Beverly Hiscox Scholarship for Excellence in Writing. He lives with his wife in Harrisburg, Pa.

Ted Flanagan

Ted Flanagan is the author of Every Hidden Thing (“[A] righteous, hard-charging, bell-ringing, mother-…… debut novel!!!!!” ~ James Ellroy), and his short fiction has appeared in Mystery Tribune, Shotgun Honey, the recent anthology GONE: An Anthology of Crime Stories, among others. His nonfiction has appeared in the Boston Globe and he is a regular contributor to NPR affiliate WBUR’s Cognoscenti essay site. Ted is a former Recon Marine and newspaper reporter who continues to serve as a 911 paramedic and firefighter, in addition to writing and teaching. Ted lives in central Massachusetts with his wife and three kids, and in addition to crime, he writes historical and literary fiction. Ted holds an MFA in Fiction from the Mountainview MFA program.

Tina Ann Forkner

Tina Ann Forkner is a freelance editor, the author of five novels including The Real Thing, Waking Up Joy, and Ruby Among Us. She is a member of Tall Poppy Writers. Tina leads summer writing workshops for young writers at Laramie County Community College and writing seminars for adults at the Laramie County Library. She served on the library’s Foundation Board of Directors for six years and is still active as a past member. She is now writing her sixth novel. Tina lives in Wyoming and is a graduate of California State University, Sacramento.

Leah Franqui

Leah Franqui is the author of America for Beginners, Mother Land, and After the Hurricane, all published by William Morrow. She has taught at Georgia State University, from which she received her PhD in December of 2024, Emory University and St. Joseph’s University. She holds an MFA from NYU-Tisch and a BA from Yale University. Having grown up in Philadelphia, she is thrilled to be back home after over a decade living in New York, Mumbai, and Atlanta respectively. Outside of writing and teaching, Leah is passionate about clothing and fashion history and material culture, crafting, art history, travel and culinary arts.

Brandi Megan Granett

Brandi Megan Granett is an author, online English professor, and writing coach. She earned her PhD in Creative Writing at Aberystwyth University and her MFA in Fiction from Sarah Lawrence College. Her next novel, Ever Glade, will be released in Fall 2019. Triple Love Score, was published by Wyatt-Mackenzie in Fall 2016. Morrow published her first novel, My Intended, in 2000. Her short fiction appeared in Pebble Lake Review, Folio, Pleiades, and other literary magazines and is collected in the volume, Cars and Other Things That Get Around. When she is not writing or teaching or mothering, you will find her on the archery range.

Terah Shelton Harris

Terah Shelton Harris is an author and former librarian, who now writes upmarket fiction with bittersweet endings. She is the author of One Summer in Savannah and Long After We Are Gone. Her books have been chosen as a Target Book Club pick, LibraryReads pick, Kobo Best Book, Together We Read pick, Publisher’s Marketplace Buzz Book, and a Goodreads Choice Awards nominee for Best Debut. Terah was also named Target’s first Author of the Year. Her third book, Where the Wildflowers Grow, will be published in February 2026.

Donna Hemans

Donna Hemans is the author of three novels, River Woman, Tea by the Sea, and The House of Plain Truth. Her short fiction and essays have appeared in Electric Literature, Ms. Magazine, Oprah Daily, and Crab Orchard Review, among others. She received her undergraduate degree in English and Media Studies from Fordham University and an MFA from American University. She serves on the board of the PEN/Faulkner Foundation and is also the owner of DC Writers Room, a co-working studio for writers based in Washington, D.C.

C.H. Hooks

C.H. Hooks is the author of the novels Can’t Shake the Dust and Alligator Zoo-Park Magic. His work has appeared in publications including: The Los Angeles Review, American Short Fiction, Four Way Review, The Tampa Review, The Bitter Southerner, Writer’s Digest, and Craft Literary. He was a Tennessee Williams Scholar at Sewanee Writers' Conference, and attended DISQUIET: Dzanc Books International Literary Program in Lisbon. He teaches at Flagler College in St. Augustine, Florida.

Amy Impellizzeri

Amy Impellizzeri’s novels (Lemongrass Hope, Secrets of Worry Dolls, The Truth About Thea, Why We Lie, I Know How This Ends) have won accolades including Foreword Reviews Book of the Year Awards and National Indie Excellence Awards. Amy is also the author of the non-fiction book, Lawyer Interrupted (ABA Publishing 2015) (featured by ABC27, The Atlantic, Above the Law, and more), plus numerous essays and articles that have appeared in online and print journals including: Writer’s Digest, BookTrib, The Huffington Post, ABA Law Practice Today, The Glass Hammer, Divine Caroline, Skirt! Magazine, and more. Amy is a past President of the Women’s Fiction Writer’s Association, a member of the Tall Poppy Writers, a 2018 Writer-In-Residence at Ms-JD.org (as well as a recipient of their 2019 "Road Less Traveled Award"), and a frequently invited speaker at legal conferences and writing workshops across the country.

Sadeqa Johnson

Sadeqa Johnson is the award-winning author of The Yellow Wife, And Then There Was Me, Second House From the Corner and Love in a Carry-on Bag. Her accolades include being the recipient of the National Book Club award, Phillis Wheatley award and the USA Best Book award for best fiction. She is a Kimbilio Fellow, former board member of the James River Writers, and proud member of the Tall Poppy Writers.

Karen Karbo

Karen Karbo is the best-selling author of 16 works of fiction and non-fiction, including the international best seller The Gospel According to Coco Chanel. Her work has appeared in Vogue, Elle, Outside, Tin House, The Los Angeles Review of Books, and the New York Times Modern Love column. She has taught writing workshops at the University of Oregon, Rutgers University, Portland State University, Tin House, Portland Literary Arts, and the Todos Santos Writers Workshop. She launched Come to Karbohemia, her writing retreat in the South of France, in 2018.

Tosca Lee

Tosca Lee is a New York Times bestselling author of twelve novels. Her work has been praised by Publisher’s Weekly, The Historical Novel Society, Booklist, Woman’s World, Romantic Times, The Dallas Morning News, and The Midwest Book Review as “deeply human,” “powerful,” and “mind-bending.”

Lee’s books have been translated into seventeen languages and optioned for TV and film. They have won three consecutive International Book Awards, Killer Nashville’s Silver Falchion, and the Nebraska Book Award, and finaled for numerous others including the Hemingway Award, the Library of Virginia’s People’s Choice Award, the High Plains Book Award, a second Silver Falchion, and the Christy. The Line Between was a Goodreads semi-finalist for best mystery/thriller of 2019 and The Long March Home was chosen as 2025’s One Book One Nebraska. In addition to the New York Times, her books have appeared on the IndieBound and inspirational bestseller lists, Library Journal’s Best Of lists, and as part of Target Stores’ “Target Recommends” program.

Lee earned her bachelor’s degree in English from Smith College. She also studied at Oxford University. A former Fortune Global 500 consultant, she lives in Nebraska with her family. For more, please visit: www.toscalee.com.

Shawntelle Madison

Bestselling author Shawntelle Madison has written more than 15 science fiction, fantasy, and romance titles, most notably the urban fantasy series Coveted. She earned her undergraduate degree in mathematics from Iowa State University and her MFA in writing from Lindenwood University.

Her debut historical novel, The Fallen Fruit, became an instant USA Today bestseller in 2024 and received widespread critical acclaim. It was named one of the Christian Science Monitor’s Best Books of 2024, an LA Times Most Anticipated Fall 2024 Book, an Essence Magazine Top 20 Fall Read, and a Washington Post Noteworthy Book for September 2024. Her next novel, The Midnight Bus, a work of speculative historical fiction, will be released in 2027 by Penguin Random House. You can find her at shawntellemadison.com or on IG at @shawntellemadison.

Tif Marcelo

Tif Marcelo is a veteran army nurse and holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing and a Master of Public Administration. She is the author of The Key to Happily Ever After, a Target Diverse Book Club pick, the Journey to the Heart series, and her most recent work, Once Upon a Sunset. She and her work have been featured on The Today Show, Shondaland, NPR, Bustle, Buzzfeed, the Asian Journal, Travel & Leisure, and Women’s World. She is a member of the Association of Writers & Writing Programs and is a proud Tall Poppy Writer. Currently, she lives in the DC metro area.

Jon McGoran

Jon McGoran is the award-winning author of nine novels for adults and young adults including the YA science fiction thrillers Spliced and its upcoming sequel Splintered, as well as the acclaimed ecological thrillers Drift, Deadout, and Dust Up. Spliced was named to the American Library Association’s Excellence in Children's and Young Adult Science Fiction Notable List and the American Bookseller’s Association’s 2017 ABC Best Books for Young Readers. Spliced is also on the shortlist for South Carolina’s Young Adult Book of the Year. McGoran’s other books include the D. H. Dublin forensic thrillers Body Trace, Blood Poison, and Freezer Burn; and The Dead Ring, based on the TV show, The Blacklist. He also works as a freelance writer, developmental editor and writing coach, and is cohost of The Liars Club Oddcast, a podcast about writing and creativity.

J.D. Myall

J.D. Myall is the author of Heart’s Gambit (Wednesday Books, 2026). Her work has appeared in Ms. Magazine, Writer’s Digest, and HuffPost. She has served as a judge for the Writer’s Digest Annual Writing Competition and as a sensitivity reader for Macmillan.

A publishing and library professional, Myall hosts the podcast Craft Chat Chronicles, where she interviews authors and publishing professionals about writing and publishing.

Website: jdmyall.com Instagram: @jd_myall

Adele Myers

Adele Myers is the author of The Tobacco Wives, her debut novel about the rise and fall of Big Tobacco told through the eyes of a 15-year-old seamstress. The Tobacco Wives, which launched in March 2022, was named an Indie Next List Pick, Barnes & Noble Discover Pick of the Month, and one of the best historical fiction books of the year by Cosmopolitan. Adele is currently working on her second book and lives in Brooklyn, New York with her husband, son, and their dog Chipper.

Aimie K. Runyan

Aimie K. Runyan writes to celebrate history’s unsung heroines. She has written five historical novels, including the internationally bestselling Daughters of the Night Sky. Her most recent novel, Girls On The Line is a Historical Novel Society Editor's Choice for February 2019. She is active as an educator and speaker in the writing community and beyond. She has been nominated for a 2019 Rocky Mountain Fiction Writer of the Year award and a 2019 Colorado Book Award. Her fifth novel, Across the Winding River releases in August of 2020.

Hank Philippi Ryan

Hank Phillippi Ryan is the USA Today bestselling author of 13 thrillers, winning the most prestigious awards in the genre: five Agathas, four Anthony’s, and the coveted Mary Higgins Clark Award. She is also on-air investigative reporter for Boston’s WHDH-TV, with 37 Emmy’s and dozens more journalism honors. Her 2019 novel, The Murder List, won the Anthony Award for Best Novel. Hank’s 2020 novel is the chilling psychological The First to Lie nominated for both the prestigious Anthony Award for Best Novel and Mary Higgins Clark Award. Her Perfect Life received starred reviews from Kirkus and Publisher’s Weekly, which called “a superlative thriller.”

Eric Smith

Eric Smith is a literary agent and Young Adult author from Elizabeth, New Jersey.

As an agent with P.S. Literary, he’s worked on New York Times bestselling and award-winning books. His recent novels include the YALSA Best Books for Young Readers selection Don’t Read the Comments (Inkyard Press, 2020), You Can Go Your Own Way (Inkyard Press, 2021), and the anthology Battle of the Bands (Candlewick, 2021), co-edited with award-winning author Lauren Gibaldi.

His latest book, Jagged Little Pill: The Novel, was written with Alanis Morissette, Academy award-winner Diablo Cody, and Glen Ballard, and is an adaptation of the Grammy and Tony award winning musical. His next books include With or Without You (Inkyard Press, 2023) and the anthology First-Year Orientation (Candlewick, 2023), another teamup with Lauren Gibaldi.

His other books include the IndieBound bestseller The Geek’s Guide to Dating (Quirk), the Inked duology (Bloomsbury), and The Girl and the Grove (Flux). His writing has sold into nine languages.

Scott Stein

Scott Stein is Teaching Professor of English at Drexel University, Director of the Drexel Publishing Group, and Founding Editor of Write Now Philly. He teaches courses on fiction writing, writing humor and comedy, publishing, Kafka, strange fiction, and superheroes. His MFA is from the University of Miami and his MA is from New York University. Scott’s novels are The Great American Deception (Tiny Fox Press, 2020), Mean Martin Manning (ENC Press, 2007), and Lost (self-published, 2000). His short satirical fiction has been published in The Oxford University Press Humor Reader, National Review, Art Times, Liberty, The G.W. Review, and Shale. He has written book reviews, nonfiction, and essays for The Philadelphia Inquirer, Reason, New York magazine, Liberty, and the Publishers Marketing Association Newsletter.

Belinda Huijuan Tang

Belinda Huijuan Tang is a fiction writer living in Los Angeles. Her debut novel, A Map for the Missing, will be published by Penguin Press in 2022. She received her B.A. from Stanford University, a M.A. from Peking University in Beijing, and an M.F.A in Fiction from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, where she was a Truman Capote Fellow and Michener Copernicus Post-Graduate Fellow. In 2019, she was a work-study fellow at Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference.

Jenni Walsh

Jenni L. Walsh is a USA Today bestselling author of over thirteen books. Her passion lies in transporting readers to another world, be it in historical or contemporary settings. She is a proud member of the Tall Poppy writers, a graduate of Villanova University, and lives in the Philadelphia suburbs with her husband, daughter, son, and various pets.

For children, Jenni has written the She Dared nonfiction series and novels Hettie and the London Blitz, I Am Defiance, By the Light of Fireflies, Over and Out, Operation: Happy, and The Bug Bandits. She also writes historical novels for adults, including Becoming Bonnie, Side by Side, A Betting Woman, The Call of the Wrens, Unsinkable, and Ace, Marvel, Spy. To learn more about Jenni and her books, please visit jennilwalsh.com or @jennilwalsh on social media.

Allison Whittenberg

Allison Whittenberg is the author of Sweet Thang and Life is Fine, published by Delacorte Books. Allison writes for middle grade readers and has several plays that have been performed including The Bard of Frogtown, I Don’t Dance, The Homeboy, Choice, and Skylark.

Brenda Copeland

Brenda Copeland is an editor with more than twenty years’ experience at the big five publishers. She served for eleven years as an adjunct professor in the graduate publishing program at NYU, and now teaches at Drexel University’s low residency MFA in Creative Writing. Throughout her career, Brenda has published a robust list of fiction and non-fiction, quality books with strong commercial appeal. As an independent editor, she works closely with authors through all stages of the writing and publication process, helping them reach their creative potential.

Ann Garvin

Ann Garvin, PhD, is the USA Today Bestselling author of I Like You Just Fine When You're Not Around, The Dog Year, and On Maggie's Watch. Her essays have been published in Writer's Digest, USA Today, Psychology Today, The Last Word on Nothing, Huffington Post, and Unreasonable. She has performed several times in Listen To Your Mother & The Moth. Ann is a sought-after speaker and has taught extensively in New York, San Francisco, Los Angelos, Boston, and at festivals across the country. She is the founder of the Tall Poppy Writers Marketing Co-op.

Kenny Fries

Kenny Fries is the author of In the Province of the Gods, which received the Creative Capital literature award; The History of My Shoes and the Evolution of Darwin’s Theory, winner of the Outstanding Book Award from the Gustavus Myers Center for the Study of Bigotry and Human Rights; and Body, Remember: A Memoir. He edited Staring Back: The Disability Experience from the Inside Out and was commissioned by Houston Grand Opera to write the libretto for The Memory Stone. His books of poems include In the Gardens of Japan, Desert Walking, and Anesthesia. Kenny’s work has appeared in The New York Times, Washington Post, Granta, The Believer, Kyoto Journal, LiteraryHub, Electric Literature, The Progressive, Catapult, Los Angeles Review of Books, and in many other publications and anthologies. He wrote the Disability Beat column for How We Get To Next, and developed the Fries Test for disability representation in our culture. His work has been translated into Spanish, German, French, and Japanese.