Check out this gorgeous horse. I used to be a total horse freak when I was younger. Why do so many girls go through a horse phase?

New year, new me. Sorta. Not really. But I will be having to make some life adjustments, because I've begun my MFA in Creative Writing! I am so grateful to have been accepted into my top choice, and I am extremely excited about the upcoming semester. It will be interesting to see how well I can juggle my coursework, my full-time job, gym trips, and a social life. I think the fact that I am super pumped about my semester plan will make a big difference. Work is always easier if you enjoy it.

I am also tentatively discussing publication with one of my favorite journals. I won't say anything until (and unless) my piece gets the final green light, but I am completely delighted and honored to have even gotten this far.

​Picture by Anton Darius at Unplash.com

Hello everyone,
The holidays are just around the corner. The holidays have always been bittersweet for me. I enjoy seeing my family and I enjoy all the food, but at the same time I find the season incredibly stressful. This is magnified by the fact that I am in the middle of my MFA pre-course work. I am very excited to begin my program, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't more than a little nervous. There's a lot about this program that is uncharted territory for me, as I do not have a degree in Creative Writing and have very little workshop experience. With all that said, I do think this will be a very good experience for me, and will go a long way in making myself more comfortable with and confident in my own writing.

In other news, I have had a short horror piece published in Soft Cartel, which you can read here. I really like the work they've been putting up over there, and they are quickly becoming one of my favorite journals.

​I hope your holidays are as painless as possible.

Photo from Jeremy Cooper over on Unsplash.

Good morning, or afternoon, or evening,
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I have received my first publication! I submitted two stories to The Molotov Cocktail's Flash Beast contest. One made it to the Close-But-No-Cigar list, and the other placed 6th out of the top 10. The piece that placed is called The Lions, and is about a man struggling with his deteriorating mental and emotional health.

I am still in shock. After over a year of submitting work to journals and magazines with no luck, this has encouraged me to continue to put myself and my work out there. Incredibly validating, and I am honored to be featured alongside such talent.

You can read The Lions (and all the other amazing pieces on this list) here.

Photography by Bhargava Srivari, taken from Unsplash.com.
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It's been a couple months, so time for a quick update.

I am continuing to submit fiction to lit journals. So far, no acceptances, but I am well aware that failure comes with the territory and I am not letting it discourage me.

I visited AWP 2018 at the beginning of March, and it was a wonderful experience. I had never been around so many people who were interested in writing. I was fortunate enough to be able to attend every panel I wanted with some time left over to explore the exhibition hall. I left with a ton of notes, merch, and new journals to submit to. I highly recommend AWP to anyone with the time and funds to attend.

I was extended an offer of admission by my top MFA program. I am beyond thrilled, and will begin in 2019.

Vowing to exercise and eat right, but we'll see how that goes.

Photo by Dana Critchlow over on Unsplash