We didn’t want you to miss out on your chance to develop your voice and vision in one of the most diverse places on the planet, so we’ve extended our admissions deadline!

The new priority deadline for scholarships is March 15, and the final deadline is April 15. To find out just what you need to do to join us in Queens, visit our website for more info (link below)!

Admissions

We are so excited to announce that current MFA student Richard Prins has just been awarded an NEA fellowship, which will be the first the National Endowment for the Arts has ever granted in Swahili-English translation.

The fellowship will be to support the translation from the Swahili of the novel Walenisi by Kenyan writer Katama Mkangi. Walenisi is an allegorical narrative that reinterprets historical events in Kenya during the Kenyatta and Moi regimes. It opens with the protagonist, Dzombo, who is sentenced to death for “talking too much” in a dystopian society where public executions involve shoving the guilty parties inside a rocket and blasting them into space. Instead of exploding like those executed before him, Dzombo miraculously pilots the vessel through an asteroid belt of allegorical maladies.

Congratulations, Richard!!!

MFA alum Catherine LaSota has just been named the Associate Director of Social Practice CUNY, an educational network that amplifies the collective power of socially engaged artists, scholars, and advocates throughout the City University of New York’s rich tapestry of faculty, staff, and students working for social justice.

Catherine is the former Executive Director of the Center for the Study of Social Difference, and the former Assistant Director of the Institute for Comparative Literature and Society, both at Columbia University. Catherine also founded and hosted the acclaimed LIC Reading Series (2015-2020), as well as The Resort writing community, which offers mentorship, coaching, workshops, and other support to writers. 

We know she’ll do great things at SPCUNY!

MFA alum Jonathan Kravetz has a novel coming out with respected independent publisher Running Wild Press this May. We’re all so excited to read How We Were Before, which you can read a description of here:

When a savage home invasion results in the death of a town’s most glamorous couple, the surviving friends and relatives of the victims must navigate the emotional aftermath: Exasperated high school Vice-Principal Zachary Rivers makes a final effort to reach a troubled student. Town librarian, Shelby Blythe—the eldest daughter of the murder victims—begins a correspondence with Billy Lawson, her parents’ murderer. Evelyn Kavanaugh, a retired marketing manager and beloved family friend of the Blythes, embarks on a luxurious cruise as a prelude to suicide. Noam Russell, Billy Lawson’s best friend, returns to Benfield to claim a share of his deceased father’s estate. Samantha Blythe’s maternal attempt to help an employee evokes a renewed desire to connect with her own family.

The spaces between stories are haunted by echoes of the deceased couple’s life—from the ignorant bliss of first impressions and great expectations to the tumultuous troubles of middle age, and, finally, an undying hope for reconciliation.

There’s sure to be more news to come, as the launch date of May 20th comes, so you should sign up for Jonathan’s newsletter to keep up on all the readings and signings to follow.

And be sure to preorder your copy of How We Were Before directly from Running Wild’s page on Bookshop.org, so you can be sure to support indie presses when you get your copy!

“Rest is an essential part of my process.”

– Briallen Hopper

Let’s face it, people want to go to MFA programs to work with particular writers: people whose work they admire, writers who can show them the right way to approach their own work. That’s why it’s so perfect that our own Briallen Hopper (author of the creative essay collection Hard to Love) has been interviewed for Famous Writing Routines, a magazine dedicated to exploring the daily habits, writing process, and work routines of some of the most renowned authors throughout history.

Check out that interview to get all of Briallen’s insights on the writing process:

Interview with Briallen Hopper: “Rest is an essential part of my process.”

This way, you know when you apply to pursue creative nonfiction here at Queens College, you’re in good hands!

If you’re thinking about working on a memoir or essays, like Briallen Hopper writes, check out our application page.

It’s about time we formally share Small Orange with all of you, our program’s own Carlie Hoffman (Founding Editor and Editor-in-Chief/Art Editor) and alumnus Ariel Franscisco’s (Assistant Editor) gorgeous online journal of poetry and respective print house: Orange Editions.

We’re so fortunate that this beautiful journal, which publishes widely among the best in contemporary poetry, has included work by our own Distinguished Professor (and recent Ruth Lilly Award-winner) Kimiko Hahn, and alumnus Rajiv Mohabir!

Check out their website for more information:

https://smallorangejournal.com/about

We’re making big news, even within our own university:

Queens College released their must-read list of books by QC faculty and alums, and guess who’s all over this list? (That’s right, it’s us!)

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Go see what all the fuss is about at the official Queens College Instagram page:

https://www.instagram.com/p/C17OGNlx89W

It’s been a good year for the QC MFA Program!

Here’s some highlights, in case you missed the news:

This is just a small sample of what can happen for you through the QC MFA Program! If you’re interested in following in the footsteps of these alums, developing your writing and building towards your success, you should join us virtually for a Graduate Information Session to explore applying to the MFA in Creative Writing program at Queens College on January 29, 2024, at 5:00 pm.

RSVP at this link!