Catching up with Brooks Rexroat (MFA '11)

Great news from fiction grad Brooks Rexroat:

Exciting publication news from my home state and abroad...
The Cleveland Review has accepted my short story, "Destroying New Boston." It should be posted July 31 at clevelandreview.net.
My short-short "Legacy" will appear in the upcoming 13th issue of The Literary Bohemian, published out of the Czech Republic. literarybohemian.com


Congrats, Brooks!!!

Congrats to Pete Lucas!!

Good news on a hot day for second-year fiction writer Pete Lucas:

My short story "A Selfish Gift" will be published in the next print issue of Gertrude.

website: gertrudepress.org


Congrats, Pete!

Mid-Summer Alumni News: July 11, 2011

News from:

Chad Simpson (MFA 05, fiction):

My story "The Woodlands" is the July web exclusive over at American Short Fiction. The story's here: http://www.americanshortfiction.org/index.php?Itemid=7, and there's an interview with me about the story here: http://www.americanshortfiction.org/blog/?p=4631.

I also received some good news from folks with SIUC ties: My story "American Bulldog"--from COR's Land of Lincoln issue--has been chosen by John McNally to appear in Jason Brown and Shanie Latham's New Stories from the Midwest 2011, which is going to be put out by Indiana University Press.

And: My story collection was recently named one of three finalists for Sarabande's Mary McCarthy Prize. I'm pretty sure I'm not the only former Saluki on the list of finalists and semi-finalists: http://www.sarabandebooks.org/?page_id=71

Helena "Hel" Bell (MFA 08, poetry)

a flash fiction piece I wrote has just been published by Brain Harvest:

http://www.brainharvestmag.com/2011/07/please-return-my-son-who-is-in-your-custody/

Congrats to Ruth Awad!!!

Congratulations to third-year poet Ruth Awad for winning this year's poetry contest from Copper Nickel!

Details here:

Copper Nickel

new Josh Woods anthology coming soon!

Great news from Josh Woods (MFA '09, fiction):

I've got a new anthology out that features very cool work from two other SIUC MFAers, Lumans and Flaherty. The anthology is a collection of stories about villains called, believe it or not, The Book of Villains. It releases Aug. 30th, but pre-orders get a massive discount. Below is the link.

 

Please help me spread the word!

 

http://www.mainstreetrag.com/Villains.html

Josh is also the editor of the Versus Anthology (Press 53, 2009).  

 

Catching Up with Tim Marsh (MFA '06, fiction)

Great news for fiction grad Tim Marsh (MFA ''06):

I have some news for the blog: This autumn I'll have stories appearing in Quiddity and Sweet. I've also just received a writer's fellowship to the Can Serrat residency program in Barcelona, which will give me 4+ weeks in Spain either this November or next April, 2012.

Congrats, Tim, on all your good news!

Melissa Scholes Young Update

Melissa Scholes Young (MFA '11, fiction) has loads of juicy news:

I have the poems "Coconut Water," "Piranha Fishing," and "Escape from Brazil" in the spring editions of Cold Mountain Review, Tampa Review, and Tapestry.  Also, I got a big girl job teaching writing full-time at American University beginning this fall.  Couldn't have done any of that good stuff without the amazing folks at SIU. A million thanks to you and Jon and the whole crew. See you in D.C.!

Congrats on all this great news, Melissa!!!!

Congrats to Sequoia Nagamatsu!

Great news for second-year fiction MFA student Sequoia Nagamatsu:

Just got word that my story, "The Passage of Time in the Abyss", has been accepted for the 2012 issue of Gargoyle Magazine. And I'd just like to give a shout out to everyone who helped me with this one esp. those who reminded me of Guillermo Del Toro's Pan's Labyrinth in their critique letters, which ended up being a quite helpful model. Huzzah!

Congrats, Sequoia!!!!

Matt Guenette (MFA '99) update

News from Matt Guenette (MFA '99, poetry)

The July issue of Diode (http://www.diodepoetry.com/) will run a handful of poems, including a number from the soon-to-be publishedAmerican Busboy.

The July issue of iO Poetry (http://iopoetry.org/) will run a review I wrote of Julie Hanson's book Unbeknownst.

My poem "Wasps" was accepted by the Spoon River Poetry Review.

My poem "The Produce & Me" appears in the latest issue of Crab Creek Review.

My poem "Job Performance" has been accepted for publication in Prime Mincer.

Congrats, Matt on the upcoming publication of your second book, American Busboy!

http://www.amazon.com/American-Busboy-Matthew-Guenette/dp/1931968977

Brooks Rexroat (MFA '11) news

Great news from Brooks Rexroat (MFA '11, fiction):

Weave Magazine has accepted my short story,  "Moving Day." It'll be printed and shipped out in January; in the meantime, I'm quite excited that I'll be teaching this fall at Xavier University in Cincinnati. 

Congrats, Brooks!!!!

Surreal South '11 to feature fiction alums

Surreal South 11, the third volume in the anthology series edited by Laura and Pinckney Benedict, will feature work by A.K Thompson, Alex Lumans, and Josh Woods, all recent alums of the SIUC MFA program. Congrats to all, especially to Pinckney and Laura for continuing this project!

Details here
Surreal South 11

Young Writers Workshop 2011: Back for Another Summer

The faculty, staff and participants of SIUC's 13th Annual Young Writers Workshop cordially invite you to join them for this year's Reading Series. All events are free and open to the public!

Young Writers Workshop 2011 Reading Series: Southern Illinois University Carbondale

JUNE 21, 2011:
SIUC Faculty Reading: Pinckney Benedict
Faner Hall, Harry T. Moore Auditorium, 8 pm
SIUC fiction faculty member Pinckney Benedict will read selections of his work.

JUNE 22, 2011:
SIUC Graduate Creative Writers Reading:
Ruth Awad, Shawn Mitchell, and Andrew McSorley
Faner Hall 1005, 4-5 PM

Visiting Writer Reading: Allison Joseph and Jon Tribble, poets
Harry T. Moore Auditorium) 8PM
SIUC MFA Program Director Allison Joseph and Crab Orchard Review Managing Editor Jon Tribble will read from their nationally-published works of poetry.

JUNE 23, 2011:
SIUC Graduate Creative Writers Reading:
Dan Paul, John Stanford Owen, and Sequoia Nagamatsu
Faner Hall 1005, 4-5 PM

Visiting Writer Reading: Travis Mossotti, poet
Harry T. Moore Auditorium 8 PM
Travis Mossotti received his MFA in poetry from Southern Illinois University Carbondale. His poetry continues to appear widely. Mossotti was awarded the James Hearst Poetry Prize from the North American Review in 2009. His first collection of poems, About the Dead (Utah State University Press, 2011), was awarded the 2011 May Swenson Poetry Award.

JUNE 24, 2011:
SIUC Graduate Creative Writers Reading:
Pete Lucas, Max Schleicher, and Nick Ostdick
Faner Hall 1005, 4-5 PM

Visiting Writer: Michael Meyerhofer, poet
Harry T. Moore Auditorim 8 PM
Michael Meyerhofer’s third book of poems, Damnatio Memoriae, won the Brick Road Poetry Book Contest. Previous poetry books are Blue CollarEulogies (Steel Toe Books) and Leaving Iowa (winner of the Liam Rector First Book Award). He also has a fantasy novel, Wytchfire, that is forthcoming from Triskaideka Books. His work has appeared in Ploughshares, North American Review, Arts & Letters, River Styx, Quick Fiction and other journals, and can be read online at www.troublewithhammers.com.

JUNE 25, 2011:
Young Writers Workshop Participant Reading
Cisne Auditorium, Pulliam Hall 34, 1:30 PM

Travelstead and Scholes Young to read at River Styx's HYP June edition

River Styx ’s popular summer reading series kicks off with The Hungry Young Poets, the fourteenth season of readings by six poets under the age of 33. We hope you can join us at Duff's Restaurant, located at 392 North Euclid in the Central West End , on June 20 at 7:30 pm.

Among the readers this June are our own Melissa Scholes Young (MFA '11, fiction) and Jonathan Travelstead (third-year, poetry)


Hungry Young Poets Series

NB: SIUC poets Andrea Wagner and Andrew McSorley will read for the July HYP! Salukis represent!

great news for Rick Pechous (MFA '11)

from Rick Pechous (MFA '11, fiction):

I'm happy to report that The Nashville Review is wanting to publish a longer piece of mine, "The Eagle Has Conjured Itself into a Dry Leaf Floating in the Wind," for their fall issue. It should be out December 1st. It's all really, very exciting.

Congrats, Rick!!!

Congrats to Nick Ostdick!

Third-year fiction MFA student Nick Ostdick has new publication news:

A flash fiction of mine called 'How To Keep Your Boy' was just published in THE2NDHAND. Great little mag.

Congrats, Nick!!

http://the2ndhand.com/THE2NDHANDTXT/

Fantastic news for Kerry James Evans (MFA '09)

Congratulations to Kerry James Evans (MFA '09, poetry) on this fantastic news!!!!

My book, Bangalore will be coming out late 2013 with Copper Canyon Press.

Superb work, KJE!!!  Proud of you!

Joplin Benefit: Langston Out Loud

LANGSTON OUT LOUD: A BENEFIT FOR JOPLIN

Tuesday, June 14, 2011
4-6 pm
Harry T. Moore Auditorium, Faner Hall 1326

featuring readings from the work of Joplin's favorite son, Langston Hughes

The event is free and open to the public.
There will be drawings for door prizes and donations are welcome.

All donations raised will go to MIssouri Southern State University's fund for displaced students, faculty and staff members.

Congrats to Rick Pechous!

MFA '11 grad Rick Pechous has new publication news to report:

I'm happy to report that Knee-Jerk Magazine has accepted my short piece, "Life with Angela" for publication. It's up now as part of their June issue. You can read it here:

http://kneejerkmag.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=176:life-with-angela-by-rick-pechous&catid=13:stories

Congrats, Rick!!!

Catching Up with Jim Gill (MFA '99)

Fiction alum Jim Gill (MFA '99) writes with this update:

I have another short piece at The Common, an old piece that finally found a home. 

http://www.thecommononline.org/dispatches/night-fishing-devils-kitchen-lake

Also, I thought I'd let you know that I've recently been promoted and will be, for at least the next year, program director of the English Dept at Northwest Christian University here in Eugene.  Yeah, I know, me head of anything seems strange, much less an English Dept, but there it is.  I'm actually very excited to continue working with great colleagues and students in an even larger capacity.  Here's my faculty bio page if you want to post that.  The picture of me is pretty goofy looking, but I guess the camera doesn't lie.  

http://www.nwcu.edu/about/contact-us/by-department/arts-and-sciences/gill-james.aspx

Congrats, Jim!!!

more good news for Amie Whittemore

Hits just keep on coming for Amie Whittemore (MFA '10, poetry)

My flash fiction piece "She rhymed with jump, I rhymed with rope" has been picked up by the Bellingham Review.

Great cross-genre action, AW!!!