News

The concept of the “five senses” is not unfamiliar to most—in fact, as early as pre-school, many of us were taught various rhyme sequences and made-up songs to help us remember them. The five senses allow us to perceive, absorb, and navigate the world—but that is not all. They are also quite functional in the context of storytelling. A good story is one that engages all five of the reader’s senses. Let us take, for example, a story where the main character is strolling through the city. The...

Narrators play a pivotal role in storytelling, presenting the events and details that shape the storyline through their unique perspectives. The narrator is essentially a tool employed by the author to give readers a selective perspective of the story. As readers, we process the story through the eyes of the narrator. Our understanding of the various literary elements—plot, dialogue, conflict, resolution, theme—is shaped by the narrator’s very own (biased) perception. Whether it be...

By: Sean Wesen '22 Having trouble with low stakes, boring characters, or an uninteresting narrative? We’ve got you covered. Below are a list of tips and tricks to help you develop your story into a compelling narrative. Respect the Stakes All writers want readers to be invested in their story. That is why you need to be very careful with your story's stakes. They are sacred and should not be taken lightly. Set the stakes early on and if your characters don't heed said stakes, make sure they...

By: Sean Wesen '22 Are you an aspiring writer who needs some advice on how to fine tune your work? Or perhaps an experienced pro looking to pick up a few tips? Below we have collected a handful of tidbits that ought to help you revise your work into a masterpiece.  Revise Out Loud: Typos have a way of falling through the cracks of a heavily revised piece. The best way to root them out for good is to read your work aloud. This will help the typos to stand out.  Manage Writer's Block: Stuck? Jump 10...

by Sean Wesen ‘22 You’re staying home tonight. Your roommates all went out for steak, but you told them to go without you because you’re a vegetarian. That was a lie, but much less embarrassing than trying to explain that you couldn’t afford it. You think to yourself “I’m going to make a great starving artist one day” and smile.  While you feel bummed about being left out, you have decided to make the most of the night by being productive. Homework? Studying? Job searching? No no no. Sure, you...

By: Sean Wesen '22 Whether you're a seasoned Rutgers student or an incoming freshman, the decision of what to major or minor in can be a stressful one, even if it's one you don't have to make for another few years. It’s a difficult balance between what you're good at, what's marketable, what's profitable, and what's fun. Perhaps you're in that situation right now and are researching the creative writing minor in hopes of finding your answer. If that's the case, while we can't make the decision for...

By: Sean Wesen '22 Your ally, confident in their acrobatic abilities, leaps across the ledge and makes the one in a million mistake of loosing his grip. In a flash you quick draw your arcane focus, but can you cast the feather fall enchantment before he's a puddle on the bottom of the crevice? You have been making small talk with the vault guard for a good while now and finally you can see your words infused with insidious magic have taken a hold of him as evidenced by his suddenly wild eyes...

By: Sean Wesen '22 A poet, editor, and Part Time Lecturer at Rutgers, Emily Wallis Hughes grew up in Agua Caliente, California. Her first book, Sugar Factory, was published in 2019. She was also my first creative writing professor during my fall semester at Rutgers, a class I chose on a whim during add/drop week. Four years later, after graduating as an English major and creative writing minor, I sat down with Emily to discuss her new position as Editorial Co-Director of Fence, a nonprofit...

By: Sean Wesen '22  Writers House welcomes you back to Rutgers! We hope your summer was a relaxing one and that you got some writing done and read books that you love. Now that you're back, we are happy to tell you that we have exciting things planned for the coming weeks. Join us for a conversation about Southern history, the natural world, Black religious experience, and photographic practice, in conjunction with the exhibition Meeting Tonight: Two South Carolina African American Camp...

Writer: Sean Wesen, '22 This week, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Meggi Blazeska. Meggi was raised in Skopje, North Macedonia. Currently, she is the External Secretary for the Rutgers Creative Writing club. She is majoring in Economics, minoring in Creative Writing and Entrepreneurship, and will graduate in 2022. We talked about her history with writing, thoughts on the club, publishing opportunities, and much more. Q:  How long has writing been a part of your life? A: I've always...

Written by: Sean Wesen '22 "As a writer and as a creator, you have to have the willingness to not quit, to fight until death." ~John Hulme This week, I got to know a professor whose work I had the pleasure of reading all the way back in elementary school. I had loved the Seems, so taking a documentary creative writing class taught by John Hulme was like a dream. I was surprised by how tall he was, and certainly surprised at how much of a window into his life we got in that class. He's the kind of...

Name: Adam DalvaGenre(s): Fiction, Non-Fiction, Graphic Novels, Literary CriticismClasses taught at Writers House: Non-Fiction, Introduction to Creative Writing, Advanced Multi-GenreTell us three interesting things about yourself that most people don’t know.I deal 18th Century French Antique Furniture.I once sang in the White House.I’m one of the ten highest ranked Goodreads critics in America. What’s the first job you ever had?18th Century French Antiques DealerWhat are you currently obsessed...

David Orr’s creative and critical work has been lauded by The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post.He has been a guest on PBS and NPR and called “highbrow brilliant” by New York magazine. The poetry columnist for the New York Times Book Review, Orr’s poetry and critical collections include You, Too Could Write a Poem,The Road Not Taken,Beautiful and Pointless and Dangerous Household Items. A native South Carolinian, David lives in Princeton, New Jersey, with his...

Richard Murray earned his B.A. from Goddard College in Vermont, a well known experimental school focused mainly on the creative arts. While there, he was the poetry editor of The Goddard Journal. He went on to earn his MA in English/creative writing from Rutgers University-Newark.  His poems have appeared or are forthcoming in The Moth, Poetry East, Slipstream, The Bitter Oleander, Santa Fe Literary Review, The Broome Review, Rattle, and other literary journals. Richard is a member of the Board of...

Susan Miller is a non-tenure track faculty member who has been at Rutgers since 2005. She has been writing since she was very young,  and studied with Marie Ponsot for 11 years after completing graduate school. In her words, Ponsot "taught me by the observation method and that's also the way I teach--by observing technique, content, and style rather than critiquing them." Her book, Communion of Saints was published in 2017, and her poetry has been included in the anthologies Collective...

By Sabrina Del Piano March 5, 2019 Read our Q & A with Syeda Ahmed'19, an English major and a creative writing minor. Ahmed talks about how her love of magical realism began as a child, and how it's evolved upon becoming a writer. From listening to stories about magical sultans and canaries, to breaking down stereotypes and creating a new narrative, Ahmed's goal is to always push the envelope, but to also ground her readers in a real and relatable way.   Sabrina: Why did you choose English and...

By Sabrina Del Piano  November 6, 2018  For Syeda Saad ’19, doing the bare minimum is just not an option. “I like to have my hand in everything,” Saad says. As an English and Journalism double major and a creative writing and women’s and gender studies double minor— writing is a major part of her life. When you add her position as editor-in-chief of The Daily Targum, it’s clear that the writing world is not just a small part of Saad's life; it is an essential part of it.  “When I was younger, my...

October 25th, 2018 By Emily Ezzo '19  “We have to lean on the pioneers and see how we can move that conversation forward.” ~Caridad Svich This week, I sat down with Writers House instructor Caridad Svich, to discuss her past and present work as a playwright. Svich revealed that she’s completed 130 plays. Her latest is titled STAND, a story “about rage and power, and the female-identifying,” in response to the #MeToo movement. Not only is she a prolific, award-winning playwright, but she is also a...

By Sabrina Del Piano Being true to yourself and others around you can be extremely hard. At least, that’s what Tanya Banerjee '19, a senior now minoring in creative writing, thought before taking her first creative writing class with Pulitzer Prize nominated poet, Evie Shockley. Afraid of letting her parents down, Banerjee struggled with her choice to study writing as opposed to a more "practical" field. “My first semester, I told myself I was going to go into science. My parents were always...

Evie Shockley, our full time creative writing professor, was a finalist in the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry. See the story in Rutgers Today.