News | Graduate Student Archives


Brett Hanley publishes her persona poems im 'Defeat the Rest': The chapbook shapes a modern reimagining of an unconventional Emily Dickinson romance, and her publication is described as “an anxious romp of queer longing and self-invention.”.


Nitya Pandey earns a CCCC Scholars for the Dream Travel Award: A doctoral student in the Rhetoric and Composition Program, Pandey's research focuses on digital spaces, social media applications, and how to better humanize virtual communication.


Diamond Forde looks forward to the publication of Mother Body, her first book of poetry: Mother Body explores the idea of mothering Forde’s “Black body,” and the poems delve into the concept of self-love related to a woman’s weight. The collection of poems, which Forde calls "my baby," had a March 15 release.


Brandi Nicole Martin's 'piercingly honest' poetry wins runner-up for Jeffrey E. Smith Editors’ Prize: Martin bases her poetry on her personal life experiences and trauma, saying "If you’re able to transcribe it exactly as it happens, people see worth in it. It is very special.”


Eleanor Boudreau processes range of emotions with recent publication of Earnest, Earnest?: The University of Pittsburgh Press selected her book from a pool of 639 manuscripts. Boudreau's committee chair Professor James Kimbrell says, "she takes her poetry very seriously and has the results to show for it.”


Alexa Doran's collection DM Me, Mother Darling earns highly competitive May Sarton Poetry Prize: Doran, a doctoral candidate in English-Creative Writing, shared the initial news of winning the May Sarton New Hampshire Poetry Prize with her 4-year-old son, Dante. In addition to the joy of sharing that moment with him, her manuscript is now scheduled for publication in 2021.


Zoom hangouts offer chance for students to meet new people, build connections amid a pandemic: FSU's Graduate English Student Organization offers themed parties as well as casual gatherings to virtually socialize.


Dustin Pearson draws from personal experiences, aesthetic factors as inspiration for his poetry: Doctoral student Dustin Pearson chose FSU for his graduate studies because of the English department's reputation and the opportunities to work a community of strong writers.


Grad students: networking, constructive criticism, attending conferences keys to getting published: Three FSU English graduate students talk about the process to move their research or creative works from the written phase to the published stage.


Cocoa Williams' success as a digital humanist is bringing African American literary works to light: An English doctoral candidate, Williams won a Black Book Interactive Project Scholar Program award, which gives her time and resources to improve digital tools and to increase diversity for future researchers.


FSU Rhetoric and Composition graduate student Alex Pippin seeks Master's in Four award: Her presentation is titled “How Multilingual Students Convey Their Concerns in Writing Center Encounters.”


Keri Miller wins second place in masters challenge: She was one of 14 finalists who competed to win the competition. Miller's presentation was titled "Crafting the Setting of a Novel: Inspiration, Imitation & Invention" and explained the reasons for the location she chose for her novel.


Grad student Laurel Lathrop appears on Jeopardy: Laurel Lathrop succeeded in all of the challenges to become a show contestant. She competes along with two other trivia buffs, in front of TV game show host Alex Trebek.


Graduate student group creates motivational space for positive writing habits: The writing group provides positive peer-pressure for students to push each other to get into a consistent writing mode


Diamond Forde's poetry thrives as she enhances her self-exploration to push creative boundaries: Forde won the 2020 Furious Flower Poetry Prize for a trio of poems that focused on Black women in the Bible, work that encouraged her to study her own maternal lineage. She continues to study and learn how far she can go with her writing.

Diamond Forde treasures significance of winning the 2019 Margaret Walker Memorial Prize in PoetryFlorida State University doctoral student recognizes the power of walking in the footsteps of great writers, and she writes poetry that “echoes the past.”


Amber Cresgy receives the inaugural Bryan Hall Community Teaching Excellence Award: The students in her fall 2019 Women in Literature course nominated Cresgy for the award, citing her "encouraging...engaging" teaching style.


Jessi Thomsen wins 2020-21 P.E.O. Scholar Award: Winning the award was a shock, but she is encouraged to know that scholars outside of her discipline recognize the importance and value her own research.


Karen Tucker wins 2019-20 P.E.O. Scholar Award: Karen Tucker's honor comes with a monetary prize, but more importantly, winning the award gave her “a welcome dose of encouragement.”


Cocoa Williams wins P.E.O. Scholar Award: Cocoa Williams, a Ph.D. student in the English department at Florida State University, is a 2016 recipient of the Philanthropic Education Organization Scholar Award, a $15,000 merit-based honor for women pursuing doctoral degrees.


Dyan Neary doubles up with Adam M. Johnson Fellowship and P.E.O. International Scholar Award: Florida State University doctoral student Dyan Neary had an eventful spring 2019 semester. Neary is earning an English Ph.D. in creative nonfiction, and she won the department’s inaugural Adam M. Johnson Fellowship in late February. She followed up that success in early April by winning a P.E.O. International Scholar Award.


Southeast Review poetry editor Dorsey Craft continues to sharpen her prize-winning writing: Craft is a fourth-year doctoral student in FSU's Creative Writing Program, and her debut poetry collection Plunder won the 2019 May Sarton New Hampshire Poetry Prize.


Southeast Review Poetry Editor Jayme Ringleb talks perspective and the art of knowing yourself : Jayme Ringleb’s literary journey has helped him evolve as an artist and an editor, and he encourages aspiring writers not to limit themselves.


Southeast Review fiction editor Karen Tucker finds the truth in human beings and the stories we tell: Karen Tucker was originally drawn to fiction as an avid young reader, but she did not begin writing until she was in her 30s, however.


Southeast Review Online Editor Laura Smith enjoys her “cheerful work” for the literary publication: Laura Smith’s role with the SER is key to the journal's success with the fairly new approach of expanding author representation and readership through its weekly, online publication.


Southeast Review Editor-in-Chief Zach Linge discusses academia and poetry as a superpower: The Southeast Review has undergone an extreme makeover, thanks to Linge and their editorial staff. But the editor is nothing but enthusiastic about the work.


Doctoral student Feroz Rather has time on his side: The insights Feroz Rather can provide into the violence the people of Kashmir are experiencing have garnered a lot of attention recently. The Guardian recently heralded his book as one of “the best books to understand the current geopolitical crisis caused by India’s military siege and communications blackout in Kashmir."


FSU Ph.D. student Christopher Michaels joins team to co-edit volume of essays on William Burroughs: Michaels joins FSU English Ph.D. alumnus Blake Stricklin and English Professor S.E. Gontarski to focus on Burroughs' archives.


Tanya Grae and Christopher Michaels win Edward H. and Marie C. Kingsbury Fellowship: The Department of English’s top honor for doctoral students during its annual awards ceremony is the Edward H. and Marie C. Kingsbury Graduate Fellowship. Tanya Grae and Christopher Michaels are the 2019 recipients, and both expressed appreciation for the recognition.


Dorothy Chan and Amy Cicchino honored for Outstanding Careers as Graduate Students: Creative writing doctoral student Dorothy Chan and rhetoric and composition doctoral student Amy Cicchino shared the 2018-19 Bertam and Ruth Davis Award for Outstanding Career as a Graduate Student.


Nebraska native Michael Healy finds a home in the English department as he pursues his Ph.D.: As he works on his doctoral dissertation, Healy focuses on how other educators can use digital tools and technology to their best advantage in the classroom. He also shares advice for undergraduate students who are considering graduate school as a next step.


Yolanda Franklin’s Blood Vinyls now available for pre-order: Born and raised in Tallahassee, Yolanda Franklin earned both her undergraduate degree and a Ph.D. in English from Florida State University.


Taylor Clement wins 2017-18 fellowship: A doctoral candidate in Renaissance Literature and History of Text Technologies, she has been awarded a 2017-18 Mellon/American Council of Learned Studies Dissertation Completion Fellowship.


Dorothy Chan wins 2016-17 chapbook contest for Chinatown Sonnets: New Delta Review, an online literary arts journal published at Louisiana State University, chose her Chinatown Sonnets as winner of its 2016-17 Annual Chapbook Contest.


Misha Rai wins Woodrow Wilson Women's Studies Fellowship: When she was a teenager at an all-girls boarding school in India, she and her friends would secretly smuggle and read romance novels despite them being banned by the nuns. A combination of that clandestine love for this type of writing and Rai’s other literary obsession, detective novels, resulted in a very odd early ambition.


Brandi George and Jesse Goolsby win Gold Florida Book Awards: Would-be writers learn early on that being successful is half luck and half skill, author and Florida State Ph.D. student Brandi George says, adding that it is essential for writers to learn how to deal with and ignore rejection as well.


Deborah Solomon awarded 2015 National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship: Solomon, who in May 2015 earned her doctorate degree from Florida State University in English Literature, has been awarded a 2015 National Endowment for the Humanities year-long fellowship.