news
Alum Donika Kelly fronts Poets & Writers Magazine
Nov. 17, 2025—Poet Donika Kelly, who received her PhD in English from Vanderbilt, is featured in the November/December 2025 issue of Poets & Writers Magazine, following the publication of her third volume of poetry, The Natural Order of Things, from Graywolf Press. “In a time when escapist fantasies dominate the fiction charts, The Natural Order of Things is...
2025 Creative Writing newsletter now available
Nov. 13, 2025—The newsletter can be viewed by clicking here. The PDF version can be found here.
Poet and anthropologist Nomi Stone features as H. S. Vanderbilt speaker – November 14
Nov. 3, 2025—Friday, November 14th 12:30 – 2:30 PM Kissam C216 Lunch will be provided, and a selection of Nomi Stone’s book will be available for attendees. Nomi Stone is an award-winning poet and anthropologist. She is the author of two full-length poetry collections, Stranger’s Notebook (TriQuarterly 2008) and Kill Class (Tupelo 2019), which was a finalist...
Amy Quan Barry joins Gertrude C. & Harold S. Vanderbilt Reading Series
Oct. 31, 2025—Novelist and poet Amy Quan Barry joined the Gertrude C. & Harold S. Vanderbilt Reading Series on October 16 with her new novel The Unveiling, which chronicles the struggles of Striker, a Black film scout, who, along with a group of wealthy white tourists, becomes stranded on a remote island in the Antarctic Peninsula during a...
New Yorker publishes MFA alum Nathan Blum
Oct. 28, 2025— A story by Creative Writing alum Nathan Blum (’25) appears in the November 3 issue of The New Yorker. “Outcomes” follows two college students who meet and form a connection. “I think I could set out to write about pretty much anything, and it would end up being in...
Fiction reading with Marie-Helene Bertino – Thursday, November 6
Oct. 28, 2025—Thursday, November 6 Book-signing: 6:30 PM Reading: 7:00 PM Special Collections Library 1101 19th Ave South, Nashville, TN 37212 At the moment when Voyager 1 is launched into space carrying its famous golden record, a baby of unusual perception is born to a single mother in Philadelphia. Adina Giorno is tiny and jaundiced, but...
Taylor Swift scholar to join Vanderbilt Reading Series – Thursday, October 30
Oct. 24, 2025—Harvard Professor Stephanie Burt will discuss the poetical & musical genius of Taylor Swift on Thursday, October 30 in the Special Collections Library at 7pm. The book signing will begin shortly before the reading at 6:30. Click to read the full press release [pdf]. Stephanie Burt is a poet, literary critic, and professor with nine...
MFA poets perform at Southern Festival of Books
Oct. 23, 2025—Several students in the MFA Creative Writing program appeared on October 19th at the Southern Festival of Books. Poets Ayesha Asad, Kinsale Drake, Alexandra Green, Athena Nassar, Lana Reeves, and Kanchi Sharma read from their latest works, joining more than 175 regionally and nationally recognized authors at the festival. This year’s event was titled “Vanderbilt...
Vanderbilt Creative Writing Announces MFA Student Reading at The Southern Festival of Books
Oct. 10, 2025—Vanderbilt Creative Writing and The Nashville Review will host an MFA Student Poetry and Fiction Reading at The Southern Festival of Books on Sunday, October 19. Featured writers include Ayesha Asad, Alexandra Green, Kinsale Drake, Athena Nassar, Eliana Reeves, and Kanchi Sharma. The reading begins at 11:30 on the side lawn of the Tennessee State...
Alex Dubilet publishes “Political Theology Reimagined”
Oct. 7, 2025—The contributors demonstrate that political theology is a powerful resource by which to both recognize and challenge the modalities of politics and social life that are practiced in our own time. The reimagination that the title points to is not so much a way to start political theology all over again but to focus on...