Karyna McGlynn to join Interlochen as Director of Creative Writing
The award-winning writer, educator, and visual artist will join Interlochen from Christian Brothers University, where she currently serves as associate professor of creative writing and literature.
Karyna McGlynn, an award-winning writer, educator, and visual artist, will join Interlochen Center for the Arts in June as Director of Creative Writing.
“Karyna brings with her a wealth of talent and experience, and will be a strong leader and mentor in our Creative Writing department,” said Interlochen Provost Camille Colatosti. “Young writers at Interlochen Arts Academy and Arts Camp will benefit immeasurably from her guidance and expertise as they transform their passion and potential into purpose.”
“I’m thrilled to join the Interlochen community,” McGlynn said. “Interlochen's mission reflects everything I emphasize as an arts educator: personalized mentorship, experiential learning, holistic care, interdisciplinary collaboration, diversity of perspective, and creative excellence.”
“I’ve been working with emerging artists on both page and stage for the past 15 years, and I can't imagine a more rewarding profession,” McGlynn continued. “Both in and out of the classroom I strive to model the traits of the best writing mentors I ever had: wonder, enthusiasm, kindness, clarity, bravery, creative activity, personal attention, and community engagement.”
McGlynn will join Interlochen from Christian Brothers University, where she currently serves as associate professor of creative writing and literature. McGlynn holds an MFA in creative writing from the University of Michigan, and earned her PhD in literature and creative writing from the University of Houston, where she served as managing editor for Gulf Coast. She has been a member of five National Poetry Slam teams, and was a finalist for the Women of the World Poetry Slam. Other honors include the Rumi Prize for Poetry, the Kathryn A. Morton Prize, the Verlaine Prize in Poetry, the Academy of American Poets' Prize, the Zell Fellowship in Poetry, the Hopwood Award, the Diane Middlebrook Poetry Fellowship at the University of Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing, the Florida Review Editors’ Award in Fiction, and visiting professorships at Illinois College and Oberlin College.
McGlynn’s new poetry collection, 50 Things Kate Bush Taught Me About the Multiverse, is currently available for pre-order through Sarabande Books. Her previous collection, Hothouse, was a New York Times Editor’s Choice. Her writing has recently appeared in the Kenyon Review, Ploughshares, New England Review, Georgia Review, Black Warrior Review, Witness, Ninth Letter, and the Academy of American Poet’ Poem-A-Day.
Interlochen's one-of-a-kind creative writing programs provide expert instruction to young writers from around the world in an ideal setting. Students benefit from small class sizes and a faculty of experienced and dedicated teachers who are also professional writers. Faculty provide individualized mentorship to students in building portfolios, submitting to contests, applying to college, and honing performance skills for public reading opportunities throughout the year.
Current Director of Creative Writing Joe Sacksteder will leave Interlochen at the end of this Academy year to pursue a PhD.
