DRAFT: This module has unpublished changes.

Contributor Biographies

 

Tonya Blair is a girl trying to figure out what she is doing in the world.  She is addicted to chocolate and sleeping, has lived in a couple places, but mostly a small town in the Midwest, and has spent over five years in New York and thinking of trying somewhere new.

 

Jennifer Cancel writing as W.P. Jake loves to hate writing, it's like a bad relationship she can't seem to walk away from.  She’s been writing poetry since childhood; at 25 she finally gave in and chose to study Writing and Literature, now on the Creative Writing track.

 

Clara Leonor Cruz-St. John is in her first semester at LaGuardia Community College. She is studying Liberal Arts with an intended major in Labor and Community Organizing. She currently lives in Central Harlem.

 

Joseph Cutolo is a Writing and Literature major at LaGuardia Community College and he is interested in contemporary critical theory and philosophy.

 

Kierra Yvonne Fields was born in Baltimore, Maryland—but grew up on two acres of wooded land in Annapolis. She wrote her first poem sixteen years ago beneath a magnolia tree. She is coming closer to leaving the claustrophobic city in search of a place that will satisfy her bucolic yearnings. She doesn't care much for rats or racing; she does however, enjoy baking in direct sunlight, eating steak, and imagining our vast cosmos. She hopes to someday take her poetry act on the late night television circuit.

 

Jessica Figueroa is currently in the process of obtaining a degree in Writing and Literature. Her goal is to transfer to a college that has courses in Screenwriting to further her knowledge of the subject. From there, she aims to be accepted into the MFA film program in Screenwriting/Directing at Columbia University of the Arts.  She is currently working a full-time job and attending classes. When people ask her what she is planning to do after this and she tells them Screenwriting and Directing their responses are usually “Isn’t that a competitive field?” Her answer is a shrug and a smile along with “aren’t they all?!” She works a full-time job to take care of her bills, why shouldn’t she follow her dreams too? 

 

Deirdre Flood hasn’t published several books and doesn’t live with her kids in the suburbs. She is a student at LaGuardia Community College in Queens, New York, studying writing and literature. She writes poetry and creative non-fiction and has received awards from Random House, the YoungArts New York Regionals, and the Police Athletic League’s competition in art and poetry. Didi likes to walk on train tracks, and has never been convicted of a crime. She is a reigning Rock Paper Scissors Champion and competitive chain link fence hopper.

 

Susan Houston is a pre-clinical veterinary technology major who volunteers with various local wildlife organizations that protect and help rehabilitate wildlife.  At LaGuardia, she enjoys tutoring ESL students at TELC’s Language Clinic.

 

Delana Lewis has been a student at LaGuardia since fall 2012, maintaining an average of 3.89 and a member of Phi Theta Kappa. She is very proud of herself because things haven’t always been this way. At age eleven she and her family moved to East New York, Brooklyn into the projects. The community drew her in like most kids when they get to high school; it took her six years to finish; her grades sucked. She has been through a lot but it fuels her fight for an education and a better life for her and her children some day.

 

Mollie Dwortzan Mandell, a student in LaGuardia’s Business and Technology Program, is pursuing an AAS degree in Travel, Tourism, and Hospitality Management.  She has a BS degree in Marketing from Binghamton University. After spending ten years working in marketing and sales for the NY Marriott Marquis, she is now pursuing a career in corporate and boutique travel. She is also writing a travel blog to document her passion for travel. Mollie lives on Long Island with her husband and their two teenage sons.

 

Hironori Matsumoto writing as Dai Akaboshi is an experimental prose writer/poet/screen writer, and, originally, he is from Japan, but he writes his work in English. He is studying at LAGCC, and he is thinking about going to Hunter College. Maybe. 

 

Gemma Rossi is a student at LaGuardia and a member of the Creative Writing Club.

 

Rafael Sabando was born and raised in Guayaquil, Ecuador.  He moved to New York City when he was 21 years old with his younger sister, and he worked as a parking attendant for many years in order to make a living and support his sister while she completed her college degree.  After she finished her studies, he decided to start taking classes himself, so he enrolled into LaGuardia Community College in the spring of 2012.  Currently he works as a corporate car service driver.  He is transferring to Baruch College this fall to major in Finance and complete his bachelor’s degree. 

 

Randeva Simpkins is often described as under-average height and a lover of commas and run-on sentences. She does not identify as a writer, but someone that has a love of words and descriptions. She draws inspiration from her cat, Sparkle, and her many failed romances. She’s currently a student at LaGuardia Community College, majoring in Writing & Literature.

 

Lorraine Sweger-Perez lives in Queens New York.  Her debut in publication, “Gypsy Lady,” is a piece from her current series of short creative nonfiction stories. It is a result of her determination to get out of the apartment and observe city life.  She was born in New York but grew up in Colorado and returned home twelve years ago. She is currently enrolled at LaGuardia Community College and will graduate with a Creative Writing degree in fall of 2013.  After graduation, she plans to attend Brooklyn College where she will work on her BFA in creative writing.

 

 

DRAFT: This module has unpublished changes.