Featured Writing

Empty movie theater

With This Money

by Claude Chabot Lily had found the powder room in haste, and rapidly finishing her customary ablutions before the start of the feature, hurried to the stairs. This was her ritual before every picture she had seen, and though she could resist it, she felt fully at ease only when…

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Joan F. Smith

Author Joan F. Smith on Writing and Publishing Two Novels

On Wednesday, October 12, 2022, the Word for Word Reading Series at Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) featured Joan F. Smith, author of “The Half-Orphan’s Handbook.” At the event, Smith read from her forthcoming novel, “The Other Side of Infinity.” She also answered questions from attendees and hosts Jacob Powers,…

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Coping With Parental Death: Insights and Tips for Teenagers

Alumna Writes a Resource for Grieving Families While Earning 2 Degrees

By Rebecca LeBoeuf Michelle Shreeve ’15G ’16G was a child when she lost her mother, and resources were limited for young families coping with the death of a parent. This experience fueled her desire to help others deal with similar grief, and through her love of writing, she addressed what…

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The Penmen Profile: YA and Adult Literary Fiction Author Natalie Haney Tilghman

By Rebecca LeBoeuf Natalie Haney Tilghman co-wrote “A 52-Hertz Whale,” a young adult novel, with author Bill Sommer. When a juvenile humpback whale separates from its pod, a high school freshman calls upon a young filmmaker who volunteered in his special education program to help him locate it. The plot…

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The Penmen Profile: Diverse Storyteller Aaron Denius Garcia

by Pamme Boutselis As an actor, screenwriter and author, Aaron Denius Garcia tells stories across broad mediums, drawing upon his skills and experience in new ways. From a bicultural, bilingual childhood to his work on the television show, “Leverage” and other film projects and beyond, Garcia bring diverse perspective and experience…

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The Penmen Profile: YA Fiction Author Ryan Graudin

by Rebecca LeBoeuf Ryan Graudin, a young adult fiction author, just wrapped up her weeklong tour celebrating the Sept. 26 publication of her latest novel, “Invictus.” The tale, which garnered a starred review from Publishers Weekly, follows Far, the son of a time-traveler. Far fails his time-traveling exam, crushing his…

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The Penmen Profile: Women’s Fiction Writer Julie Pennell

by Rebecca LeBoeuf Julie Pennell published her debut novel, “The Young Wives Club,” in February. Pennell’s book follows four young women, still in relationships from high school, as they discover how complicated love is. With praise from Kirkus, Booklist, Bestselling Author Karen White and others, “The Young Wives Club” shifts…

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The Penmen Profile: Bestseller Robin Wasserman

by Rebecca LeBoeuf “Girls on Fire,” Robin Wasserman’s first adult novel, was named an NPR and a BuzzFeed Best Book of the Year in 2016. The book also received praise from the New York Times, the Associated Press, Booklist and Cosmopolitan, among many other positive reviews. A faculty member of…

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The Penmen Profile: YA Sci-fi Author Ryan Dalton

by Rebecca LeBoeuf Ryan Dalton’s second book from the “Time Shift Trilogy” hits shelves in April, so there’s still time to read his debut novel and book one, “The Year of Lightning.” This young adult science fiction trilogy follows not-so-normal teenage twins as they encounter and solve mysteries and often…

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The Penmen Profile: “Jerkbait” Author Mia Siegert

by Rebecca LeBoeuf Southern New Hampshire University professor Mia Siegert writes contemporary young adult, adult thriller and literary fiction in the form of short stories, articles, personal essays and now novels. Published May 2016, Siegert’s coming-of-age novel, “Jerkbait,” was identified as the top new release in Teen and Young Adult…

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The Penmen Profile: YA and Historical Fiction Author Han Nolan

by Rebecca LeBoeuf Han Nolan is the author of nine young adult fiction and historical fiction novels. Her first novel, “If I Should Die Before I Wake,” published in 2003, achieved the International Reading Association/​Children’s Book Council Book Award. In this book, Nolan unites the present with a dark part of history,…

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