What's Wrong with Me?! - Short Stories on Adversity and Otherness

Wednesday October 2

Time: 7:00-9:00pm

Location: In person at Dominican University of CA in San Rafael with online Zoom broadcast option.

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Join us for an empowering evening celebrating the diversity of human experience! From mental illness to addiction, anxiety to chronic pain, and trauma to everything in between, our community embodies a tapestry of otherness. Each person's journey is unique, yet together we unite to showcase our resilience and humor in the face of adversity. Come share in the power of storytelling as we highlight our strength and camaraderie, one captivating short story at a time.

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Max Bidasha is an Indigenous, Mexican, Punjabi, German, Two-Spirit, disabled poet and playwright. He lost his left hand to stage IV cancer back in 2018 when he was told he had a year to live. His newly released book of poetry, The Pros and Cons of Dying is available everywhere. His plays include STAGES, Missing Red Girls, The Kids are NOT Alright, and Mission: Totem Pole. His forthcoming book of poetry, Future Stardust, and his forthcoming novella, Gramacita will be out December 2024. He will continue to write until his one hand can't write anymore.

Diane Bouchard is a second-year student in the MFA program at Dominican University. Diane's creative non-fiction focuses on her tragic experiences as a widow navigating online dating in the modern age. Her story Duct Tape Love was published in the New York Times, Modern Love section.

Matthew Duerst is a retired Air Force pilot whose writing explores themes of military valor, the complexities of faith, and the absurdities of life. His debut short story "A Novel Interruption," was published in the Spring 2024 edition of the Tuxedo Literary & Arts Journal. Currently, Matthew is working on a satirical war novel while pursuing his MFA at Dominican University of California and lives in the Sierra Nevada.

Caitlin Howery is currently attending the MFA in Creative Writing at Dominican University and is the Editorial Manager for the literary and art journal, Tuxedo. When she isn’t writing her memoir, she is working full-time to provide a luxurious lifestyle for her Tuxedo Cat, Jerry. You can find her work on a feminist blog called Slough Happens and Mountain Democrat Newspaper.

Abby Laporte is a standup comic, multi-medium storyteller, and published poet. Her advocacy centers around type I bipolar disorder, OCD, and, more generally, the importance of neurodiversity. Laporte holds an MFA in Narrative Medicine writing from Dominican University of California and a B.A. in Interdisciplinary Biology & Humanities.

Mary Stephens has written and produced for HGTV, Food Network, and National Geographic on everything from killing Hitler to choosing pillows. She holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Dominican University of California and is currently working on her memoir, “Uncorked: Starting Over Sober.” The first chapter was published in the 2022 San Francisco Writers Conference Contest anthology.

Britta Stromeyer is the author of award-winning children’s books. Her writing appears in Flash Fiction Magazine, Bending Genres Journal, On the Seawall, Marin Independent Journal, & elsewhere. She was a finalist for the Bellingham Review Tobias Wolff Award for Fiction. She is a member of the National Book Critics Circle, SF Writer’s Grotto, and PEN. She teaches creative writing and is a frequent speaker on Writing Trauma. Britta holds an MFA from Dominican University, CA, an M.A. from American University, and a Certificate in Novel Writing from Stanford University.

Erika Trafton is an East Bay writer whose work has appeared on NPR, in The Sun, Literary Mama, Travelati, and Connotation Press where her work was chosen for best creative nonfiction of the year. Her work has also been anthologized in Encounters with the Middle East, and Adventures in Wine and has received a Solas Best Travel Writing Award. She received her MFA in Creative Writing from Dominican University of California and is working on a novel called The Perfect Cell.

Registration Details

Registration is required. This creative writing event is hosted by the MFA in Creative Writing program at Dominican University as a service to the public and there is no charge for participating. Dominican University of California is a nonprofit institution. To make a donation to the MFA Scholarship Fund visit our donation page here.

Contact mfa@dominican.edu with any questions.

What’s Wrong with Me?! Stories on Adversity and Otherness