Staff

Andrew (Writing Fellow)

Hometown: Omaha

Year of Study: Senior

Major(s): English, Economics, Philosophy, Global Studies

Future Life Plans: I'll probably end up teaching english or doing urban planning or writing!

Superhero Name: Negative Conclusion from Affirming Premises Man

Favorite Piece of Writing: I will forever love Nnedi Okorafor's novella trilogy, Binti!

Favorite/least favorite writing: I love reflective writing!

Part of speech you would be and why: I would choose to be the period. It suits me best. It's the deadpan punctuation mark. It has a universally agreed upon function -- very little ambiguity with the period. I like to take my time too. That lines up well with the period.

Hobbies: Vexillology, board games, national parks, tv pilots

M Imig

Pronouns: they/them

Hometown: Lakeside, Nebraska

Year of Study: Senior

Major(s): English major, Gender Studies minor

Future Life Plans: To teach fiction writing at the collegiate level

Superhero Name: The EnigMa

Favorite Piece of Writing: Every piece of Scooby Doo media

Favorite/least favorite writing: My favorite writing assignment is short stories!

Part of speech you would be and why: I would choose to be a semi-colon; I love never-ending sentences.

Hobbies: I like to cook and I like to sew!

Rose (Writing Fellow)

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Lincoln, NE

Year of Study: Senior

Major(s): Major: English; Minors: Business, Digital Humanities

Future Life Plans: To be in the publishing field

Superhero Name: Comma Chameleon

Favorite Piece of Writing: The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

Favorite/least favorite writing: Favorite: Creative Writing; Least Favorite: timed writing

Part of speech you would be and why: A comma, because they contain infinite possibilities

Hobbies: Reading, writing, hanging out with friends and family, having deep discussions and debates about random topics

Sydney

Pronouns: they/them

Hometown: My favorite place I’ve ever lived is Boise, Idaho, but I hope after graduation that will change to Boulder, Colorado!

Year of Study: Senior

Major(s): Psychology major and gender studies minor

Future Life Plans: I’m going to attend law school and then figure out where to go from there!

Superhero Name: Megamind 2

Favorite Piece of Writing: I adore the Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart

Favorite/least favorite writing: Favorite writing assignment is choose-your-own-topic research papers! My least favorite writing assignment is any assignment with an arbitrary page requirement.

Part of speech you would be and why: I would be a gerund because I think it sounds nice. Like, “Hey, Gerund! How’s it going?” I think that would be neat.

Hobbies: I love drawing, ttrpgs, reading, yoga, writing, going to concerts and drinking coffee. Also sending people pictures of my cat.

Eric

Pronouns: he/him/his

Hometown: Bellevue, NE

Year of Study: Senior

Major(s): Major: English, concentration in Creative Writing // Minors: Philosophy, Art

Future Life Plans: Write a bunch of cool stories and novellas, possibly study in New York or Georgia—wherever I'm accepted for grad school—and work in the publishing industry or as a screenwriter.

Superhero Name: Probably Cherry-bomb.

Favorite Piece of Writing: I will forever love Nnedi Okorafor's novella trilogy, Binti!

Favorite/least favorite writing: Annotated bibliographies are my least favorite thing to write! They are simply not fun.

Part of speech you would be and why: I'd choose to be an ellipses! So, the [...] because I think it's an accurate depiction of how I speak (both in-person and over text). My mannerisms include very long dramatic pauses as if I am overthinking the next word that will come out of my mouth.

Hobbies: Other than reading and writing, I draw, cook, watch reality tv and drama shows, take photos, and I play multiple instruments!

Gavin

Hometown: Omaha

Year of Study: Junior

Major(s): English and Film Studies

Future Life Plans: It's still baking in the oven.

Superhero Name: The Traveler

Favorite Piece of Writing: "Break" by Rabih Alameddine. This story taught me a lot about metaphors and narrative arcs.

Favorite/least favorite writing: I personally love short stories

Part of speech you would be and why: A comma because it gets to go the most places.

Hobbies: All things music!

Thara

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Bennington, NE

Year of Study: Junior

Major(s): Major: English; Minors: Spanish and Digital Humanities

Future Life Plans: Near: Find time to write short stories/books.; Far: No idea but we're going for it.

Superhero Name: Tharanator

Favorite Piece of Writing: Luella Miller

Favorite/least favorite writing: Personal Narratives

Part of speech you would be and why: Period. I make correct and incorrect statements, but I hope I will have the courage to complete my thoughts.

Hobbies: Reading, writing, attempting to go exercise, movies and shows, judo . . .

Kaylen

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Bennington

Year of Study: Junior

Major(s): Majors: English and Spanish, Minors: Digital Humanities and Native American Studies

Future Life Plans: I want to get a doctorate in creative writing, publish short stories/novels, and teach at a university

Superhero Name: Volcanic Lightening

Favorite Piece of Writing: I really like "Night Journey of the Dragon Horse" by Xia Jia

Favorite/least favorite writing: Lab reports

Part of speech you would be and why: Commas, because maybe then I will finally fully understand them

Hobbies: Creative writing, reading, watching TV shows and anime with friends

Hannah

Pronouns: She/her

Hometown: Scottsbluff NE

Year of Study: Sophomore

Major(s): Major in English with focus in creative writing, minor in Apparel Design

Future Life Plans: Plans to pursue a career in fiction writing or in the publishing industry

Superhero Name: Miss Grammatically Fine

Favorite Piece of Writing: Harry Potter series

Favorite/least favorite writing: Anything with creative independence! Short story fiction has been one of my favorites!

Part of speech you would be and why: A quotation mark because (of course) as an English major I love words! Lately I’ve been loving short poetry the most, specifically the kind that has many different meanings and interpretations for you to pick apart.

Hobbies: Sewing, reading/writing, playing piano, thrifting

Kaitlynn

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Omaha, NE

Year of Study: Sophomore

Major(s): Psychology and Journalism

Future Life Plans: To pursue grad school to become a psychologist or to have a career in journalism.

Superhero Name: Peanut

Favorite Piece of Writing: The Harry Potter series.

Part of speech you would be and why: My favorite writing assignment would be any form of creative writing. My least favorite writing context would be citations. 

Hobbies: Reading, writing, knitting, playing with my kitten, and running.

Kathleen

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Manistee, Michigan

Year of Study: PhD Student

Major(s): Composition & Rhetoric – disability studies & mental health rhetoric

Future Life Plans: I want to be a community college English professor!

Superhero Name: Red Rosa

Favorite Piece of Writing: Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass

Favorite/least favorite writing: My least favorite writing assignment used to be the research paper, but now that I have a tried and true method, research papers are actually fairly formulaic and easy to write!

Part of speech you would be and why: I would choose to be a semi-colon. I want to be a connecting force.

Hobbies: I love to tend to my many indoor & outdoor plants, play along to my roommate Patrick's compositions on my trumpet, listen to activist podcasts, go for long walks, read outside my field, and relax with my two cats – Marley & Nala.

Erika

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Edmonton, Canada

Year of Study: PhD Student

Major(s): Composition and Rhetoric

Future Life Plans: More of what I do now! Always writing and teaching.

Superhero Name: The (re)Vision

Favorite Piece of Writing: Changes constantly, but I'm always being inspired by the writing of my peers.

Favorite/least favorite writing: I enjoy taking a creative approach to almost any assignment--finding ways to weave in narrative, metaphor, imagery, or experience.

Part of speech you would be and why: An em dash--I'm no Emily Dickinson, but I love its energy and ability to connect ideas while also leaping (dashing) between them. I overuse it in both poetry and prose!

Hobbies: I love cooking, and visiting the farmers' markets in Lincoln.

Uche

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Asaba, Nigeria (hometown)

Year of Study: PhD Student

Major(s): Creative Writing (Fiction)

Future Life Plans: Still figuring it out, but I plan to always be writing.

Superhero Name: Ms. Nobody

Favorite Piece of Writing: Kintu' by Jennifer Makumbi (one of many faves)

Favorite/least favorite writing: Least favorite: a writing assignment without clear expectations

Part of speech you would be and why: Semicolons; I find them aspirational.

Hobbies: I enjoy jigsaw puzzles, podcasts, reading, writing, and theatre.

Jessica

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Ligonier, PA

Year of Study: PhD Student

Major(s): Poetry

Future Life Plans: Write books, grow food for people, and teach

Superhero Name: The Sleeper

Favorite Piece of Writing: "The Moment of Memory" by Michael Burkard

Favorite/least favorite writing: I hate getting through a rough draft of anything, but I love editing

Part of speech you would be and why: An em dash—because I can't stop using them

Hobbies: Reading, farming, art, petting animals

Jocelyn (Research Assistant)

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Burlington Junction, MO

Year of Study: Masters Student

Major(s): English—Composition & Rhetoric

Future Life Plans: After graduating from UNL with my master's, I want to teach secondary English in the Lincoln area while my to-be husband finishes his graduate degree. After that, who knows where we'll end up, but teaching is still my goal!

Superhero Name: Optimist-prime

Favorite Piece of Writing: I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou

Favorite/least favorite writing: The idea that the writing process is linear truly makes me frustrated.

Part of speech you would be and why: a semi-colon because they're awesome when used correctly, but it's easy for me to get carried away with them.

Hobbies: Reading, writing, running, cooking/baking, eating ice cream

Danielle

Hometown: Chattanooga, TN

Year of Study: Masters Student

Major(s): Composition and Rhetoric

Future Life Plans: Pursue my PhD and teach first year composition

Superhero Name: The Scarlet Hawk

Favorite Piece of Writing: The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton

Favorite/least favorite writing: I love when I get the chance to free write and get all my ideas out on the page!

Part of speech you would be and why: I would be an exclamation point. I'm a huge fan of emphasis and expressing my enthusiasm.

Hobbies: Writing, reading, playing board games with friends