Staff

Kelsey

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Papillion

Year of Study: Senior

Major(s): English, Digital Humanities, Film

Future Life Plans: Moving to NYC or Minneapolis to pursue a career in publishing

Superhero Name: Super Boring Girl

Favorite Piece of Writing: The Hero and the Crown by Robin McKinley

Favorite/least favorite writing: I hate writing cover letters

Part of speech you would be and why: I would be an ellipsis because I thrive on uncomfortable silences.

Hobbies: Reading, writing, biking and playing trumpet

Michael

Hometown: The best place I've lived is Chicago

Year of Study: Senior

Major(s): Psychology, English, and Philosophy

Future Life Plans: Join the Peace Corps

Superhero Name: Goober

Favorite Piece of Writing: George Saunders' book, Civil War Land in Bad Decline

Favorite/least favorite writing: Favorite writing context: Free, alone, and wandering.

Part of speech you would be and why: The question mark. It has the grooviest shape. It makes me want to dance.

Hobbies: Cycling, music, dancing (in most settings), writing, reading, learning, exploring 

Erin

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: San Clemente, CA

Year of Study: Senior

Major(s): Textile Science and Fashion Design with minors in Chemistry and Art History

Future Life Plans: Become a Textile Artist!

Favorite Piece of Writing: If by Rudyard Kipling

Favorite/least favorite writing: I love History writing!

Part of speech you would be and why: I would be an ellipsis...

Hobbies: sewing and other textile arts, painting, hiking, swimming, rock climbing, walks around downtown Lincoln

Mar Lee

Pronouns: they/them

Hometown: Alma, NE; Favorite Place I've Lived: Berlin, Germany

Year of Study: Senior

Major(s): Majors: English, Global Studies; Minors: German, Environmental Studies, Political Science

Future Life Plans: Pursuing a masters in environmental public policy and then working in Nebraska with environmental oriented non-profits to improve conservation and eco-minded agricultural practices!

Superhero Name: The Invincible Enby

Favorite Piece of Writing: "The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas" by Ursula K. Le Guin

Favorite/least favorite writing: My favorite writing assignment I have done was creating a collaborative poem with members of my summer creative writing class in high school! We all were given so many syllables we could use and then had to follow a certain theme, then we pieced the stanzas together!

Part of speech you would be and why: I am a semicolon; because my story isn't over yet.

Hobbies: Swimming, camping, hiking, biking, volunteering locally, writing and reciting poetry, listening to podcasts, hanging out with my pets!

Blair

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Kearney

Year of Study: Senior

Major(s): Political science, Russian, Global studies, National security studies

Future Life Plans: I will be attending law school this coming Fall semester.

Superhero Name: I'd be a villain

Favorite Piece of Writing: "The Explorer" by Rudyard Kipling

Favorite/least favorite writing: Literature Reviews

Part of speech you would be and why: Exclamation Points, They make life and writing interesting!

Hobbies: Watching true crime shows with friends

Reshmika

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Melaka, Malaysia

Year of Study: Senior

Major(s): Actuarial Science Major: Actuarial Science, Minor: Mathematics

Future Life Plans: That's a good question...

Superhero Name: Coconut-er

Favorite Piece of Writing: There's too many to choose from!

Favorite/least favorite writing: Assignments with exteremely rigid guidelines

Part of speech you would be and why: Ellipsis because I tend to trail off and lose track of thoughts when other th...

Hobbies: Yoga

Natalie

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Scotsbluff

Year of Study: Senior

Major(s): Major(s): Journalism & Broadcasting, Minor(s): Sociology & Spanish

Future Life Plans: Work as an anchor for Telemundo Noticias

Superhero Name: The Eternal Amethyst

Favorite Piece of Writing: My Beloved World by Sonia Sotomayor

Favorite/least favorite writing: Resumes because I can't figure out how to organize mine :)

Part of speech you would be and why: I would be a question mark because I am a naturally curious person and always seem to question my life decisions.

Hobbies: Reading, watching Netflix (currently binge-watching Orange is the New Black), traveling and watching live musicals.

Nidhi

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Dubai

Year of Study: Junior

Major(s): Major: English and Political Science Minor: Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs

Future Life Plans: Become an attorney

Superhero Name: Bookworm

Favorite Piece of Writing: A Death by Stephen King

Favorite/least favorite writing: Favorite: CNF and political argumentative essay

Part of speech you would be and why: The semi-colon (;) because there's always something more to me

Hobbies: Writing, Reading, Tennis, Sketching, and Road Trips

Andrew

Pronouns: he/him

Hometown: Omaha

Year of Study: Junior

Major(s): English Major, Econ Minor

Future Life Plans: I'd like to work as an urban planner or as a tax lawyer. I'd like to have a nice garden too.

Superhero Name: negative conclusion from affirmative premises man

Favorite Piece of Writing: The Return of the Native by Thomas Hardy

Favorite/least favorite writing: I am a big fan of 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: Game theory, vexillology, comedy television pilots

Mia

Pronouns: She/her

Hometown: Lincoln

Year of Study: Junior

Major(s): Journalism, Advertising and Public Relations

Future Life Plans: Anything where I can write analytically and creatively

Superhero Name: Red Birdie ( So I can fly, and my favorite color is red)

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

Favorite/least favorite writing: Honestly, I enjoy all kinds of writing, from lab reports to creative writing. When the subjects can be difficult, I see tackling the ideas in a paper as a challenge--- a challenge I must conquer. 

Part of speech you would be and why: the em dash (---) is a versatile tool that allows lets me to the world of creativity, focus, and surprises. 

Hobbies: Biking, reading, and writing. 

Emily

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Omaha, NE

Year of Study: Junior

Major(s): Microbiology and English

Future Life Plans: I want to continue to study Science and English, and teach someday.

Superhero Name: Emily

Favorite Piece of Writing: 'The Black Cat' by Edgar Allan Poe.

Favorite/least favorite writing: I enjoy both academic and creative writing.

Part of speech you would be and why: I would be the period because it signifies an ending.

Hobbies: Baking and ceramics. 

Shannyn

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Loveland, Colorado

Year of Study: Junior

Major(s): Majors: English and Classics Minors: Digital Humanities and History

Future Life Plans: Move to Seattle and work for a top-tier publishing company

Superhero Name: Agent Anxiety

Favorite Piece of Writing: Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer

Favorite/least favorite writing: Creative short stories ( I love to read others, I just can't write them myself)

Part of speech you would be and why: If I were a part of speech I would be a conjunction because I love connections and also love the Schoolhouse Rock song!

Hobbies: I love to hike and kayak. I am working on visiting all of the National Parks in the US. I love all animals but especially my dog and alpacas

Maggie

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Clay Center, NE

Year of Study: Junior

Major(s): English and Anthropology; Film Studies and Digital Humanities

Future Life Plans: I feel attacked right now

Superhero Name: Monkey Girl

Favorite Piece of Writing: The Braindead Megaphone by George Saunders

Favorite/least favorite writing: Favorite: poetry that I never show anybody

Part of speech you would be and why: Exclamation mark--because I can't seem to write emails with any other punctuation.

Hobbies: Biking on my new purple bike, baking blueberry banana bread, (b)reading books by non-British authors

Hannah

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Montpellier, France

Year of Study: Junior

Major(s): Psychology, French, and English

Future Life Plans: In progress...

Superhero Name: Mumbo Jumbo

Favorite Piece of Writing: All Our Wrong Todays by Elan Mastai

Favorite/least favorite writing: Favorite: creative writing pieces in science classes (more common than I thought it would be). Least Favorite: writing "Get to know you" papers

Part of speech you would be and why: & because there is always more to something than you think

Hobbies: Writing, playing instruments, spray paint art, learning languages

Rachel

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Lincoln, NE

Year of Study: Junior

Major(s): Secondary English Education

Future Life Plans: I want to teach English to middle or high schoolers and eventually become an administrator or guidance counselor. 

Superhero Name: My superhero name would be Super Scorpio, and my power would be having extreme focus.

Favorite Piece of Writing: My favorite piece of writing is Hunger by Roxane Gay. It's a masterpiece and she is brilliant!

Favorite/least favorite writing: My favorite kind of writing assignment would have to be academic essays, and my least favorite would be resumes.  

Part of speech you would be and why: I would be the oxford comma because I'm important but often forgotten. </3

Hobbies: I really like reading romance novels and watching horror movies. 

Kaley

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Omaha

Year of Study: Junior

Major(s): Sociology and French majors, English and Psychology minors

Future Life Plans: Sociologist

Superhero Name: Phoenix

Favorite Piece of Writing: Salvage the Bones by Jesmyn Ward

Favorite/least favorite writing: Tight word limits are a fun challenge, but they're still frustrating!

Part of speech you would be and why: Parentheses because I always add too much extra information

Hobbies: Play piano, cook, read/write, and watch nature documentaries

Ellie

Hometown: Lincoln, NE

Year of Study: Junior

Major(s): Majors: Political Science + Spanish, Minor: Arabic

Future Life Plans: very uncertain!

Superhero Name: Tsunami

Favorite Piece of Writing: The Cancer Journals by Audre Lorde

Favorite/least favorite writing: favorite: fiction writing

Part of speech you would be and why: ... because there’s always more

Hobbies: playing music and reading

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.

Rose

Hometown: Lincoln, NE

Year of Study: Sophomore

Major(s): English

Future Life Plans: I plan to go into editing and publishing

Superhero Name: The Emerald Owl

Favorite Piece of Writing: The Lord of the Rings

Favorite/least favorite writing: I love creative writing assignments and find scientific research papers tedious to write

Part of speech you would be and why: I would be a preposition because, even though I don't really need to be there, I make things more exciting!

Hobbies: Reading, writing, listening to music, drawing, hanging out with friends and family, and having deep conversations

Sidney

Pronouns: they/them

Hometown: Boise, Idaho has my heart, but I spent the last seven years in Bethesda, Maryland

Year of Study: Sophomore

Major(s): Psychology major and gender studies minor

Future Life Plans: Law school and then some sort of law career, hopefully!

Superhero Name: Doctor Tired

Favorite Piece of Writing: The Shining by Stephen King

Favorite/least favorite writing: My favorite writing assignment is open-ended essays! I love exploring a topic and seeing where the research takes me.

Part of speech you would be and why: An EM dash -- I love using it to connect my thoughts (which I have a lot of) and it's classier than parenthesis!

Hobbies: Embroidery, yoga, guitar, writing, and reading

Linnea

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Schaumburg, Illinois

Year of Study: Sophomore

Major(s): Major in English and minor in computer science

Future Life Plans: In my future, I hope to move back to Chicago and live the city life for a while.

Superhero Name: Lavish Linnea?

Favorite Piece of Writing: The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

Favorite/least favorite writing: I genuinely love doing literary analyses. My least favorite writing assignment is definitely informative essays.

Part of speech you would be and why: Exclamation points because they're so fun and loud.

Hobbies: I'm a passionate member of the speech team here at UNL. In my free time, you can find me roller skating or playing dungeons and dragons.

Vasili

Pronouns: he/him

Hometown: Omaha

Year of Study: Sophomore

Major(s): Political Science/Economics

Future Life Plans: Either become involved in education or attend law school.

Superhero Name: Valiant Vasili

Favorite Piece of Writing: East of Eden

Favorite/least favorite writing: My favorite type of writing assignment is political or historical research papers

Part of speech you would be and why: Question mark because I am not really sure

Hobbies: Music, being outside, basketball, and soccer

Madison

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Burke, VA & Papillion, NE

Year of Study: Sophomore

Major(s): Major: English, minors: French, political science

Future Life Plans: Teaching English in France, law school for human rights law!

Superhero Name: Copperhead

Favorite Piece of Writing: Catalog of Unabashed Gratitude by Ross Gay

Favorite/least favorite writing: Favorite: poetry, least favorite: short story

Part of speech you would be and why: Exclamation point, because I use them too often! I'm also a morning person, so I feel like I come off as very energetic!!

Hobbies: Color guard/marching band, Irish dance, exercising, and reading and writing poetry!

Nicole Green

Hometown: Omaha, NE

Year of Study: PhD Student

Major(s): Composition/Rhetoric, Literacy Studies, and Secondary English Teacher Development

Future Life Plans: In 5 years Nicole hopes to be teaching at a small liberal arts college and researching alongside secondary Language Arts teachers in order lobby for improved secondary education policy. In the event this falls through, her back-up plan involves becoming the first equestrian ever to win America's Got Talent.

Superhero Name: That Girl with Pumpkin

Favorite Piece of Writing: Reading Nancy Meyers, "On Being a Cripple" as a college freshmen irrevocably changed Nicole's life. Fifteen years later it--along with David Sedaris's work--continue to be her most beloved writing models.

Favorite/least favorite writing: While she loves working with others on personal statements and application materials, Nicole loathes having to write them herself!

Part of speech you would be and why: Because it is arguably the most versatile and accommodating piece of punctuation--always allowing writers to squeeze in more ideas, more thought, where they otherwise would not fit--Nicole would be the em dash (--).

Hobbies: When not consulting or teaching writing in Andrews, Nicole chasing the horizon on horseback, baking cookies to mail to friends, forcing her German Shepard to snuggle with her, and practicing her deep devotion to NPR podcasts!

Katie

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Atlanta, GA

Year of Study: PhD Student

Major(s): Poetry & Latin American Literature

Future Life Plans: write and teach, cook food, make the world an easier place to exist

Superhero Name: I think just my actual name. But perhaps a symbol, like this old school heart emoji:

Favorite Piece of Writing: Louise Glück's poem, "Parable" in her book Faithful and Virtuous Night

Favorite/least favorite writing: I don't like personal essays that don't create a kind of entry point for the student. Chronological personal essays feel boring and don't get at what it's like to actually be a human. I like them when the assignment asks the writer to explore a specific part of themselves. 

Part of speech you would be and why: em dash, because I am a poet 

Hobbies: cooking, dancing, reading, gardening 

Ilana

Pronouns: she/her/they/them

Hometown: Givatayim, Israel. Favorite Place I've lived - NYC or Oxford, England

Year of Study: PhD Student

Major(s): English literature and creative writing

Future Life Plans: This is a really big question.

Superhero Name: Leftenint Workaholic

Favorite Piece of Writing: I can't choose a favorite book/article/etc.!

Favorite/least favorite writing: "Fun Fact About You"

Part of speech you would be and why: I'd choose to be a comma, because it's assistive, has bendy rules (especially in creative writing), and helps tone

Hobbies: Reading, podcast listening, getting angry about the state of the nation

Zoe

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Laramie, WY

Year of Study: PhD Student

Major(s): rhetoric and composition; women's and gender studies

Future Life Plans: Educator, writer, and researcher

Superhero Name: Towanda

Favorite Piece of Writing: Jumpha Lahiri's The Lowland; Dorothy Alison's "River of Names"; Edwidge Danticat's Clare of the Sea Light

Favorite/least favorite writing: I enjoy anything that includes research and a writer's experiences

Part of speech you would be and why: em dashs because they're versatile, form connections, and they're fun to write longhand

Hobbies: snowboarding; yoga; board games

Ben

Pronouns: he/him/his

Hometown: Boise, ID

Year of Study: PhD Student

Major(s): Medieval and Renaissance Studie

Future Life Plans: Teaching Shakespeare at the university level.

Superhero Name: Foxman

Favorite Piece of Writing: A seminar paper I wrote in Fall 2017 on A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Favorite/least favorite writing: Favorite: Literary Analysis. Least Favorite: “Bad News” emails.

Part of speech you would be and why: Quotation marks, because I love to make references.

Hobbies: Gaming, Working Out

Simone

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Madison, SD (hometown)

Year of Study: Masters Student

Major(s): English—composition & rhetoric

Future Life Plans: To continue in academia!

Superhero Name: Melodrama

Favorite Piece of Writing: Lucy Gayheart by Willa Cather

Favorite/least favorite writing: Anything that is timed!

Part of speech you would be and why: an em dash—they’re flexible and cute

Hobbies: Writing(!), yoga, astrology, biking, playing with my cat, patio drinks with friends, coffee, pastries

Nora

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Oak Park, IL

Year of Study: Masters Student

Major(s): Composition and Rhetoric

Future Life Plans: Writing, reading, and teaching cool things and rad people

Superhero Name: Media Maniac

Favorite Piece of Writing: Impossible choice. But okay, The House on Mango Street, Sandra Cisneros

Favorite/least favorite writing: Email. Any email.

Part of speech you would be and why: I would be parentheses because I tend to make a lot of side notes in my speech - plus they're just fun.

Hobbies: Finding new music, providing color commentary on tv shows, yoga, and making friends with other people's dogs.

Molly

Pronouns: she/her

Hometown: Thessaloniki, Greece

Year of Study: Masters Student

Major(s): Rhetoric and Composition

Future Life Plans: I usually live in one to two year increments, so it's unclear.

Superhero Name: The Great Rationalizer

Favorite Piece of Writing: this is an unfair question!

Favorite/least favorite writing: My least favorite writing assignment is the one I don't want to do.

Part of speech you would be and why: em dash or parentheses, because all my stories have multiple stories contained within them, and i need to section them off accordingly.

Hobbies: food [eating, cooking, discussing, studying], running, staring at the horizon as i sit on a greek beach drinking a φρέντο εσπρέσσο σκέτο, reading, making up for all the television and movies i wasn't allowed to watch as a child.