In many ways, my story is run-of-the-mill. I studied English as an undergraduate (at the University of Virginia) and received an MFA in creative writing (from American University). Throughout my twenties I worked in the nonprofit sector, as an assistant to other writers, and on the editorial staff of The American Scholar. I published my first book, a collection of poetry.

Then the story gets a bit more unusual. A Poets & Writers Exchange Award opened the door to signing with an agent. I sold a book proposal. And I made the big leap, quitting my job to pursue writing full-time. You know; that thing wise people will tell you to never, ever do.

What has followed has been a crazy few years--a hodgepodge of touring, freelancing, and meeting the deadline on my first memoir, which came out earlier this year. Sometimes this life is stressful, but it is always exciting. Though I am not on faculty anywhere, I love meeting students (high school, college, and graduate) and encouraging them to aim high with their professional dreams. You want to be a writer? Write. Publish. Hustle. Make it happen.

For more information, please check out www.sandrabeasley.com

Don't Kill the Birthday Girl: Tales From an Allergic Life(Crown, 2011; memoir and cultural history of food allergy)
I Was the Jukebox (W. W. Norton, 2010; winner of the Barnard Women Poets Prize, selected by Joy Harjo)
Theories of Falling (New Issues, 2008; winner of the New Issues Poetry Prize, selected by Marie Howe)

Poems have also been anthologized in New California Writing 2011 (Heyday, 2011), Best American Poetry 2010 (Scribner, 2010), the i.e. reader (Narrow House, 2010), and Best New Poets 2005 (Samovar Press, 2005).

Editing and manuscript consultation