by PAUL BLOM, Fiction Co-Editor Kathleen McNamara is the first-place winner of the The Carolina Quarterly’s recent fiction contest, “Wake, and Dream Again.” Our editors here at the CQ selected the finalists, and among those finalists, author Daniel Wallace selected the … Read more

CQ: What’s your academic background? Do you have an MFA? If so, from where? Did you find it useful professionally and creatively? What has the effect on the field of creative writing been from the proliferation of these programs? CP: I … Read more

Geri Ulrey is a writer, filmmaker, and educator living in Los Angeles. She has also been published in Gulf Coast, was a finalist for the 2016 Gulf Coast Prize in Nonfiction, and shortlisted as a finalist for the 2015 Disquiet … Read more

SHELLEY BERG ’s stories have appeared in Phoebe and Passages North. She lives with her husband and two children in Dedham, Massachusetts, where she is working on her first novel. Her story, “The Dirty White Sky,” appeared in Carolina Quarterly … Read more

PAUL LINCZAK received an MFA from Syracuse University, where he was a Cornelia Carhart Ward Fellow in Fiction. His writing has appeared in Salt Hill and Stone Canoe. His story, “Frankenstorm,” appeared in Carolina Quarterly 65.3. CQ: While the protagonist … Read more

Brandon Barrett is a practicing cardiologist living in rural Virginia with his wife and son. His stories have appeared in The Literary Review, The Cossack Review, Tahoma Literary Review, Jersey Devil Press, and elsewhere. His story, “Gerald’s Last Ghost Story,” … Read more

Ryan Habermeyer earned his MFA from the University of Massachusetts and is currently pursuing a PhD at the University of Missouri.  His fiction has twice been nominated for the Pushcart Prize and has recently appeared in or is forthcoming from … Read more

Matt Izzi lives in East Boston. His stories have been published in Post Road Magazine, Shenandoah, and elsewhere.  A short play of his appears in the current issue of Third Coast.  He is originally from Rhode Island. His story, “Bully … Read more