Two of five winning stories in Chicago Reader fiction issue are written by Roosevelt University creative writing students

Posted: 01/23/2012

Two of five short stories published in January by the Chicago Reader and selected as winners of the publication’s annual fiction contest were written by students in Roosevelt University’s Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing Program.

Timothy Moore’s “Thank God for Facebook!” ( he is pictured above) and Tovah Burstein’s “Moving on at the Hipster Gym” (she is pictured below) won the contest and were published in print and online recently in the Reader’s Fiction Issue 2012. To read the winning stories, visit:

http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/fiction-issue-2011-goldie-goldbloom/Content?oid=5392808

or see the University's News and Events page, In the Media section.

Winning two out of five spots in this contest is a pretty big deal in a city of this size,” said Scott Blackwood, director of Roosevelt’s Creative Writing Program and the winner of the prestigious 2011 Whiting Award for Fiction.

“These are stand-out students who have the talent and persistence to succeed and we are proud of their accomplishments,” he added.

Tovah Burstein

Moore is a second-year fiction writer from the Tacoma, Wash., area who hopes to continue publishing fiction and to teach creative writing after he finishes his thesis, which will be a novel, and graduates in December. With similar goals of publishing her work and teaching, Burstein, a creative nonfiction writer from Amherst, N.H., also is in her second year at Roosevelt and is hoping to graduate in May 2013. The two writers also are roommates living on Chicago’s north side.

“Before I came to Roosevelt, I was unsure of my writing and held back a lot,” said Moore, who acknowledged being a bit surprised that his satirical piece, which makes fun of the Facebook phenomenon, was selected for both the Reader’s print and online editions.

Since joining the Creative Writing Program, Moore has experienced a flurry of creativity, writing more than 30 short stories, including “The Woman with Yellow Fingernails,” which has just been published in Roosevelt’s literary magazine, Oyez Review. “At Roosevelt, I am with writers who care about one another. I trust them and they trust me. It’s a thoughtful and active group of people who have helped motivate me to write.”

Burstein acknowledged being a little surprised as well that her short story, which grew out of experiences she has had taking yoga classes at Roosevelt University, received top billing from the Reader.

"I have really enjoyed the program, which I hope will continue to grow,” said Burstein, who coordinates literacy training for kids at a non-profit called Working in the Schools. Drawn to Roosevelt because of its mission of social justice, she added: “I really appreciate the sense of community that exists in the program. It is helping me and others to feel nurtured as we continue to improve our writing.”

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