During the fall and spring semesters, we ask several of our students to complete a survey so that members of our community and potential applicants can get to know them a little better. Scroll down to see their answers and learn more about them!
Morrigan
Name:
Genre of study at BU: Fiction
Favorite thing about Boston (so far): My fellow writers (both current and former students)
Writer that inspires you most: James Baldwin and Shirley Jackson
What you wanted to be when you grew up: A writer always (even when the rest of the little girls in my dance class wanted to be ballerinas)
Project you’re working on at BU: A collection of Staten Island-based short stories, a horror novel about football, another, separate horror novel/murder mystery about football
Favorite animal: The Maine Loon (mice ducks, and bees are all honorable mentions)
Poem, story, or essay you’re most excited to put on your syllabus:
- story: “The Great Silence” by Ted Chiang + “My 100% Perfect Woman by Haruki Murakami
- poem: “Elegy Where I Initially Refuse to Eat Sand” by Anna Journey
- essay: “The Black Boy Looks at the White Boy” by James Baldwin
Favorite movie: The Usual Suspects
What made you want to be a writer: My second grade teacher gave us an assignment to write about “a small moment.” That’s all it took.
Favorite non-water beverage: Iced coffee (black or with cream depending on my mood), a 1 litre of coconut water with a Chocolate Salt LMNT packet
What made you want to apply to BU: I read an interview with Leslie Epstein about his writing process. It rang true and made me laugh out loud at the same time!
Advice for folks considering applying to MFA programs: Take lots of writing classes as an undergrad and befriend those professors. They will help not only with letters of rec, but as guides for writing personal statements, academic resumes, and selecting strong submission pieces.
Mary
Name: Mary Elliot
Genre of study at BU: Poetry
Favorite thing about Boston (so far): The seasons, especially autumn. I’ve lived in New England 9 years and they still surprise me!
Writer that inspires you most: Seamus Heaney – I think his poems stand the test of time, and I admire his integrity, too.
What you wanted to be when you grew up: I had a phase where I read Rachel Carson + Bill McKibbon and wanted to be some kind of environmentalist!
Project you’re working on at BU: A collection of poems – a theme remains to be seen, and I will be focusing on hearing the sounds of them!
Favorite animal: Birds, LOL! They show up in so many of my own poems + my favorite poems!
Poem, story, or essay you’re most excited to put on your syllabus: J.R.R. Tolkien’s “Leaf by Niggle” short story, and I’m excited to share in BU’s legacy by unpacking Robert Lowell’s masterful poem “Beyond the Alps.”
Favorite movie: Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by Clint Eastwood, based on the novel by John Berendt
What made you want to be a writer: Being a lover of good poetry. I think I’ll always consider myself a reader first, and even in my work now I feel I am often in conversation with poems that have moved me.
Favorite non-water beverage: BLACK COFFEE always
What made you want to apply to BU: I wanted to work with Karl Kirchwey, and I also enjoyed Andrea Cohen’s work. The intense, one year format also really appealed to me for many reasons.Advice for folks considering applying to MFA programs: Hold it lightly, but put in the time to do it well. If it doesn’t work out this year, keep writing and, especially, reading, and let life experience accumulate and enrich your work. Also, spend time on your letter/statement!
Larry
Name: Larry Flynn
Genre of study at BU: Poetry (2026)
Favorite thing about Boston (so far): the writers and the arts, the cobblestone and the Celtics, the water and the breeze
Writer that inspires you most: Ross Gay, Martín Espada, Italo Calvino
What you wanted to be when you grew up: marine biologist! (and writer…)
Project you’re working on at BU: a poetry collection that continues to surprise me, that celebrates human cooperation and cohabitation with nature; a novel on the parallel and intersecting lives of a boy and a right whale
Favorite animal: epaulette sharks, balleen whales, Wojtek the Soldier Bear
Poem, story, or essay you’re most excited to put on your syllabus:
- essay: “from “The Art of Revision” by Peter Ho Davies
- story: “In the Cemetery Where Al Jolson is Buried” by Amy Hempel
- poem: “Wishing Well” by Gregory Pardlo
Favorite movie: Arrival (2006), Jaws (1975), Superbad (2007), The Truman Show (1998)
What made you want to be a writer: I loved writing stories as a kid. Then, I read and read, and felt moved by beautiful pieces of writing. When I saw my writing moving others, I knew writing would be essential to who I am.
Favorite non-water beverage: many cups of black coffee, and fruit flavored sparkling water
What made you want to apply to BU: an admiration for alumni and professors; the exciting possibility of elevating my writing through practice and study of prosody; to expand my student-driven teaching pedagogy in a new space
Advice for folks considering applying to MFA programs:
- Build a practice! The product will come.
- With the help of readers, locate the emotional core of your writing.
- Be excited to experiment and evolve.
Etienne
Name: Etienne Labbouz
Genre of study at BU: Fiction
Favorite thing about Boston (so far): The winding streets, the Prudential Center Mall.
Writer that inspires you most: Brautigan, Duras, Johnson, Pizarnik.
What you wanted to be when you grew up: “Champion Painter” – because painter alone seemed plain next to the kid who said “Karate Champion.”
Project you’re working on at BU: A horror novel and a couple of movie scripts.
Favorite animal: The donkey, the elephant.
Poem, story, or essay you’re most excited to put on your syllabus: “Sea, Sea Rider” by Richard Brautigan.
Favorite movie: Out of the Blue (1980)
What made you want to be a writer: I noticed the stories I wrote as a child pleased my parents and teachers, and I enjoyed being told stories. I thought maybe if I kept at it, I’d get a good grade.
Favorite non-water beverage: Moroccan mint tea
What made you want to apply to BU: The faculty and the financial support, the opportunity to exchange work with a brilliant cohort.
Advice for folks considering applying to MFA programs: Come with a plan; but I’ll know more a year from now.