ABOUT
Laura
In 2021, I graduated with an MFA degree in Creative Writing from the Rainier Writing Workshop, a three-year low-residency MFA program at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Washington. In that program, I completed two manuscripts tied to my exploration into how my grandmother and her two sisters survived the Armenian Genocide. My critical paper explores how authors write into silence, the private silence of untold stories and the public silence of suppressed stories. In my creative thesis, a hybrid memoir, family photographs, primary documents, and historical fact intersect with memories and speculation to create a personal story within the larger public archive.
WORK IN PROGRESS
Matilda’s Silence: The Search For My Armenian Family’s Story
My grandmother Matilda Haigazn survived the Armenian Genocide of 1915-1923, which took one and a half million Armenian lives, men, women, and children. Matilda rarely spoke of her experiences and the family she left behind in Turkey. Not knowing what happened has always haunted me. This manuscript is my investigative journey to find my extended family and their story, including the historical context in which their lives took place.
Blog
Do You Hear What I Hear? For Your Sake, I Hope You Don’t.
I’ve been working on an essay about my tinnitus (you say təˈnīdəs, I say ˈtinədəs, we’re both correct) on and off for four years. One section was more lyric than the rest of the essay, and I struggled to find a way to return to that lyricism. The essay...
Insipid Drivel: My Response to My August Blog
Last month I wrote about social media and my dilemma on how to be on the various platforms. I wrote about a reality in my life. The next day I read Heather Cox Richardson’s newsletter and wanted to retract my blog, which in comparison seemed like insipid drivel. HCR...
Social Media: How to be or not to be on it
Last November, I was out of the country when the latest exodus from Twitter took place. Many in my writing community were fluttering over to Blue Sky. I wasn’t on Twitter, but I joined Blue Sky out of a sense of solidarity. We are all in this together! It was easy and...