Sena Jeter Naslund-Karen Mann Graduate School of Writing

10/04/2026

CRAFT's 2026 Short Fiction Prize is now open! Submit your best short fiction (1,000-5,000 words) to be published alongside the other top stories. The first-place winner will receive a $2,500 award and online publication. The second- and third-place finalists will receive $500 and $300, respectively, along with online publication.

Additionally, everyone who submits will receive a 10% discount off any single-session or multi-week class at Story Studio.

Deadline to submit is November 15th!

More info here: https://buff.ly/Xu6uABU

10/02/2026

Looking for a place to send your flash fiction? Is it under 500 words? Look no further! Vestal Review, one of the longest-running flash fiction magazines, is now looking for new talent, especially underrepresented voices.

Open to all genres and approaches, contributors receive $75, sent via PayPal. There is a modest reading fee of $3, but pitches for flash reviews and interviews are free.

The fall reading period is now open through November 15th!

More details here: https://buff.ly/eCgQloN

10/01/2026

Curious about Spalding University's graduate programs in creative writing? Looking for a top-notch workshop and enrichment experience to jump-start your writing?

The Sena Jeter Naslund-Karen Mann Graduate School of Writing is offering a creative writing community workshop from November 18 - 20. Qualified applicants will study and write with workshop leader Lynnell Edwards, a prize-winning poet and member of the Spalding MFA faculty.

Spots are limited! Apply by October 12th.

Full details can be found here: https://buff.ly/b7pvzPp

Curious about Spalding’s graduate programs in creative writing? Looking for a top-notch workshop and enrichment experience to jump-start your writing? The Sena Jeter Naslund-Karen Mann Graduate School of Writing is offering a creative writing community workshop November 18 – 20. Qualified applic...

09/30/2026

Virtually Amazing! Our virtual summer residency is your travel-free option to earning the respected Spalding University MFA degree. It’s a thrilling, immersive week of live workshops and craft sessions, followed by an extended independent study that fits a graduate creative writing education into your life. Mix and match with on-campus residencies or standard-length independent studies.

We'll tell you more (and answer your questions) about this rewarding option at our free virtual info session. You'll meet Karen Mann, co-founder and Administrative Director of the Naslund-Mann School, and Katy Yocom, Associate Director, on Zoom, Tuesday, October 13, at 1 p.m. Eastern / 10 a.m. Pacific. Reserve your spot now: https://buff.ly/VjFC9qD

Hone your literary craft through Spalding's flagship graduate writing program.

09/29/2026

We're one week away from Spalding University's Giving Day! (But psssst, the portal is open now: https://buff.ly/g2TwwYQ!)

What began as a dream in Sena's and Karen's heads is now entering its second quarter-century. Your support helps fund the programming that has meant the most to you.

💙 Give to the Spalding MFA Alumni Association Fund to support productive, inspiring gatherings around the country and online.
💛 Choose the Naslund-Mann Blue & Gold general fund to provide for the School where support is most needed.
💓 Or help the Scholarship Fund to ease the way for students who are starting out where you once stood.

Whichever fund you choose, you're helping to keep our community strong and healthy and rolling through our next quarter-century.

09/25/2026

At the Naslund-Mann School of Writing at Spalding University, we proudly celebrate the contributions of Latinx & Hispanic writers whose stories, perspectives, and traditions have shaped contemporary art and literature.
Join us in honoring all the different voices that enrich our literary landscape.

09/24/2026

This week on our faculty blog, CNF and fiction faculty Karen Salyer McElmurray writes about book tours and the silence that come once they’re over. Read it now at Good River Review: https://buff.ly/yKVE8rt

09/22/2026

Our 2026 travel abroad enrichment trip is off! Here are our travelers in front of Sir Walter Scott's house in the new town in Edinburgh, Scotland! Spalding University

09/21/2026

We are excited to share that Spalding University playwriting alum Lori Marra has been commissioned by Echo Theater Company in LA to develop a 10-minute play.

"Fish On!: The Aquatic Fable of Walter and Tai" will be featured as a part of the festival.

Congrats, Lori!

09/19/2026

Congrats to Spalding University alums Andie Redwine and faculty Larry Brenner! Their co-authored book, Once Upon a Disney: Screenwriting Lessons from the Studio Canon, is in stores now!

This book breaks down what we can learn from the writing of various Disney movies with clear takeaways that can impact your own writing and storytelling.

More info here: https://buff.ly/kdoP5d5