Lecturer and Program Head, Creative Writing and Literature, Academic Advisor
About
Laura Thomas, Lecturer IV, is the program head for the Residential College’s creative writing program, where she teaches fiction and creative nonfiction. She is the creative writing major advisor, and is also an RC academic advisor. Her short fiction and essays have appeared in numerous journals and anthologies, including The Cimarron Review, Nimrod International Journal, Epiphany, Witness, Midwestern Gothic, and other literary journals. Her short story collection, STATES OF MOTION (Wayne State University Press, 2017), debuted to strong national reviews and was a finalist for a Foreword Reviews Indie Award. The collection was also named a notable debut by Poets & Writers (July/August 2017). She has organized author residencies and literary festivals and has led many panels, workshops and critique sessions. In 2018, she served as writer-in-residence for the annual Kerrytown Bookfest.
Thomas is a U-M and RC graduate (B.A. in Creative Writing and Literature and Russian Language and Literature). She holds an MA in Slavic Languages and Literature from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and an MFA in Fiction from the Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College. She is the recipient of U-M’s Individual Award for Outstanding Contributions to Undergraduate Education, as well as a number of University grants for her creative work and professional activities.
