During the CONNECT project, I interviewed NLGJA award winner Karen Hawkins for a profile. She said it was the best interview she had ever experienced. She marveled at how comfortable I had made her, and how willing she was to open up as a result. Previously I interviewed trans activist and author, Jennifer Finney Boylan, and she had a similar response. When I listen to the recordings of my interviews, I often think that people would really enjoy listening to them. I’m a writer, so I’m naturally curious about people, but I was also a hairstylist for over a decade prior to attending Columbia. That profession combines artistry with intimacy, something that has certainly served me well—and informed my work. I’m also quite empathetic.

I love the opportunity to connect with other creatives through The Creative Process. To be fueled by their work and hopefully inspire them with my own. And I want to learn how to express myself through different artistic mediums. It would be incredible to immerse myself in the creative world without being distracted by exams and research papers. I think that every artist is always yearning for more time and space to express themselves.

My interests outside of school include reading literature (fiction and literary nonfiction) and creative writing (mostly literary nonfiction, and some fiction). I love photography as well, so I spend a great deal of time taking photographs, especially abstract photos of architecture. Since I was a child I’ve wanted to review films and write screenplays. And I enjoy television.

Most recently, I was awarded the Emily Gould Nonfiction Prize for my essay, “Heinrich Hofmann’s Christ,” which will be featured in Quarto’s spring print edition. In the essay I interweave a personal narrative of childhood and early adulthood traumas with a personal viewing of Heinrich Hofmann’s paintings in Riverside Church. Additionally, Quarto published my humorous essay, “There’s a Reason Why I’m Like This,” about my fear of choking, online. Last fall, I participated in The Association of LGBTQ Journalists’ CONNECT Student Journalism Training Project, led by the editorial director of The New York Times’ news desk, Caroline Que, along with nine other queer students from across the country.