Antioch University Los Angeles

10/15/2026

MFA alum Tom Pyun learned in the spring of 2025 that he would be receiving a Fulbright Award, an opportunity that allowed him to further explore his family legacy in Seoul, South Korea, through a year of writing, research, and emotional discoveries.

“Just living here has inspired so much,” says Tom. He has found “so many ideas to pursue in terms of my writing, and it’s been a huge privilege to have a full year to focus on my research and writing.”

Read more about Tom’s experience here:

In the spring of 2025, author and Antioch MFA alum Tom Pyun learned that he would be receiving a prestigious Fulbright Award. This opened the door for him to explore the legacy of his grandfather--a man he never had the chance to know--and to find a dee...

10/07/2026

Today is Random Acts of Poetry Day!

Check out these poems from two Antioch University MFA Program alumni:

the jacarandas are unimpressed by your show of force by Gwynne Garfinkle

we’ve lit the green fuse
all over the angelic city
our purple clouds of delight
rise above your tear gas
rain lavender confetti
onto our streets
we stand vigil
thousands upon
thousands of us
in unruly profusion

how small
and joyless you are
with your pellets
of metal and rubber
it’s you who don’t
belong here.

--

Persi by Jacqueline Rose

Persi dances with Aunt Evey

with the watchful joy of

baby Mikala.

They dance in celebration

of their love, forever

Persi, a nickname

& pink bedazzled purse

gifted by Aunty Evey.

Mary is such a boring name,

Aunt Evey once said.

We FANCY.

You shall be Persi,

my little Milkmaid-chocolatey,

sweet girl.

Persi’s fancy determination

from Aunt Evey

off to college, get a tattoo, fall in love

Persi's golden reflections

from the rythmic head-boppin',

finger-snappin' while jangling bracelets

cast like sun rays

through the heavenly clouds

from above as

Persi and Aunt Evey dance

a ring shout with the musical laughter

of Persi's baby daughter

keeping time

The beautiful rays descend to us on earth

followed by

blissful, fancy tears that rain down on warm days.

--

What’s a poem that moves you?

Share it in the comments below!

10/06/2026

✨ We’re so excited for our December 2026 Antioch MFA Residency!

📚 Some of the incredible faculty joining us include John Cariani, Reyna Grande, and Terry Wolverton, along with special guests Deb Olin Unferth and Tananarive Due!

✍🏽 We are accepting applications! Study Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, Writing for Young People, Playwriting, Screenwriting, Literary Translation, or pursue a dual-genre concentration.

💻 You can attend the residency in person at our Los Angeles campus, online, or a combination of both. Scholarships are available!

🔗 Learn more about our faculty and program at the link in our bio.

10/05/2026

In the 2026 Alumni Magazine, we featured a story about the Antioch University MFA Program and its home within the greatest storytelling capital of the world: Los Angeles.

Featured in this article are MFA alumni Xochitl-Julisa Bermejo and Jose Hernandez Diaz, where they enthused about their love for LA, their community, and poetry. In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, we’d like to share their stories:

Xochitl-Julisa Bermejo lives in the San Gabriel Valley, which she describes as “east of East L.A.” The multicultural landscape feeds her poetry, which often reflects her neighborhood’s streets, trees, flowers, and landmarks. “In winter the mauve magnolias bloom, and as spring approaches, so do the yellow loquats,” she says. “These colors inspire me.”

While a student in the program, Bermejo worked on a series of persona poems rooted in immigrant stories from both Asian and Latine diasporas. Now, as an alum, she serves as faculty in the MFA. Bermejo also co-founded and is the Director of Women Who Submit, a longstanding literary organization.

Jose Hernandez Diaz is a Mexican American writer, editor, and teacher. A 2017 National Endowment for the Arts Poetry Fellow, he was born and raised in Norwalk. Today he lives there with his family. This neighborhood has been a formative place and continues to shape his work as a literary artist and teacher. He writes about it in a short prose piece, “The Palm Tree Piñata.”

Read more about these distinguished alumni and others that make up the MFA program here: https://at.antioch.edu/literary-love-story-mfa-2026-alumni-magazine

10/05/2026

✨ Curious about what it’s really like to pursue an MFA focused on Poetry or Dramatic Writing? We’re accepting applications for December on a rolling basis!

🎤 Join us for Inside the MFA: Student Panel on Poetry & Dramatic Writing on Saturday, October 10 at 10 AM PT / 1 PM ET.

📚 Hear firsthand how students are crafting powerful poetry collections, writing for the stage and screen, and shaping their creative practice within Antioch’s supportive and rigorous MFA community. Panelists will share insights on their writing process, workshop experiences, mentorship with faculty, and the unique creative growth that comes from immersing yourself in a dedicated writing program.

✍🏽 This is a unique opportunity to ask questions, learn about the challenges and rewards of the MFA journey, and explore how Antioch helps poets and dramatic writers deepen their craft and bring their work to life. Whether you're refining your poetic voice or developing compelling scripts for stage and screen, this conversation will give you a closer look at what awaits inside the Antioch MFA experience.

🎓 This panel will be presented by Cathy Linh Che, a National Book Award Finalist in Poetry and Sundance Film Festival Jury Prize winner, and Colette Freedman, a top Hollywood script doctor and ghostwriter. Cathy serves as Core Faculty in Poetry at Antioch, while Colette is the Dramatic Writing Program Officer.

🔗 Register now to connect with current students and discover if Antioch’s MFA in Creative Writing is the right next step for your writing journey. Link in bio!

09/29/2026

Curated by Antioch University MFA Program faculty Alistair McCartney, Antioch University’s Undergraduate Studies Literary Uprising series gives Antiochians the opportunity to explore literary expression and connect with community.

In this clip from a Literary Uprising event in 2023, MFA in Creative Writing alum Grant Chemidlin shares a poem that expresses what refers to as “before the coming out.”

09/28/2026

09/25/2026

It’s difficult to imagine the Antioch University MFA Program calling anywhere but Los Angeles home.

Since 1997, the program has offered a safe space for writers from all backgrounds to amplify their voices, proving writing can be a powerful force both for collective change and the local community.

In this series of mini profiles with local MFA faculty and alumni, we get a glimpse into what literary citizenship looks like across the city; how these Antiochians were influenced by the program; and how, in turn, they continue to give back to the larger community of LA.

Read the full profile in the 2026 edition of the Alumni Magazine: https://at.antioch.edu/literary-love-story-mfa-2026-alumni-magazine

09/22/2026

🌳 this is a doomscroll checkpoint! 🌳

It's easy to get lost in the noise of it all. Take a second to breath, check in with your body, and center yourself around nature ✨

09/22/2026

✨ We’re so excited to announce the lineup for our December 2026 Antioch MFA Residency!

📚 Some of the incredible faculty joining us include Mike Fu, Ross Brown, and Brad Kessler, along with special guests Jenny Factor and Lorinda Toledo!

✍🏽 We are accepting applications! Study Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, Writing for Young People, Playwriting, Screenwriting, Literary Translation, or pursue a dual-genre concentration.

💻 You can attend the residency in person at our Los Angeles campus, online, or a combination of both. Scholarships are available!

🔗 Learn more about our faculty and program at the link in our bio.