Creative Writing Commons^™

An Axe To The Funny Bone: Curated Instability And Horror-Comedy Intersections In American Storytelling, Samantha Box

Masters Theses

Funny. Terrifying. Subversive.

Horror-Comedy twists and bites at the intersection of two incredibly reactive genres— with both Horror and Comedy being well known for the political and social discourses they embody and reinvent through story. While prevalent in American popular culture, scholarly analysis of this hybrid space barely exists beyond a small number of Film Studies investigations. Despite this lack, Horror-Comedy works continue to be successfully produced. This thesis unpacks the vibrant relationship between fear and laughter in contemporary American storytelling through Horror-Comedy, maintaining a focus on structural dynamics and the audience-disarming results of simultaneously applying horror and humor to …

Autastic!, Torri Blue

Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture

Artist Statement (creative writing, poetry):

"Autastic!" is a poem about the beauty and tenderness of autistic experience. It's also about autistic relationality--our connection with one another in the neurodivergent community, as well as with the more-than-human world. It's a snapshot of autistic culture and communication as lived by one autistic poet, an invitation into an "autistic we."

Where The Shadows Mark Me, Jan A. Wozniak

Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture

No abstract provided.

Midday Rehearsals—Philosopher’S Walk, Early Term, Jan A. Wozniak

Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture

No abstract provided.

Parking Lot Lights, Rachel Furey

Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture

No abstract provided.

Neurodivergent Kintsugi, Jenée Stanfield

Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture

Jenée Stanfield is a late-realized, neuroqueer woman living in the Pacific Northwest with her spouse and her dog. She received her MFA in Creative Writing from Pacific Lutheran University and is currently working towards a MS in Restorative Practices at the International Institute for Restorative Practices.

She has presented professional development workshops and conference sessions on topics related to neurodivergent community and neurodivergent-affirming restorative practices in higher education. She co-founded a neurodivergent staff and faculty community at the college where she works as an advisor.

Rocket Holler, Sarah Wofford

Staff and Faculty Scholarship

Astra-Dean decides to explore an old spaceship half-buried out in the woods. This short story was published in December 2025 as part of an anthology titled "No Mercy in This Land." Cover art by Aya Francisco.

Kaleidoscope, Katherine Kennedy

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

Awkward, sullen, and superior, Avery has never been good with people, and that’s fine by him. Painting is the only thing he has ever liked; the only thing he’s ever been good at. Starting college is his chance to give himself completely to his passion and see what he’s capable of when he’s not wasting time pretending to be interested in other people.

That’s why being seated next to Daisy in Studio Art is a catastrophe.

Daisy is everything Avery finds annoying; she’s overly friendly, chatty, and emotional. But over the course of the semester, Avery finds himself drawn in …

Life Of A Military Child, Hannah Barnes

Philomathean

No abstract provided.

Retreat From Severodonetsk, Stan Galloway

Philomathean

No abstract provided.

On Ghosts, Sam Hamilton

Philomathean

No abstract provided.

Yellow Pajamas, Stan Galloway

Philomathean

No abstract provided.

Return Of The Sapiens, Kiya Whitaker

Philomathean

No abstract provided.

Dementia Unearthed, Kathy Fuller Guisewite

Philomathean

No abstract provided.

The Teammate, Not The Player, Mackenzie Buckley

Philomathean

No abstract provided.

Where Our Roots Remain, Sydney Collins

Philomathean

No abstract provided.

Weeping Willow’S Rose, Emelyn Buttercup Koene

Philomathean

No abstract provided.

If Fate Could Hold Her Own, Samantha Katlyn Herbst

Philomathean

No abstract provided.

What The Window Would Have Said, Emelyn Buttercup Koene

Philomathean

No abstract provided.

Too Much Edgar Allan Poe, Stephanie S. Gardner

Philomathean

No abstract provided.