Some people have been asking what I submitted for the Artist Trust / Gar LaSalle Storytelling Award. They were three short stories:

1. "The Zoo," published in Washington City Paper
2. "Old Boyfriends," published in Propeller Magazine
3. "Sugar," published in Gastronomica

I didn't submit a novel excerpt, following the general grant-writing advice to use a work sample that has a beginning, middle, and end. I also strived to show a range in styles and put the sample together in the order above to modulate tone, starting with the sad/happy, getting quite dark, and then ending on a lighter note. Just putting my process out there in case it's helpful! NB: Artist Trust gathers an amazing list of funding resources here. And here's a post on writing artist statements.

I'm honored to have my story "The Zoo" included as one of four stories in Washington City Paper's D.C.-themed fiction issue .  Here's how the story begins:

The Zoo

That’s what my brother calls it. The quarantined room at the end of the hall. It has two sets of windows: one looking into an air lock, where two white bunny suits hang on the wall, then another looking into the room kept pristine for the most fragile.

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