Melvin Sterne: Writer, Teacher, Editor, Photographer


    Current Employment:
    Professor of Communication
    Director, Passport to Excellence Program
    S P Jain Center of Management
    Singapore -- Dubai -- Sydney

    Previous Employment:
    Assistant Professor of English
    American University of Bosnia and Herzegovina

    Assistant Professor of English
    American University of Afghanistan

    Education:

    Ph.D. English, Florida State University (2008)
    MA, English, University of California at Davis (2003)
    BA, English, University of Washington (2001) (Magna Cum Laude)
    Graduate Certificate in Editing and Publishing, Florida State University (2006)

    Dissertation:

    Zaffron. A novel. (Defended April 15, 2008)
    Advisors: Robert Olen Butler, Julianna Baggott, John Fenstermaker, Daniel Vitkus, Juan Carlos Galeano.

    Zaffron is the story of an illiterate, lower-class Muslim girl sold into prostitution who attempts to blackmail her way to freedom.
    When the incriminating camera-phone is lost, and a police inspector murdered, Zaffron must work with an upper-class, well-
    educated Hindu policewoman to recover the phone and save both their lives. The women must set aside cultural and religious
    differences and trust one another. The story explores contemporary India including complex issues of gender, culture, religion, third-
    world politics, and human trafficking. It is based on a true story and two years of interviews and extensive research conducted in
    India.

    Areas of Specialization:

    Creative Writing, Fiction
    20th Century American Literature
    British Literature from 1500 to 1650
    Editing and Publishing
    Creative Non-Fiction
    Advanced Essay Writing
    Business Writing

    My concentration is fiction writing, in particular the theory of fiction, the short story, and the novel. I am well-versed in both
    American Short Fiction and American Novels in the 20th Century, with additional concentrations on the Harlem Renaissance and
    African-American Fiction, British literature from 1500-1650 (Shakespeare et al), George Bernard Shaw, Arthur Miller, and
    literature of the Indian Subcontinent.

    Awards:

    Golden Key Honor Society (2007)
    Nominated for Outstanding Graduate Student Teacher (2005)
    Nominated for Outstanding Graduate Student Teacher (2002)
    Teaching Assistantship, Florida State University (2004-2008)
    Teaching Assistantship, University of California at Davis (2001-2003)
    National Dean’s List (2001)
    Mary Gates Scholar (2001)
    John K. Woolley Memorial Scholarship (2000-2001)
    Magna Cum Laude (University of Washington)
    National Educational Communications Committee Scholarship (2001)

    Publications:

    Short Stories:

    “Poise." Unlikely Stories. April, 2010. (http://www.unlikelystories.org/)

    "Split Decision." Crucible. February, 2010.

    "The End of the World.” Natural Bridge (Fall 2008)

    “White Four, Black Pepper, Salt, and Grease.” Reed Magazine, Vol. 60, spring 2007. 111-117.

    “Chameleon.” Twisted Tongue, issue #2, March 2006 (www.twistedtongue.co.uk.)

    “Thanksgiving.” South Carolina Review, 36.2, spring, 2004. 137-153.

    “Warriors.” Watchword, issue # 5, 2003. 46-57.

    “The Heart-Smart Diet.” Willow Springs, spring, 2003. 89-107.

    “The Number You Have Reached” storySouth, July, 2003. (http://www.storysouth.com/)

    “Dead Water.” Blue Mesa Review, spring 2003. 7-22.

    “Bread.” Kaleidoscope: International Magazine of Literature, Fine Arts, and Disability,  Volume 47, summer, 2003. 51-58.

    “The Investment.” Insolent Rudder, spring, 2003. (http://web.archive.org/web/20030428121850/www.insolentrudder.org/story65)

    “Outside of Bakersfield.” Watchword. issue # 4, 2002. 35-48.

    “The Funeral.” Mochilla Review, volume 4, spring, 2003. 83-93.

    “Fault Lines.” Working Hard For the Money. Mary E. Weems and Larry Smith, eds. Huron, OH. Bottom Dog Press, 2002. 92-96.

    “Superstition.” Furrow, 2.2, fall, 2001. 20-37.

    “Fault Lines.” In Posse Review, 9.1, May, 2001. (http://webdelsol.com/InPosse.).

    “Snipe Hunting.” Amarillo-Bay Magazine, 3.2, spring, 2002.  (http://www.amarillobay.org/).

    “The Couch.” Amarillo-Bay Magazine, 2.3, fall, 2001. (http://www.amarillobay.org/).

    “Cold.”  Licton Springs Review, 8.1, spring, 1999. 25-28.

    Non-Fiction:

    “Shakespeare, Buddha, and King Lear.” The Journal of Buddhist Ethics. (December, 2007)

    “On Offense for the Book.” Literature and Digital Technologies: W.B. Yeats, Virginia Woolf, Mary Shelly, and William Gass. Wayne
    Chapman and Karen Schiff, eds. Clemson University Digital Press, spring, 2003. 73-84.

    Untitled Essay. A Closer Look: the Writer’s Reader. Sid Dobrin and Anis Bawarshi, eds. McGraw-Hill, 2002. 766-768.

    Poetry:

    “Yes, Mathilda.” Concrete Wolf, 1.6, summer, 2002. 80.

    “Theresa by the River.” Concrete Wolf, 1.6, summer, 2002. 81.

    “Mime.” interSECTIONS, 7.1, spring, 2001. 8.

    “Ghost of Elvis, riding.” interSECTIONS, 6.1, spring, 2000. 19-20.

    “Snow in the Desert.” interSECTIONS, 6.1, spring, 2000. 21.

    “Last Call.” the Licton Springs Review. 8.1, spring, 1999. 30-33.

    Writing Contests and Awards:

    “Warriors” Shortlisted for a Pushcart Prize in 2004.

    “Bread.” First Prize, 2001 Frank O’Connor Short Story Award (Auburn University).

    “Superstition.” Second Prize, the HWYL/Diversity Incorporated Undergraduate Fiction Award (University of Wisconsin, Madison).

    “The Funeral.” Second Prize in the 2001 William Faulkner Short Fiction Award at the Tallahatchie RiverFest in New Albany,
    Mississippi.

    “Fault Lines.” Second Prize for fiction in the Seattle Community College District Level of the League for Innovation Writing
    Contest, 1999.

    “Ghost of Elvis, riding.” Second Prize for poetry in the Seattle Community College District Level of the League for Innovation
    Writing Contest, 1999.

    “On Pickle Mountain.” First Prize and Best of Show at the Shoreline Arts Festival, 1999.

    Works under Consideration, in Progress, and Future Projects:

    I have a number of short stories under consideration with various literary magazines. I have two academic articles under review:
    “Unafraid of Themselves: Re-positing the Harlem Renaissance through a Textual Analysis of Three of its Major Works” and a work
    of critical theory entitled “Against Hyperventilationism.” I have two novels, Isla and Zaffron under consideration. I have another
    novel/memoir of my years spent working union construction in progress and tentatively titled Dock Dogs. I am also working on a
    themed collection of short stories about a minister nearing retirement at a church in the Deep South.

    Conferences and Papers:

    Panel Discussion on Electronic Publishing, Other Words Conference, Tallahassee, Florida, January, 2005.

    “On Offence for the Book.” The Clemson University Symposium on Electronic Publishing. April, 2003.

    The Writer’s Way Conference, Marin Headlands, California. (Featured speaker.) October, 2002.

    Teaching Experience:

    Department of English, Florida State University, 2004-2008.
            ENC 1101 (First Year Writing), Fall, 2004.
            ENC 1102 (Argument and Persuasion), Spring, 2005.
            ENC 1142 Fiction Writing, Fall, 2005 – Spring, 2007.
            ENC 3310 Advanced Article and Essay Workshop, Fall, 2007.
            LIT 2020 The American Short Story, Summer, 2007 – Spring, 2008.

    Tallahassee Community College, 2004-2005.
            ENC 1102 (Argument and Persuasion), Fall, 2004. (Adjunct instructor).
            ENC 1101 (First Year Writing), Spring, 2005. (Adjunct instructor).

    Department of English, University of California at Davis
            English 5F, Introduction to Writing Fiction, Fall, 2001 & Spring, 2003.
            English 43, Introduction to Drama, Winter, 2002. (TA)
            English 156, The 19th Century American Novel, Spring, 2002. (TA)  
            English 44, Introduction to Fiction as Literature, Fall, 2002. (TA)
            Film Studies 1, Introduction to Film Studies, Winter, 2003. (TA)

    Teaching Interests:

    Fiction and the Theory of Fiction. The 20th Century American Novel. The American short story. World Fiction (especially fiction of
    the Indian Sub-continent). Shakespeare. African-American Literature. Creative non-fiction (essays, articles, and memoirs). History
    of Publishing. Contemporary Literary Publishing.

    Editing and Publishing Experience:

    Co-editor, Blood and Honey Review (2010 - 2011)
    Associate Editor, Government Information Quarterly (2007 to present)
    Senior Editor and Publisher, Carve Magazine, (2000-2007)
    Managing Editor, Licton Springs Review, (1998-1999)

    Academic Service:

    Florida State University

    Tutor and mentor for foreign students with the FSU Center for Intensive English Studies.

    University of California at Davis:

    Two years as representative for the English Department in the Graduate Students’ Association.

    Graduate Student Representative to the University Academic Planning and Development Committee.

    University of Washington:

    Developed and implemented an outreach program within the English Department to recruit and empower students from
    underrepresented minorities to attend the University of Washington. Responsibilities included program conception, funding
    proposals, recruiting and training volunteers, enlisting the support of faculty, staff, and university administrators, organizing public
    appearances, off-campus visits, coordinating efforts with other outreach programs, acting as a liaison with the Seattle Public School
    District, and tutoring, teaching, and speaking in local high schools.

    Founded the Fiction Writers’ Association at the University of Washington (a registered student organization). Organized monthly
    meetings to promote and encourage writers on campus. Arranged the first undergraduate writing seminar held at the University of
    Washington. Wrote grant proposal for funding, contracted for the necessary facilities, and arranged for guest speakers and visiting
    writers.

    Taught for two years in Proyecto Saber, a bi-lingual/bi-cultural support program at Ballard High School.

    Professional Organizations:

    Modern Language Association (MLA)
    National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE)
    Conference on College Composition and Communication (CCCC)
A few professional things you might want to know about me.