Current Students

New Students

	Sydney Abraham Sydney Abraham has a passion for writing, especially fiction. She has experience in historical fiction, essays, content writing, and journalism. She graduated from Westmont College with a Bachelor of Arts in English and a Writing Minor. Sydney lives in Southern California, and in her spare time enjoys reading, sewing, and gardening.
	Julie Colbrese Julie Colbrese is a former advertising creative turned business coach/consultant. Five-ish years ago she binge-watched seven seasons of Shonda Rhimes’ Scandal on Netflix and, as a result, impulsively earned an MS in Forensic Psychology. Originally from Chicago and currently living in Palm Springs, Julie has fancied herself a writer nearly all her life without much actual proof of it. Determined to change all that, she is happy to be here.
	Christopher Doshier Christopher Doshier is a musician (yes, drummers count), a singer, an actor, and an educator. After completing his B.A. in English at CSU Fullerton, he decided to commit to life as a writer and poet. His focus is on the search for spiritual definition and psychological integrity in a world seemingly dedicated to the elimination of both.
	Maria Kernahan Maria is a Chicago native, Cubs fan and avid traveler. She took her love of exploring new places and created the Alphabet Places series of children’s picture books. Now, she’s aging up and is working on new fiction projects for readers who are all grown up.
	Justy Kosek Justy Kosek completed his undergraduate education at Brandeis University where dual majors in theater and creative writing set him off on the dark and derelict path of multihyphenate artistry that he wanders to this day. A writer, director, producer and actor, Justy’s plays have premiered off-Broadway, across the country (from Alabama to Massachusetts) and even once in Australia by accident. Justy’s debut novella, Mason’s 8th @ Zootech, an environmentalist near-future-fiction love story, was published by Liquid Cat Books in October of 2022. His narrative fiction podcast, More Than Roses, is currently streaming on Spotify & Apple Podcasts. Justy’s first film, You’re Not There – adapted from his short story of the same name – is set to debut nationally in 2025. Justy lives in Astoria with his girlfriend and their two pets: a dog that is also sometimes a shag rug and a three-legged cat with a penitent for mischief and catnip.
	Wendy S. Kurtzman Wendy S. Kurtzman, CSA is an Emmy and Artios nominated casting director with more than 35 years of experience in feature films, movies for television, limited series, and theater. Wendy has worked with many distinguished directors such as Paul Schrader, Diane Keaton, Sally Field, and Roland Emmerich, for whom she cast the blockbuster “Independence Day.” Prior to starting her own casting business, she was a casting executive at Lifetime and NBC. In 2013, Wendy launched College to Career Acting to help emerging BFA/MFA artists navigate the transition from Academia into the Entertainment Industry. Currently, Wendy serves as Head of Casting for PhilmCo Media, is on faculty at Pace University and Chapman University, and serves on the Casting Society Board of Directors. She has also taught at UCLA, New York University (The Lee Strasberg Institute and Stonestreet Studios), The New School, and The SAG-AFTRA Foundation, among many others. Her book, “Acting is Your Business: How to Take Charge of Your Creative Career” (Bloomsbury Press) is available on all major platforms.
	Dr. Leo Mallette Dr. Mallette has been an adjunct faculty at Pepperdine University’s GSEP doctoral program since 2009. He is chair for many, and has graduated 39, doctoral students. Dr. Mallette retired after 40 years of managing satellite-system projects at The Aerospace Corporation, Boeing, and Hughes Aircraft Company. He received his degrees from the University of Central Florida and Pepperdine University. He is the author or co-author of several books. He and his wife Kathy live in Rancho Mirage California. They have one daughter and two adult granddaughters. He enjoys his granddaughters, gardening projects, traveling, writing, and woodturning. He is looking forward to distilling his fiction writing skills
	Sean McCoy Sean McCoy is an author, screenwriter, and proud dad who resides in SoCal. He earned his BA from UCSB in Film and Media Studies, and Sean’s first feature-length screenplay, Aperture, won the Corwin Award for Best Feature Screenplay in 2024. He enjoys writing thrillers with twists and fairy tales for all ages with environmental themes. In his free time, Sean loves hiking, skiing, fine art photography, and wine exploration. He hopes to continue pursuing his passions through UCR’s MFA program with further development in the art and craft of socially impactful storytelling.
	Daniel North Born and raised in Southeast Missouri, Daniel North has spent the last twenty-five years living and exploring his way across the American West. With a Bachelor’s degree in Painting, he has worked as a full-time professional artist; owned art galleries; co-curated the first ever on-line-only exhibition for the Center for Museum Studies at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC; taught High School English and Art History; taught grant writing and worked as a radio disc jockey. He has settled in Palm Springs, California to write his stories.
	Kevin Pellegrin I am a recent grad from California State University San Bernardino and grew up, for the most part, in the Inland Empire. My hobbies mesh together with my love for writing fantasy. For instance, I love playing Magic: The Gathering, Dungeons & Dragons, PC gaming (RPG’s), and escape rooms. When I am not engaged in my hobbies on my off time, I am braving work (I work a grueling night shift at a shipping dock). Though I am ready for a career involving story craft for my hobbies, I find myself daydreaming (nightdreaming? Dreaming?) A LOT about my stories during work.
	Kaira Rouda Earning an MFA has been on Kaira's bucket list since she graduated Vanderbilt University with a BA in English. Four kids, a few marketing and journalism careers, and 20 novels later, she was at a book launch event for her latest novel, sharing the stage with Tod Goldberg, when he mentioned this program. She’s beyond excited to be a part of this community. She lives in Laguna Beach with her husband, and three spoiled dogs.
	Anne-Sophie Rouveloux Anne-Sophie relocated to Chicago from Paris, France, where she worked as a bookseller and journalist. She now teaches French at Loyola University and ESL (English as a Second Language) at Malcolm X College in That Toddlin' Town. She loves intense books and horror movies. After self-publishing a mystery novel about Hollywood’s silent era in French, she decided to write her fiction exclusively in English. When she’s not at the movies with her husband, she’s likely to be playing with her beloved bilingual pet rats.
	Toph Whitmore Toph Whitmore is a British Columbia writer whose plays have been seen by tens of people. He used to work in tech, and is a proud father, husband, and immigrant. Toph counts among his influences Noel Coward, Francis Veber, the Coen Brothers, Wes Anderson, Mischief Theatre, and several contestants on Taskmaster. In another century, Toph got his BA (English) from Pomona College and MBA from the Tuck School at Dartmouth.