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Brittany Cavallaro, Ph.D.

 Brittany Cavallaro
Instructor of Creative Writing
Middlebury College
Bachelor of Arts, American Literature
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Master of Fine Arts, Poetry
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Doctor of Philosophy, English Literature with Creative Dissertation

About Brittany

Brittany Cavallaro is the New York Times bestselling author of novels for young adults, including the Charlotte Holmes series (A Study in Charlotte, The Last of August, The Case for Jamie, A Question of Holmes), Hello Girls, and, most recently, the historical fantasy duology Muse and Manifest.   

In addition to her fiction work, Cavallaro is also an accomplished poet; her debut collection, Girl-King (University of Akron Press, 2015), was the Editor's Choice for the 2013 Akron Poetry Prize, and her most recent collection, Unhistorical (University of Akron Press), was released in 2019. Her poems have also appeared in AGNI, American Poetry Review, Tin House, Southern Review, the Best New Poets anthology, and elsewhere. She also writes for film and television. Cavallaro is a proud alumna of Interlochen Arts Academy.

Interested in learning with Brittany?

Learn more about studying creative writing at Interlochen Arts Academy.

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When teaching creative writing, I want to give my students a firm grounding in tradition and experimentation, often simultaneously, to show their reliance on each other.

  • National Endowment for the Arts individual artist fellowship in poetry
  • Work-study scholarships from the Bread Loaf Writers Conference
  • Rona Jaffe Foundation Fellowship from the Vermont Studio Center
  • Literary Hub's Best Poetry Collections of the Decade honorable mention for Girl-King and Unhistorical
  • Entertainment Weekly Top 10 YA Book of the Year; 2019 ALA Rise: A Feminist Book Project List; 2019 YALSA Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers for Hello Girls
  • The Charlotte Holmes series have been translated into a dozen languages and listed as Indie Next picks, Junior Library Guild selections, ALA Best Fiction for Young Adults selections, ABC Best Books for Young Readers selections, and Wisconsin Library Association's Children's Book Award Outstanding Selections, among other honors
  • Diploma, Creative Writing - Interlochen Arts Academy
  • B.A., American Literature (magna cum laude) - Middlebury College
  • M.F.A., Poetry - University of Wisconsin-Madison
  • Ph.D, English Literature - University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

How to approach writing a poem

Learn how to approach writing your next poem with Interlochen Center for the Arts' Instructor of Creative Writing Brittany Cavallaro, Ph.D.

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How to approach writing a poem