This event is virtual-only (via Zoom) and is open to Helen Zell Writers' Program MFA students and Zell Fellows, as well as U-M graduate and undergraduate students. It is not open to the general public. Please email Julie Cadman-Kim (kimjulie@umich.edu) for login instructions.

Michelle Lyn King is the editor in chief and owner of Joyland magazine, where she has edited the works of Brandon Taylor, Allie Rowbottom, Lynn Steger Strong, and Vanessa Chan, amongst others.

She was the editor for the “Ten Year Affair” by Erin Summers, recognized in The Best American Short Stories 2022. She is drawn to work with a unique voice and perspective, stories about class, coming-of-age stories, character-driven literary fiction, and works driven by a bold sense of humor. She is especially interested in works that center LGBTQA+ voices.

Michelle’s fiction and nonfiction have been published in Electric Literature’s Reccomended Reading, Triangle House Review, and The Florida Review, amongst other places.

Raised in south Florida, Michelle earned her MFA in creative writing from Brooklyn College. Prior to joining Joyland, she worked at Catapult, The Bennington Review, and Broadside PR. She lives in Brooklyn.

Michelle's talk, "Beyond the Slushpile" promises to be "an honest and lively discussion on what editors are looking for when going through the slush pile."