Oronte

John Griswold, who uses the pen name Oronte Churm at Inside Higher Ed and elsewhere, was born in Vietnam and raised in coal country in Southern Illinois. His stories, poems, and essays have appeared in War, Literature and the Arts; Brevity; Natural Bridge; and Ninth Letter. His work has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize, listed as notable in The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2009, and included in The Best Creative Nonfiction, Vol. 3 (WW Norton).

His most recent book is a collection of essays, Pirates You Don't Know, and Other Adventures in the Examined Life (University of Georgia Press 2014). He is also the author of a novel, A Democracy of Ghosts, and a nonfiction book, Herrin: The Brief History of an Infamous American City.

He teaches in the MFA program at McNeese State University, Lake Charles, Louisiana.

To reach this person, click here.

Most Recent Articles

February 22, 2015

For S----, a Teacher

All the news was bad this month for a jaded idealist, what they called David Carr. Philip Levine’s was pancreatic. Bob Simon survived wars and captivity with grace, only to die in a Town Car in Manhattan. Scientists announced the earth ruined: Oceans barren in 35 years, West Coast reduced to ashes and dust. They made a case for brimstoning the sky, hubris piled on hubris, like stratospheric thunderheads. Another extinction event. A great dying. Everything is relative, apologists say, things have always been falling apart.

February 8, 2015

Are Louisiana’s Higher Ed Problems Viral?

Not to be alarmist, but they're coming for you next.

January 21, 2015

Guest Review: 'Guinevere in Baltimore'

A review of Shelley Puhak's poetry collection, by Katherine Hoerth.

January 15, 2015

Holiday Hazards, Library Fantasies

The noodle was the last straw.

December 18, 2014

Guest Review: 'Samuel Taylor’s Last Night,' a Novel by Joe Amato

John Domini reviews a forthcoming academic novel from Dalkey Archive Press.