Tara Campbell

With a BA in English, an MA in German, and an MFA in Creative Writing, Tara Campbell has a demonstrated aversion to money and power. Originally from Anchorage, Alaska, she has also lived in Oregon, Ohio, New York, Germany and Austria. She currently lives in Washington, D.C.

She is the recipient of the following awards from the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities: the 2016 Larry Neal Writers’ Award in Adult Fiction, the 2016 Mayor’s Arts Award for Outstanding New Artist, and Arts and Humanities Fellowships for 2018 – 2022. She is also a 2017 Kimbilio Fellow and winner of the 2018 Robert Gover Story Prize.

Tara earned her MFA from American University in 2019, and is a fiction editor at Barrelhouse. She teaches fiction with American University, Johns Hopkins University’s Advanced Academic Programs, the Writer’s Center, Politics and Prose, Catapult, and the National Gallery of Art’s Virtual Studio.

Student Feedback for Tara

Tara Campbell is very clearly a subject expert and an excellent teacher. She engaged with our group with compassion and skill. Kerry Anderson

Tara’s classes always stimulate a host of unique ideas, as well as unexpected new ways to approach speculative writing. She curates a fantastic breadth of story examples, sparking in-depth discussions that often reveal hidden layers of meaning. Tara’s teaching style is warm, welcoming, and fun. Myna Chang, BEST INDIE SPECULATIVE FICTION 2020, “Bards and Sages”

The class was excellent, and we had lively discussions about the stories. Tara is a first-rate instructor, with great insight into the work presented. Claudia Wair, Science writer and author of THE MAP JOURNAL

Tara’s instruction, prompts, and written feedback inspired me to publish my first piece of speculative flash fiction. She’s an empathetic and insightful editor who is an expert in the craft and cares deeply about her students and their writing.  Kristina Saccone, Writer and editor of FLASH ROUNDUP