Creative Writing
Holly Goodman
CREATIVE WRITING DIRECTOR
Holly Goodman began writing to entertain herself in 9th grade after discovering that teachers universally assumed an open notebook and a pen in motion meant she was either taking notes or occupied with assigned work. She has not stopped since. Holly’s fiction, non-fiction, personal essays and blogs have appeared in newspapers, magazines, literary journals and anthologies in print and online for more than three decades. Her professional life started in daily news as general assignment reporter at the Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch where she learned the best part of journalism is having a backstage pass to other people’s lives and getting to tell their stories. After moving to Oregon, she wrote about local bands for the now defunct NW music magazine, The Rocket, and freelanced for a half dozen sections of The Oregonian, most of which no-longer exist. Her fiction and essays have been included in Literary Mama, Your Tango, The Frozen Moment: Contemporary Writers on the Choices That Change Our Lives, and Ohio State's literary magazine The Journal, where her short piece Fresh Water won the 2007 Alumni Flash Fiction award. Holly holds a BA in Journalism from The Ohio State University and spent nearly a decade studying narrative fiction in author Tom Spanbauer’s Dangerous Writing workshop. She’s currently finishing the first draft of her first novel. When she’s not at the keyboard, she loves live music, road trips, camping, hiking and swimming in rivers.
Holly taught camps and classes for young writers through the Portland-based Saturday Academy for five years. Her two children have been part of YMA’s theater program since 2016. She’s excited to join them at camp this year.