Meet the Editors
Dear Barnstorm Readers,
The nights are cooling down, the students are back on campus, and the leaves are just beginning to change, which means it’s time to introduce Barnstorm’s new editorial team. As editors go, these are some mighty fine specimens! They’re sharp, insightful, and perceptive, and I’m thrilled to be working with them to produce a journal worthy of our incredible readers.
Issue #1 of Volume 17 comes out on October 7th, and our team is working hard to give all of our submissions the attention they deserve. In preparation for our first issue we’ve decided to share with you our best advice to get the creative juices flowing, as well as some titles that are currently inspiring us. Let us know if any of our words or recommendations speak to you!
In the meantime, enjoy these last idyllic summer days, take a swim while the water’s warm, and scroll down to learn about the team.
Warmly,
Aspen Kidd
Editor-in-Chief
Aspen
Kidd
Editor in Chief
Reading: Liberation Day by George Saunders
Advice: To quote from many a trusted source: If you’re bored, the reader’s bored. Write about things you care about, because the reader can’t help but pick up on that energy.
Aspen Kidd is a writer, editor, and nurse, in that order. She has a BSN from the University of Nevada, Reno, and is currently an MFA candidate at the University of New Hampshire. When she isn’t busy trying to demystify humanity for herself via the written word, Aspen enjoys getting lost in the woods, reading books that give her the shivers, and pestering the snakes down by the river. Some of her current creative inspirations are Joyce Carol Oates, Flannery O’Connor, E. E. Cummings, and J. M. W. Turner.
Kelsey Wiles
Managing Editor
Reading: The Girls Who Grew Big by Leila Mottley
Advice: Find your people. No one ever said that we need to write alone all the time. Find friends and other writers you trust who you can turn to when a paragraph won’t flow, or a line in a poem is off beat. Those are the same people who will be jumping up and down for you when it all comes together.
Kelsey Wiles is a second-year MFA student at the University of New Hampshire with a focus in poetry. While writing an abundance of love poems, Kelsey is also teaching First-Year-Writing at UNH. After getting her undergraduate degree in education at the University of Vermont, she couldn’t be happier to be blending her passions. Beyond the university classroom, Kelsey teaches and takes dance classes across the seacoast. Put her in a pair of dance heels, and she can’t help but pretend to be Beyoncé’s backup dancer.
Hayley Carpenter
Nonfiction Editor
Reading: The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Brontë
Advice: Immersing yourself in nature sounds can seriously focus your mind. I like popping in ye olde Airpods and listening to thunderstorms on YouTube.
Hayley Carpenter is a second-year nonfiction MFA student at the University of New Hampshire. She received her bachelor’s degree in English (creative writing concentration) from Utah Valley University, as well as an associate’s in Humanities and Social Sciences. Hayley is also a TA at UNH and teaches First-Year Writing. This is ideal as she has lofty goals for a future tenured career. She loves 19th century fashion, swan motifs, Wedgwood jasperware, The Sims (but not EA), and quality time with her family.
Gavin Pritchard
Fiction Editor
Reading: The History of Sound by Ben Shattuck
Advice: If you want your work to resonate, write about the things that are pestering you in your daily life. The more passionate you are about a topic, a feeling, an emotion – the more likely it will ‘strike a chord’ with your readers!
Gavin Pritchard is a second year Fiction MFA student at the University of New Hampshire. Before he graduated with a BA in Writing at Ithaca College, Gavin was a published author and journalist. Since then, Gavin has worked as a full-time substitute teacher, an IndieReader tagline writer, a Music Hall literary intern, and even an Upstate New York land surveyor to afford his unhinged literary book collection.
Andrew Kelly
Poetry Editor
Reading: Too Close to Be so Far Away by Jim Rioux
Advice: Using your creative muscles should always be a good time! The work itself can be tricky, of course, but it’s never meant to be ‘work’ in the traditional sense. If you ever find yourself not having fun: go for a walk, watch a movie, see some friends. Return to your project excited and great new things will happen.
Andrew Kelly is a second-year MFA candidate in poetry at the University of New Hampshire, where he also completed his undergrad in 2024. He enjoys reading creative work that kicks the imagination into high-gear and sounds unlike anybody else. He also loves to talk about movies way too much. He’ll even give you an unprompted watch recommendation based on your mood. His poetry can be found in Streetcake Magazine, Eunoia Review, and Wingless Dreamer.
Frances Cooke
Arts Editor
Reading: Vineland by Thomas Pynchon
Advice: Don’t be afraid to get weird! Don’t shy away from describing things as only YOU can see them, or as your weird and wacky characters would see them. You might not need to worry as much as you think about whether you are using your words in a way that “makes sense” or will be familiar to readers.
Second-year UNH Fiction MFA student Frances Cooke is thrilled and honored to be part of this year’s Barnstorm editing team! This is their very first editorial position. They are a life-long learner about the visual arts, a lover of stories, and a big fan of both barns and storms. Frank can often be found reading comics, drawing, making muffins, or looking at the ocean. They look forward to serving this lovely literary community!