Maria Mazziotti Gillan, as professor of English and director of the Creative Writing Program and the Binghamton University Center for Writers, works diligently with her graduate students to get their writing out into the world and read. Some alumnus have even become independent publishers and started small presses. These are alumnus that Gillan would call role models for her students.
“What I always do with my students is encourage them to be what I call ‘good literary citizens,’ that is to not only think of themselves but think, ‘Well, what can I do to help other writers and what can I do to increase people’s interest and love of literature?’” Gillan says.
Maria is famous in the poetry world for her indefatigable energy for helping new poets young and old not only write, but also get read.
She is thrilled whenever she receives a note from an alumnus telling her that he or she has had a poem published, a manuscript accepted or has started a magazine or a press.
"You have to spend a long time toiling in the fields of literature. But what you get back is the satisfaction of knowing that you’ve created something, that you’ve made a change in the world."
“I feel that that’s a success for our program and for Binghamton because they’re going out into the world and representing us, and they’re also going out into the Binghamton community and representing us,” Gillan says.
“What I always do with my students is encourage them to be what I call ‘good literary citizens,’ that is to not only think of themselves but think, ‘Well, what can I do to help other writers and what can I do to increase people’s interest and love of literature?’” Gillan says.
Maria is famous in the poetry world for her indefatigable energy for helping new poets young and old not only write, but also get read.
She is thrilled whenever she receives a note from an alumnus telling her that he or she has had a poem published, a manuscript accepted or has started a magazine or a press.
"You have to spend a long time toiling in the fields of literature. But what you get back is the satisfaction of knowing that you’ve created something, that you’ve made a change in the world."
“I feel that that’s a success for our program and for Binghamton because they’re going out into the world and representing us, and they’re also going out into the Binghamton community and representing us,” Gillan says.
Maria Mazziotti Gillan's most recent books are the poetry and photography collection, Paterson Light and Shadow and the poetry collection, What Blooms in Winter . Her collection of poems along with some of her paintings is The Girls in the Chartreuse Jackets . Maria's official website is MariaGillan.com.
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