Two recent PhD graduates from UT Dallas’ School of Arts and Humanities recently published separate short story collections.
Brian DiNuzzo, PhD’19, a writer and educator based in Allentown, New Jersey, recently published a collection of short stories, called “Hoaxes and Other Stories.” The characters populating DiNuzzo’s debut short story collection may be eccentrics, but at their core they are struggling to get through life, dealing with unmanageable bosses and tedious jobs, and trying to maintain their interpersonal and romantic relationships. His short stories have won several awards and have appeared in publications such as Four Chambers, Qwerty, and Echo Ink Review. He has also worked in higher education as a student support manager and professor for over 15 years.
Lizbette Ocasio-Russe’s (PhD’21) new book, “Loverbar,” also is a short story collection. The stories follow a group of queer Puerto Rican characters as they navigate post-Hurricane María life on the island. The characters fight to improve the island’s sociopolitical hellscape while dealing with personal problems such as addiction, toxic family, and transphobic violence. While earning her PhD from UT Dallas, Ocasio-Russe also worked as a rhetoric and creative writing instructor of record and served as both the translation and creative nonfiction editor. She will be joining the faculty of Texas A&M Corpus Christi this fall as a tenure track Assistant Professor of English.