Nicole Wilson lives east of Cleveland in Chardon, Ohio. She currently balances a multitude of workloads: assisting with private events at an Arboretum; teaching English to international clients whose companies have relocated them to the area; subbing at county libraries; and, picking up the occasional freelance assignment. She is the author of Amazing Face (Phantom Limb Press, 2013) and Supper & Repair Kit (Lettered Streets Press, 2014).

After graduating from the Poetry MFA program in 2008, Nicole stayed at Columbia. She taught and was the Assistant Programs Director of Poetry and Literature and then the Associate Director of Creative Writing Programs until May 2013 when she moved to Ohio. The first semester after moving, she was an adjunct at multiple colleges and decided it wasn’t for her.

When asked what she remembers most about Columbia College Chicago, she responds:

“I could write a dissertation on the memories I have from CCC and the ways in which the Program has enriched my life, particularly in how it lead me to find myself as a poet. The many vivid memories I have are as a result of working with very special faculty and colleagues and are tied to the vibrant and rare qualities the program has to offer: innovation; production; exposure; development; creative and critical challenges; critique; mentorship; community.”

Nicole says that the program at Columbia College Chicago helped connect her to the poetry world, and through that process her writing became actual, lived, and valid. She offers advice to current MFA students, and encourages the endurance and appreciation of difficulty and offers the sentiment that difficulty is also a place of discovery.