We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Emily Holman a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Emily, appreciate you joining us today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

I learned writing from reading a lot, starting when I was really little and I first learned the basics of reading. I would tell stories that I made up in my head before I could even write my own name, asking adults around me to write the stories down for me if I felt that excited about it.
I think that, even if I’d wanted to, there’s not much that I could have done to speed up the writing process besides writing more than I already did. I started writing down full stories myself in second grade, when I was around seven or so, and I never stopped from there. A lot of my early writing in high school was written with a friend, and/or as fanfiction, because I loved the media I loved, and if I couldn’t have more from them, I would make more myself. High school is also when I decided to begin writing my first novel, whose plot and characters I hold dearly close to my heart.
The most essential skill a writer has if they want to improve their writing is to practice writing, and to read more of what you want to write.
I think that the limits of high school/k-12 school for me was a lack of creative writing/creativity in general, and I think that’s why I started to become a much better writer throughout my time in college, then in graduate school, both of which I got degrees in Literature and Creative Writing from.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I got into writing because of my lifelong passion for reading and writing and storytelling, and I became published once I started to submit more and more projects to different literary magazines. I am a queer and autistic writer, editor, and poet with a free magical realism chapbook out called “Dreamscapes of the Metaphysical” through 318 Journal and I am working on my debut novel, a queer/neurodivergent new adult horror fantasy novel. I also have over 50 short stories and poems published as parts of collections and magazine issues. I am an editor for In Her Space Journal, The Infinite Blues Review, Body Fluids Magazine, and The Savior Revue, and I work for Prose Perfect Literary Services as a manuscript editor. I am not only passionate about my own work, but about helping other writers succeed in their dreams as well, and that sets me up to be the number one fan of anyone who chooses me to edit for them.

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

Yes, absolutely! I wish I knew what a booming literary magazine and journal community there is online, and I also wish I knew about youth-based literary magazines when I was in high school, because I believe that would have encouraged me in my writing process and strengthened my writing style as a whole.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

For me, it’s connecting with other people, whether they are other writers, poets, creatives, readers, or just people that can relate to the things I write and create. Growing up, it was hard for me to make friends, and when I was feeling alone, books were always there for me, and I want to make people feel as though they are not alone in this world with the things I write.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @maximumsparrow
• Linkedin: https://linktr.ee/maximumsparrow?utm_source=linktree_profile_share&ltsid=24099081-d62a-4dc6-9346-42548f84730d