Join The Cypress Dome Editorial Staff

Students interested in joining the editorial staff in future years should become an active member of The Cypress Dome Society and contact the director, Kianna Greene (kianna.greene@ucf.edu). Being on the editorial staff requires a two-semester commitment and permissions-only enrollment in CRW 3950: Cypress Dome Editorship. Applications will open in the Spring semester prior to when the editorship will begin. The application requires a reference from a UCF professor.

Alumni Testimonials

“My time spent in The Cypress Dome not only provided an enriching and collaborative environment for the incredible feat of launching a literary magazine, but it also gave me valuable insight as to the complexity of the submission process from an administrative perspective.”

–Gian Arellano, Playwright of MILK and The Last Bear

“The Cypress Dome Society has been an invaluable resource to me on my writing life journey. It helped me see the world of writing beyond the undergraduate degree and gave me the skills I needed to make writing and editing a part of my professional career.”
–Madison Bernath, Solutions Development Manager at Alaka´ina Foundation Family of Companies

“The Cypress Dome published my first poem, and in the next issue, another poem won first place in the annual contest. I still remember that flash of joy and astonishment, of unbelievable luck that others could value my work and publish it. I felt welcomed into the world of writing and writers in a very tangible way.”
—Kelle Groom, author of three volumes of poetry — Five Kingdoms, Luckily, and Underwater City — and the memoir I Wore the Ocean in the Shape of a Girl, named a Library Journal Best Memoir of 2011, a New York Times Book Review Editor’s Choice, and a Barnes & Noble Great New Writers selection.

“My experiences as an editor of The Cypress Dome have been incredibly influential– not only in giving me the know-how to establish and advise a literary magazine for my students, but also in developing the interpersonal skills necessary to function in the professional world. Real world experiences like this are vital to a university cultivating well-rounded graduates.”
–Carly Gates, high school teacher, Palm Beach County, Florida

“The cypress dome was an awesome natural feature near UCF’s campus in the early 90s. It’s probably even more awesome now, but The Cypress Dome was an excellent chance to work with Don Stap and my fellow creative writers in the early 90s, too. The Cypress Dome helped us highlight UCF’s writers’ natural talents, as I learned lay-out skills and as we showcased all the best that the campus’s creative chroniclers had to offer.”
–Adam Sonstegard, Professor of English, Cleveland State University

Among our illustrious alumni are the following writers, with their most recent publication listed. Many of them published in The Cypress Dome and many also served as editors.

Jaroslav Kalfar  Spaceman of Bohemia
Nathan Holic, Bright Lights, Medium-Sized City
Kandi Steiner, author of scores of best-selling romance novels

Julie Iromuanya, A Season of Light
Jennifer Torres Sanchez, YA author
Jen Glantz, Bridesmaid for Hire

Dana Kantrowicz, writer and editor

Kelle Groome, How To Live: A Memoir in Essays
Dan Lopez, The Show House, A Novel

Edgar Gomez, Alligator Tears
Lindsay Hunter, Hot Springs Drive

Lu Chekowsky, Don’t Buy What I’m Selling

Francesca Battitstelli, Christian singer/ songwriter