LATEST: An Anthology Release featuring my story "The Price for Fire"
Melissa Coffey is an Australian poet, writer and freelance editor, based in Melbourne. They have a B.A (Hons) in Theatre Studies. A former theatre director, their poetry and fiction is often tinged with darkness, exploring loss, desire, and the eloquence of cracks in the mind. Their work appears in Aurora Journal, Crow’s Quill Magazine, The Ekphrastic Review, Last Girls Club, Exist Otherwise, and Writing in a Woman’s Voice. Forthcoming work in 2024 will feature in Crow & Cross Keys, Front Porch Review and two anthologies (Improbable Press and The Ekphrastic Review). Projects include several chapbooks and a novella. Links to their journal-published work can be found via their profile on Chill Subs. Forever searching for inspiration in a bottomless coffee cup, a few of their favourite things are surrealism, Gothic literature, feminist reimaginings of myth & fairy tale, prose poetry and sipping wine in laneway bars.
Melissa has over 5 years’ experience as a freelance fiction developmental editor. They’ve edited several novels and dozens of short stories.
They’ve been writing on Medium since 2020 and have held prompting and editor roles with several publications. Their publishing emphasis here is writing craft articles, poetry & fiction, and writing about the literary journal landscape to empower other writers to spread their words further. They are a Boosted writer & their how-to on the villanellle was recently chosen as Medium Staff Pick.
Latest Creative Ventures for 2024
To create a home for her obsession with ekphrastic writing, Melissa has recently founded ArtMusing: The Ekphrasis Place on Medium - a publication showcasing poetry, fiction & other creative expresssions inspired by “the image”. If your soul is soothed by contemplating art, and you enjoy creative writing, or are intrigued by the idea of ekphrasis, come ArtMusing with us ... They are also excited to announce the release of Anna Karenina Isn't Dead (via Improbable Press) an anthology re-writing the lives of literary women, featuring their story "The Price for Fire" reimagining the myth of Pandora. The anthology is available digitally and in paperback here and is also available in hardback (in-store and online) through Barnes and Noble. (See Feature Image)
