Sarah Mohler
Creative Nonfiction | Kent State University | Class of 2020
“From the Mongolian steppe to a Colorado riding trail to the childhood memory of trying to draw a horse’s eyes, Sarah Mohler’s collection of linked essays, The Bones of The Horse, canters through its bold variations with a personal voice of authority. Full of wit, rich with travel and adventure, leavened with research, and delivered with precision and style, this manuscript reflects the experience of anyone with a passion for any subject, wanting to know and feel everything, then wanting to seek more.”
About Sarah
Sarah Mohler is a ’20 Creative Writing graduate student in Creative Nonfiction in the NEOMFA program through Kent State University, where she has taught College Writing and Intro to Creative Writing. Her first (and ill-conceived) short story graced a tattered notebook when she was 7 years old and, thankfully, her writing has improved substantially since then. While she enjoys writing both nonfiction and speculative fiction, her passion is in nonfiction; her master’s thesis, Bones of the Horse, is a collection of braided essays that explore man’s relationship with horses as well as her own evolution as a horseperson. Curiosity, quirkiness, and wanderlust are her constant companions. She holds bachelor’s degrees in English and Equine Facility Management from Lake Erie College.
SARAH’S FAST FACTS
Your advice to an incoming MFA student?
Do not make excuses for why you are not doing the things you ought. Take advantage of the resources offered by your college and your program. Go to as many events as you can. Park your procrastination bicycle deep in an obscure wooded area somewhere and walk away from it. And don’t be afraid to ask for help, especially if you are also a TA.
What do you secretly hope someone will bring to a potluck?
Some iteration of homemade cheesecake or a sweet potato something-or-other. I WILL EAT ALL OF THE CHEESECAKES AND ALL OF THE SWEET POTATOES PLEASE AND THANK YOU.
Your favorite place to write while in the NEOMFA?
I wish I had a magical answer to this, like “The lonesome but wind-sheltered oak tree on the western side of the Kent State campus.” The truth is, I wrote a lot of my thesis at my dining room table (the chair on the left by the picture window), because the lighting is wonderfully adjustable, I could easily attempt good posture, and there’s plenty of room for sprawling papers and books and snacks within arm’s reach.
© 2021 NEOMFA
English Department
Cleveland State University
2121 Euclid Ave., RT 1815
Cleveland, Ohio 44115