USU alumna Stacie Denetsosie has published a new book The Missing Morningstar and Other Stories with Torrey House Press. Stacie is a citizen of the Navajo Nation her clans are Todích'íí'nii (Bitterwater Clan), born for Naakaii (Mexican Clan). She is from Kayenta, Arizona, but currently resides in Northern Utah. She is a recipient of the UCROSS Native American Fellowship. Stacie graduated with her MFA in Fiction from the Institute of American Indian Arts in 2021. Her work has appeared in Yellow Medicine Review, Phoebe Magazine, and Cut Bank. Her debut story collection, The Missing Morningstar and Other Stories, received a Kirkus Star.

“I majored in English with a Creative Writing Emphasis at the tender age of 17,” says Stacie. “As a Navajo woman, I was raised by stories through the oral storytelling tradition. Many of the stories I heard were told in the dim kitchen of a trailer on the Navajo Reservation. Transferring my understanding of stories to my Western education as a first-generation student was challenging; however, my fiction professor, Charles Waugh, was great at dissecting stories into distinct elements. Each of my creative writing classes taught me something different, whether that be how to give/take critique or blend genres to craft impactful stories. All my USU professors were generally great and let me ask fundamental questions about their topics during office hours. Often, my professors were those who pushed me to submit my work and apply for fellowships. I developed the confidence I needed at USU to embark into the publishing world.”

Stacie goes on to note: “A piece of advice I’d have for students pursuing Creative Writing is to apply/submit to all opportunities, because you never know what will stick. Many of my publications and fellowships were from the result of me setting my ego aside and just seeing where my work would land. The worst an editor can tell you is no. My last piece of advice is that as you progress through your life and into whatever career you land, continue to choose writing. Find the self-care in it and guard that time. There’s a lot that can compete for your attention outside of your schooling and if you don’t prioritize it, you’ll lose that energy for your novel. Make writing a sacred time for you.”

Stacie will be reading at Helicon West on Thursday, November 9, 2023 at 7 p.m.