JANET FLORA
I don’t choose from a collection of visual media, a palette of colors or an arrangement of musical notes. But it is with the right words strung together, you may hear the melody of syllables, which create sentences that leave an impression and resonates with my readers.
WORDS OF INSPIRATION
JOAN
DIDION
“I write entirely to find out what I’m thinking, what I’m looking at, what I see and what it means. What I want and what I fear.”
About The Writer
Janet Flora is an award-winning writer, whose short fiction and personal essays appear in many prestigious literary journals. She has also written feature stories for several monthly and weekly publications. As part of Gotham Writers’ Workshop faculty, she regularly teaches live, zoom and online classes. In September 2024 she participated in A Public Space Writers’ Retreat in Tivoli, New York, during The Kaatsbaan Festival. She studied with Jo Ann Beard author of the essay collection Boys of My Youth.
In addition, she is the recipient of The Willow Review award for her essay “The Goodbye Ceremony.” Other creative nonfiction has appeared in The Yalobusha Review, Forge, The Sanskrit Literary Arts Magazine and others.
The Hawaii Pacific Review solicited her short fiction “It’s Not What You Think.” Other fiction has appeared in The New Orleans Review, The Portland Review, NDQ, The Hurricane Review, and other journals. She holds an MFA in writing from the New School, and lives in New York City. Recently she completed her first novel and is presently working on a collection of linked essays.
Teaching Endorsements & Recommendations
“Janet Flora is the fine chisel that carves through my writer’s block, revealing the shape and meaning hidden within. When words feel just out of reach, she guides me toward them with insight and patience. Her advice is not just helpful—it’s transformative. She has a gift for showing me how to shape my ideas, structure my thoughts, and present them in a way that is both engaging and true to my voice. With Janet’s guidance, my writing doesn’t just improve; it becomes exactly what it was meant to be.”
Patty Stegman, LCSW
Clinical Instructor, NYU School of Medicine
Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist
“Janet Flora has mentored my writing for several years. During that time, we have explored the development of ideas and themes, sentence structure, and the use and choice of words, and I have had fun in doing so. I have gained in confidence in my writing and have expanded my expressiveness. With her help I have worked to shape my personal essays into a collection that I intend to publish, with her encouragement. I recommend that aspiring story tellers and essayists work with Janet.”