Instructor Biography: 
Author of The Town on Blighted Sea, a Year’s Best Science Fiction pick, and Indigo Springs, a Sunburst Award winner. They have published short fiction in Isaac Asimov’s Science Fiction Magazine, SciFi.Com, and Realms of Fantasy.
Instructor Statement:
Writing can be a quest for balance. Our unfettered imaginations clash with the discipline of craft. The joy of playing with language butts up against our need to communicate ideas to readers with absolute clarity. We take our wildest, most intimate dreams and sculpt them into prose so we can share the ore of our inner selves with readers we will never meet. A key element in balancing these contradictions lies in developing your critical sense of narrative, learning to examine stories with fierce but honest passion, identifying their strengths and flaws and seeking ways to polish simply competent manuscripts into brilliant works of fiction. I help you unleash your imagination, carving unique tales out of raw ideas, then refining them into finished works that speak eloquently for themselves.
Our Students Say it Best!
“Alyx is an excellent instructor. She provides excellent feedback, maintains communication with the class, and answers questions promptly. I would take a course with her again.” —Writers’ Program student
“The instructor was very generous with her time and attention, skillfully critiquing each student each week and responding quickly to all questions and comments brought up on the discussion boards. This may be the first UCLA Extension class I have attended in which the whole class kept participating and contributing all the way to the end; I ascribe that to the positive, professional, and encouraging atmosphere and structure the instructor built. Our weekly writing and critiquing was informed by lectures and questions on craft elements. She also proctored interesting discussions about the writing life and professionalism and provided links where other professional writers discuss the same or related topics.” —Writers’ Program student
“Alyx is kind, thoughtful, and full of wisdom about how to write and get your writing into the public sphere. She is also a top notch facilitator, and encouraged everyone in the class to probe more deeply during open ended discussion. She kept every student engaged in the course material and there was a never a moment where any one of us veered too far off course. She gave very valuable feedback that was both gentle and honest. I would love to have her as an instructor again.” —Writers’ Program student