“And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom”—Anais Nin
Janet Pfeffer is a creative non-fiction writer and teaching artist. After breast cancer and depression, she turned to writing to make meaning of her experience. Writing helped her embrace what had happened to her and allowed her to rediscover herself as a creative artist. Her published work has recently appeared in Lumina Journal and has been performed multiple times at the Memorial Sloane Kettering Hospital’s annual staged readings. She is in the process of completing her debut memoir about her healing experience.
A graduate from Cornell University, Janet is pursuing an MFA in creative non-fiction at Sarah Lawrence College. Janet leads writing workshops for cancer patients at Mount Sinai Hospital where she is also an advisory board member. Janet is most interested in how the expressive arts can be used as therapeutic and creative tools to understand our stories and transform our futures.
TAP Work:
“I have been incredibly inspired by the collaborative work of Erin Anderson and Natalie Wilkins at LICHS. They bring much passion and artistry to the classroom and have been exceptionally generous in sharing their teaching philosophies and classroom strategies. In my one-on-one sessions with Jay Howard, I have learned how my ideas for classroom curriculum can be shaped and further expanded. It has been so energizing to dive deeply into the design of teaching materials and the artistry of sequencing.”
Most Memorable TAP Moment:
“From the collaborative work of the audition when each of us from different artistic lens brainstormed and collectively performed our responses to a painting, I was thrilled to be a part of this creative think tank. Through the supportive and imaginative community I realized that all my unique artistry could be applied to my teaching; my passion for this work was newly energized, truly lit on fire. ”
Find out more about Janet here:
- In conversation with Ariel Levy
- Memorial Sloane Kettering Staged Readings YouTube
