Writer
&
Educator
WHO I AM
My most meaningful professional experiences have always involved helping people — especially youth — learn new skills and be heard. I like to write about people who grew up mixed race (like me), magic, the people and creatures who make magic thrilling, how to dismantle systems of oppression, and home-cooked meals. The best stories combine all of these things.
CONTACT
cnboarini@gmail.com
(612) 440 - 6094
@cristetacreates
SPECIALITIES
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As a literacy educator, I’ve often heard from my students that they're looking for 3 specific things: stories with characters that look and act like them, stories that transport them to fantastic places, and writing as cinematic as the superhero and anime movies that they adore. My writing invites readers to imagine new possibilities–both magical and tangible–that push us to grow and relate in exciting ways.
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Four years as a journalistic editor. Six print anthologies of youth writing published annually. Thousands of hours in shared Google Docs collaborating and finding the right words. If you need a reliable partner for constructive edits, I can turnaround on deadline and give you quality feedback on your manuscript, grant proposal, commencement speech, cover letter, and so much more.
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I’ve taught writing techniques to retirees and kindergartners, taught in high school classrooms and Zoom professional development. My curriculum always features diverse model texts; current, engaging topics; and lots of opportunities to write, interact, and apply learning. Highlights include: smashing the college essay with story, speculative fiction to take back your power, STEAM environmental justice poetry, fantasy worldbuilding… the list goes on and on.
Teaching a college essay writing workshop with ThreeSixty Journalism at the University of St. Thomas. August 2024.
Moderating a panel discussion about BIPOC youth voices in journalism with guests Mukhtar Ibrahim, Faaya Adem and Khayaal Desai-Hunt. November 2022.
SPEAKING EVENTS
8/28
Writers of Color & Indigenous Writers Final Reading
The Loft Literary Center
Minneapolis
10/7
Story Stroll for
Something You Should Know About Us
Midtown Farmers’ Market
Minneapolis
Awards & Recognitions
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For reporting on a sexual assault case at Shattuck St. Mary's, a Faribault, Minn., private school. Fairbault Daily News, 2014.
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For government reporting on the Rice County Board of Commissioners, Faribault Daily News, 2014.
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Infant Clothing Knitting, 2022.
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Awarded 2024. The Loft offers five-month mentorships to ten to twelve emerging/early-career Minnesota Indigenous writers and writers of color who are interested in creating children’s and/or young adult (CYA) books. The group is mentored by diverse published authors of books for children and young readers.
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BIPOC Emerging Artist Award Honorable Mention, Spring 202