Rachel Steele
Hello readers and happy Friday! As with every new semester, we here at Jet Fuel Review see editors come and go. With the 2015 school year upon us, we have a solid group of new members whom you may not even be aware of. They’re all wonderful people, so please help us in welcoming the new additions to our editorial staff for the Fall 2015 semester.
First up is Rachel Steele, a senior at Lewis University who has joined our staff as both Poetry Editor and Assistant Art & Design Editor. Rachel is majoring in English with a focus on the Creative and Professional Writing track, alongside a minor in Chinese. She is also a tutor at Lewis University’s Writing Center. Notably, some of her own writing has been published in the spring 2015 issue of the Windows Fine Arts Magazine. When she has a few moments to herself, she kicks back with a craft beer and has a Netflix bingeing marathon. Here’s our Q&A with Rachel:
Who are you and what is your role in the Jet Fuel Review?
I am Rachel Steele, a senior Creative and Professional Writing major at Lewis University with a minor in Chinese. My roles for JFR include being a Poetry Editor and an Assistant Art and Design Director.
What book might we find on your nightstand right now?
You would find a stack of books on my nightstand! But I guess at the top would be the summer 2012 issue of Paris Review.
If you had the chance to co-write with one author, who would you choose? Why?
I would chose to co-write a novel with Lisa See. I chose See because of the influence Chinese culture has had in her novels. Her writing encourages me to learn Chinese so I can translate my own work in the future.
Describe your perfect reading atmosphere.
My ideal reading atmosphere includes a rainy night, a cup of black coffee, and an incense to burn.
What might your personal library look like?
My personal library would contain an abundance of hardcover and leather bound books. Most of them I would prefer to be from discount bookshops. The smell of a used book has so much character!
If you could “re-make” a poorly written movie that was based on a book, what movie would it be?
If I could remake any poorly written movie based off a book, I would choose Speak, directed by Jessica Sharzer.
Give us a quote from your favorite (or any) book/movie.
My favorite quote comes from William Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night: “If music be the food of love, play on.”
If you were invited to have coffee with any fictional character, who would you most like to meet? Why?
If I could enjoy a cup of coffee with any fictional character, I would choose Marina from The Madonnas of Leningrad by Debra Dean. I would love to discuss the “memory palace” she created for herself in order to remember the Hermitage collection from the State Hermitage Museum.
Share your top five favorite pieces of writing (anything included).
My top five pieces of writing include:
- The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien
- Snow Flower and the Secret Fan by Lisa See
- Blood Confessions by Alisa Libby
- Milkyway Hitchhiking by Sirial
- Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffenegger.
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Thanks for stopping by and getting to know Rachel. Please come back next week to meet another new editor!
