Courtney Harler
Courtney Harler
Courtney Harler is a queer multigenre writer/editor/educator/podcaster currently based in Las Vegas, Nevada. She holds an MA (2013) in English (Literature) from Eastern Washington University and an MFA (2017) in Creative Writing (Fiction) from University of Nevada, Reno at Lake Tahoe. She’s an alumnus and/or fellowship recipient of Key West Literary Seminar (2023), Napa Valley Writers’ Conference (2019 & 2021), Community of Writers (2018), Bread Loaf Writers’ Conferences in both Sicily (2017) and Vermont (2016), Mont Blanc Writers’ Workshop (2016), and Writing By Writers Workshops (2015 & 2018). As a reader and writer, she’s worked for various publications such as The Vignette Review (Illinois), Chicago Literati (Illinois), Funicular Magazine (Canada), Reflex Fiction (United Kingdom), The Masters Review (Oregon), and the Katherine Anne Porter Prize (Texas). As an instructor of writing, she’s worked for Eastern Washington University, College of Southern Nevada, Project Write Now, and Tulsa Glitterary Conference. She’s served as a panelist for Boise’s Storyfort, Spokane’s Get Lit! Festival, and Nimrod’s Conference for Readers and Writers. She’s host of the literary podcast, PWN’s Debut Review. Currently she serves as editor in chief of CRAFT Literary Magazine and editorial director for Discover New Art. Her creative work has been featured around the world in multiple genres—learn more at harlerliterary.llc. Find her on Instagram @CourtneyHarler.
What excites you about writing? How has it affected your life?
I love words, reading and writing and researching and exploring them. I fell in love with words as as child and became a voracious reader. Words on pages always enthralled me—they brought comfort, companionship, and eventually, inspiration. I suspected I wanted to be a writer in my teens, but I wasn’t able to realize that “dream” until my late thirties. The delay had to do with confidence—I needed to learn to believe in my own words, and life, both the good and the bad parts of it, taught me to believe in my own words. It’s never too late.
What mindset does a writer need to continue to grow and learn?
To paraphrase my former mentor, Alan Heathcock, a writer needs to believe wholeheartedly in their own originality. Not in the sense that every creative idea must be entirely “original,” but rather that the words must “originate” from the writer. Every writer has their own particular story to tell, one that no one else in the world can write. Writers need to embrace whatever it is that makes them uniquely themselves, then follow that confidence and vision into the work just waiting to be written by them.
What makes a good writing mentor?
A good writing mentor, first and foremost, should seek to honor the writing student’s individuated style, voice, content, and intent. A good mentor, much like a good editor, will fully immerse themself into the student’s intended vision for the work, so that mentor and student may strive toward that paramount goal in tandem. The unique and vital voice of the writing student on the page should be respected, encouraged, uplifted, and protected by the writing mentor.
What is your style of feedback?
My feedback style is exceedingly thorough, with deep attention to detail. I consider all possible facets of the written work at hand—from word to line to paragraph to overall conceptualization and chosen structure. I also consider how all of these elements coalesce in the piece. Ultimately, I focus on what the writer is trying to achieve and how I can best help them get further down that road to revision, completion, submission, and publication.