A writer based in Detroit, Michigan, I've received my BA in English Honors ('20) and MA in Creative Writing ('22) from Wayne State University. I'm currently an MFA candidate in poetry at The Ohio State University where I expect to graduate in April 2025. I'm a Graduate Teaching Associate at Ohio State and I've been the instructor of record for English 1110: First Year English Composition, English 2266: Intro to Poetry Writing, and English 3662: Intro to Literary Publishing. I also work for OSU's The Journal as Co-Poetry Editor.
Recently, I worked as an Assistant Writer in Residence with InsideOut Literary Arts, alternating between assisting and leading creative writing workshops for students in Detroit Public Schools. I also worked as a tour guide on the Detroit River, which inspires much of my creative work. I consider myself an amateur photographer and enjoy taking pictures of nature and the Detroit skyline. All the photos on this website, except any of myself, have been taken by me!
"Alexandra Smereka is as fine a poet as I've ever heard stand and deliver original work, like hearing the Irish diva Paula Meehan read about her father imagined as a statue of St. Francis for the first time."-Thomas Lynch
"I will never forget the last line of the song "Nocturne for the Breathless": 'Fear crowds the lungs, takes all the oxygen for itself. Open your wings and breathe.' Unforgettable." -Kurt Peterson, Broadway Producer, Performer, and Teacher
