Columnist

I’m Stephanie, a columnist for the Tampa Bay Times focusing on Florida life, culture, current events and anything on the spectrum of absurd to mundane. My column is nationally syndicated by Creators Syndicate. I was named best columnist in Florida by the Florida Society of News Editors and have a first place National Headliner Award in addition to honors from the Society for Features Journalism, the Green Eyeshade Awards and more. Before starting my column in 2020, I was a senior editor at the Times and edited an investigation that was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. I’ve written two books, Be Serious, an essay collection published by Creators, and Obitchuary, a novel. My writing has appeared in Chicago Quarterly Review, McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, Boudin, Saw Palm and Bodega. I attended the Yale Writer's Workshop with a focus on fiction and have taught non-fiction craft and leadership skills in and outside the newsroom. I’m a University of South Florida graduate and live in North Pinellas with my family and five-pound Pomeranian, Rocket.