Karelia has taught writing for fifteen years, including ten years as tenured faculty at Linn-Benton Community College in Oregon. She loves watching her students find their voices. She believes in the power of writing to transform lives. She writes every day and encourages her students to do the same. Her mantra as a teacher and a writer comes from Mary Oliver who said, “Writing is like going on a date. Nothing happens if you don’t show up.” Karelia has a BA in comparative lit