Q+ A with Annie Quigley

Annie Quigley graduated from GUS in 2006. From GUS, she went on to The Governor’s Academy, and graduated from New York University with a B.S. in Media, Culture, and Communication with a minor in Creative Writing. She currently resides just outside of Portland, ME, and is the Editor-in-Chief of Remodelista. Annie was recently recognized as one of 50 Best New Poets 2023.

when did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

I’ve wanted to be a writer for as long as I can remember. As a kid I carried around a notebook quite literally everywhere I went. Writing essays in school, including at GUS, gave me a taste of the satisfaction of editing too. I’ve sort of tumbled into the world of writing about design, but I’ve always been interested in the ways that the spaces we live in shape us (and vice versa). I also write poetry and am working on my first manuscript, which I’m hopeful will find its way into the world at some point. 

What are some of your favorite books? (Or works of poetry!) What are you reading now?

Poets I love and read again and again are Angel Nafis, who I was lucky to study with for a couple of years; Kaveh Akbar, Ross Gay; and Sharon Olds, always and forever. I go to the library and get a big stack of books each week, though I most often end up reading something dark and twisty, like mysteries by Irish writer Tana French.

What were some of your most meaningful GUS experiences?

The teachers I had—Mrs. Brackett, Ms. Mallette, Ms. Cushing, Mrs. Schwenkmeyer, Señora Kelley—and the way art and creativity were threaded through each subject. Our eighth grade trip to Honduras was a formative experience for me. What an incredible gift to spend a week there, practicing Spanish beyond the classroom and getting to know the people who live and work at NPH.

How Did GUS prepare you for what you’re doing now?

GUS really encouraged self-expression and creativity in all things—and my time there gave me confidence to be myself. I was pretty reserved as a new kid, but when we did Superlatives in the last weeks of eighth grade and I was dubbed “most quietly loud,” I felt so seen and validated for who I was. That celebration of individualism has stayed with me.

Any words of advice for current gus students?

Don’t hold back on being yourself: There’s a place for you. And stay in touch with your classmates once you graduate. (Hi, class of 2006; time for a reunion?)

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