McKenzie Lynn Tozan

McKenzie Lynn Tozan (she/her/hers) lives and writes in Europe with her family (originally from the Midwest). In addition to being the Editor-in-Chief of Lit Shark Magazine and the Banned Book Review, she is a novelist, poet, and book reviewer. She received her MFA in Poetry from Western Michigan University and her BA in English/BS in Education from Indiana University South Bend, where she began her work in publishing. Her poems have appeared in Rogue Agent, Whale Road Review, Young Ravens Review, The Birds We Piled Loosely, and Encore Magazine, among others; and her book reviews and essays have appeared in The Rumpus, Green Mountains Review, Memoir Mixtapes, The Life Collective, Her Journal, Motherly, and more. When not writing, she enjoys reading, appreciating nature, and spending time with her husband and three children.
Join the Lit Shark Team

Join the Lit Shark Team

Helloooooo, readers, writers, and shark fans! Welcome or Welcome BACK to Lit Shark Magazine! I'm so grateful you're interested in writing for us and/or potentially joining our team. We're gradually growing our team with Assistant Editors and other positions, so if...

Submit to the Inaugural Issue of Lit Pup Magazine!

Submit to the Inaugural Issue of Lit Pup Magazine!

Helloooooo, readers, writers, and shark fans! Welcome or Welcome BACK to Lit PUP Magazine and the Lit Shark Community! I'm so grateful you're interested in submitting. We're actively looking for submissions for the inaugural issue of Lit Pup Magazine, which will be BY...

Welcome to Our First Friday Feed of 2024!

Welcome to Our First Friday Feed of 2024!

Happy Friday, readers, writers, and shark fans! And welcome back to the Friday Feed! I'm so excited to get this series back up and running. If you're interested in a more in-depth version of the Friday Feed each week, including writing/submission tips,...

Last Chance to Submit for 2023!

Last Chance to Submit for 2023!

The day is here! If you haven't submitted for December's Poem of the Month contest of Issue 4 of Lit Shark Magazine, the final issue of our inaugural year, this is your last chance! Because we're reminding you so late in the date on December 4, we WILL consider your...

Creative Highlight: “Listing”

Creative Highlight: “Listing”

Happy Wednesday, readers, writers, and shark fans! In response to our "We're Making a List" writing prompt, Julie A. Dickson wrote this wonderful poem, "Listing," which also went on to appear in Issue 1 of Lit Shark Magazine. Here is Julie's poem, recreated as a...

Good News, Notebooks, & This Week’s Friday Feed

Good News, Notebooks, & This Week’s Friday Feed

Hi, readers, writers, and shark fans! Happy Friday! Our Editor-in-Chief is pretty sick, so we're going to keep this one short, sweet, and to the point. Here's what to expect: Paperback Editions Available of All of Our Magazine Issues Poem of the Month Broadside Series...

Monday Munchies (AKA: A Belated Friday Feed!)

Monday Munchies (AKA: A Belated Friday Feed!)

Happy Monday, readers, writers, and shark fans! And welcome to last week's belated Friday Feed! There were no technical difficulties this week, thank goodness, but the youngest in our little Shiver team DID have a third birthday! Our original team was made up of...

Celebrate SHARK WEEK With Us & Submit to Issue 2!!

Celebrate SHARK WEEK With Us & Submit to Issue 2!!

Happy Tuesday, readers, writers, and shark fans! In case you missed it, this week is SHARK WEEK, and it's already thoroughly underway, and dare we say, "jawsome." Keep reading for where and how to watch (if you have some catching up to do, no judgment here!), as well...

Lit Shark Issue #1 Out Now!

Lit Shark Issue #1 Out Now!

Happy Saturday, readers, writers, and shark fans, and happy 1st of July! Today is an incredibly special day in the Lit Shark Community, because Issue 1 is finally available! After a variety of hang-ups and setbacks, we're so excited to share Issue 1, complete with a...

Writing Prompt: The Missing Piece

Writing Prompt: The Missing Piece

Happy Wednesday, writers and shark fans! I hope your week is everything you’ve hoped for. In the meantime, it’s Writing Prompt Wednesday! Every Wednesday going forward, we will share a writing prompt, as well as the Editor-in-Chief’s (EIC’s) response to the prompt and...

Lit Pup Seeking Submissions for Issue #1!

Lit Pup Seeking Submissions for Issue #1!

Hi to our younger readers, writers, artists, shark lovers---and your parents/guardians/family/mentors! Thank you so much for supporting Lit Pup by being here. We're so happy you're here and are interested in working with us in this early part of your creative,...

Lit Shark Seeking Submissions for Issue #1!

Lit Shark Seeking Submissions for Issue #1!

Hi readers, writers, and shark lovers! Thank you so much for supporting Lit Shark. We're so happy to hear that you're potentially interested in sharing your work with us and contributing to this growing, shiver community. Please read below for details about how to...

The Bottom: An Interview with Betsy Andrews

The Bottom: An Interview with Betsy Andrews

  Betsy Andrews' book-length poem, The Bottom, was published by 42 Miles Press in 2014 and received the 2013 42 Miles Poetry Prize. Sections of this poem appeared in such places as Kadar Koli, BoogCity, Stone Canoe, and The Laurel Review, as well as Poets for...

Interrobang: An Interview with Jessica Piazza

Interrobang: An Interview with Jessica Piazza

  Jessica Piazza's first full-length collection, Interrobang, was published by Red Hen Press in September 2013 and was the recipient of the AROHO 2011 To the Lighthouse Poetry Prize and the 2013 Balcones Poetry Prize. Poems in this collection appeared in such...

Creative Highlight: “Luminous Descent”

Creative Highlight: “Luminous Descent”

Welcome to our Creative Highlight of the week! This week, we are featuring this painting, "Luminous Descent" by Ascending-Storm on DeviantArt. In the future, we will select short writing submissions and artwork that have been submitted to Lit Shark Magazine and Lit...

Writing Prompt: On a Personal Level

Writing Prompt: On a Personal Level

Happy Friday, writers and shark fans! I hope your week is everything you’ve hoped for. In the meantime, it’s Writing Prompt Friday! Every Friday, we will share a writing prompt, as well as the Editor-in-Chief’s (EIC’s) response to the prompt and some of her thoughts...

Writing Prompt: A Sleeping Octopus

Writing Prompt: A Sleeping Octopus

Happy Friday, writers and shark fans! Every Friday, LIT SHARK will share a writing prompt you can use to submit work, due the following Monday, for a creative feature on the site! Happy Writing! #writingprompt #writinginspiration #litshark #litpup #shivercollective #amwriting #submissions #submit #slushpile #literarymagazine #litmag