We are a collective of writers that provide community & education to New Orleans writers at all stages of their journey.

  • A place to write—open, accepting, and full of inspiration.

  • Meet other local writers and form lasting connections.

  • A platform for peer-to-peer learning, support, and resource-sharing.

New Orleans is a city of great art and creativity, but we’ve found that it’s hard to find a writing community. Third Lantern Lit is all about finding a space for writers to gather, create, and support each other.

We aim to lower the barrier to entry to the writing community by connecting New Orleans writers to others with a shared passion so that we can learn, write, and grow together. With events geared toward writers at every step of their journey, from the beginner to the seasoned professional, we support and fortify our local literary community through free and low-cost peer-to-peer learning.

The Team

C. P. Etienne

PRESIDENT

Chanèl Etienne (she/her) earned her MFA from the University of New Orleans. She won first place in the graduate category of the Gulf Coast Association of Creative Writing Teachers’ student competition in 2020 and was nominated for the AWP Intro Journals Project the following year. She received her bachelor’s degree from Washington University in St. Louis, where she studied English Language and Literature.

Maggie Sheffer

VICE-PRESIDENT

Marguerite (Maggie) Sheffer (she/her) is an educator and writer of (mostly) speculative fiction. Her writing has received recognition from GlimmerTrain’s Short Story Award for New Writers, and appears in The Pinch and Cast of Wonders. Currently, Maggie is an MFA Candidate at the Randolph College Low-Residency Program. She lives in the Irish Channel with her husband and two geriatric dogs. Maggie rarely tweets as @mlensheffer.

Danny Cherry, Jr.

TREASURER

By day, Danny Cherry, Jr. is a Customer Service Representative and caffeine-addled office-drone, but by night, he writes political and personal essays, op-eds, novels, and short stories. He’s written for Buzzfeed News, The Daily Beast, Truly*Adventurous, Transformation Magazine, X- ray Lit Mag, Fiyah Lit Mag, Ploughshares, Antigravity Magazine, Apex Magazine, as well as a few dozen blog posts on Medium.com. He also has a story forthcoming in Hexagon Magazine. Find him on Twitter @Deecherrywriter.

Daphne Armbruster

MARKETING MANAGER / BOARD

Daphne (she/her) is a writer and actress born and raised in New Orleans. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in Theatre and her Bachelor of Science in Marketing at UNO. You’ll often spot her in a coffee shop working on her novel or in front of the camera on a film set. Sometimes you might even find her after midnight performing with The Well Hung Speakers at the Prytania. Hang out with her on Instagram @dapheyduck.

Rachel Dunphy

BOARD MEMBER

Rachel Dunphy is a producer of live events and a writer of fiction and non-fiction. Her works have been published in New York Magazine and Literary Hub. She serves as the Narrative Director at Escape My Room, an internationally award-winning immersive entertainment company. In 2022, she co-created Detective Game Show, a comedy show in which contestants solved original mysteries.

Maggie Sheffer

Chanèl Etienne

Greta Hayer

The Founders