The Rush

The Rush is a literary magazine in the Creative Writing MFA graduate program at Mount Saint Mary's University, Los Angeles. It is dedicated to providing a platform to a diverse body of writers and photographers on a transcontinental level, from emerging to established.

 The Rush encourages and welcomes aesthetic risks to take our audience to a multitude of places and people. The magazine strives for inclusivity and seeks writers who thrive off artistic expression through poetry, fiction & non-fiction, and photography & narrative. Literary citizenship is our ultimate goal as we amplify and uplift diverse writers and their words. We aim to support all writers in spirit and practice and maintain a strong community that supports the artist and their work. For submission guidelines, Click here.

Poetry  Fiction/Non-Fiction Photo/Narrative

Sonnets Micro/Flash Fiction Vignettes & Photo

Blank Verse Social Justice Essays Photo Story

“The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free

that your very existence is an act of rebellion.” Albert Camus

Meet the Team


  • Editor

    Juana has been an editor and editorial advisor for The Rush since 2020. She previously edited two magazines, The Rio Grande Review (2008), and Revista de Literatura Mexicana Contemporanea (2006-2008).

  • Juana Moriel-Payne holds a PhD in Borderlands History. Her latest research has culminated in a book, Drama Under the Skin: Baroque Catholic Ritual in Northern New Spain, by Texas Tech University Press.

    She is an Assistant professor at Mount Saint Mary’s University- Los Angeles, teaching history and creative writing.

  • Juana has published two novels: Trigueña (2012-historical novel), and La caza del venado (2016). She also writes poetry that has been published in various magazines. Currently, she is writing a novella and a memoir.

  • WebpageMoriel-Payne


  • Editor

    Tommy has been editor at the Rush since 2024. He worked as an Editorial Assistant at the Gulf Coast Magazine (2000-2001).

  • Tommy Nguyen is an educator of mathematics in Torrance, California.

  • Tommy Nguyen is working on his MFA at Mount Saint Mary’s University in Los Angeles and writes poetry, short stories, and is currently working on his first novel.

  • Tommy Nguyen works as a commercial photographer around Southern California and has published his work in multiple magazines.

    His work can be found here:

    Website: phototommy.com

    Instagram: @phototommy5