Natalie Schriefer, MFA (@schriefern1) is a bi/demi freelance writer. She also works as an academic editor, prepping journal articles and manuscripts for submission (which means she knows way too much about APA 7).

When she isn’t re-formatting citations, Schriefer writes about pop culture, sexuality, and coming of age. Much of that work has focused on video games: She’s written about queerness in the 2017 game The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and has also analyzed queer relationships across the larger Harvest Moon/Story of Seasons series. Recently she’s been researching parasocial romantic relationships, which occur when people develop romantic feelings for fictional characters or celebrities. It’s probably not surprising that Schriefer loves asking people about their fictional crushes—and she’s happy to share that hers is Lt. Riza Hawkeye from Fullmetal Alchemist.

Schriefer received her MFA from Southern Connecticut State University. Since then, she’s written for CNN Opinion, Insider, HuffPost, Wired, NBC News Think, and Inside Higher Ed, among others. She also writes poetry and fiction; one of her poems was nominated for a Best of the Net in 2021. See her full portfolio, check out her editing services, or just come say hi at www.natalieschriefer.com.