Andrew Boryga, M.F.A. ’19, credits his New York City childhood as a major inspiration in his writing. Born and raised in the Bronx, Boryga says the city exposed him to a slew of “big, messy, societal issues that have always been present in my work. Things like the effects of poverty, generational trauma, unequal education, and the prison system.”
Boryga, who began writing at the age of 16, graduated from Cornell University in 2013 and was selected as the Undergraduate Artist of the Year for 2012-2013 by the Cornell Council for the Arts. His work has appeared in The New Yorker, The New York Times, the South Florida Sun Sentinel, and The Atlantic. Boryga earned his M.F.A. in Creative Writing in 2019 from the University of Miami College of Arts & Sciences.
“My non-fiction writing has focused on covering these societal issues in ways that provide voices to people from neighborhoods like mine that often don’t find themselves and their real, nuanced perspectives represented in the media,” said Boryga. “My fiction, on the other hand, has focused on characters living under these tenuous conditions, but often making light of it through humor, wit, and resilience.”
Boryga is excited to take the next best step in his writing career with the upcoming release of his first novel, “Victim.” A&S News connected with Boryga to learn more about his book, his experience in the Creative Writing Program, and what’s next on the horizon.
A&S News: You worked on your novel while in the Creative Writing M.F.A. Program. How was that process for you?
Boryga: My professors were extremely helpful in shaping my novel and pushing me to play with its structure and form. I entered the program with a very different version of “Victim” than what will be printed next March. In fact, the title was completely different and changed a few times.
The various transformations the novel underwent—and that needed to happen for me to discover what I was writing about—were only made possible by the instruction, notes, conversations, and reading recommendations of my professors. In particular, M. Evelina Galang, Patricia Engel, Chantel Acevedo, and A. Manette Ansay. All of them helped me re-imagine my novel multiple times over.
A&S News: How did the book’s main character, Javier Perez, come to you?
Boryga: Javi is a character I have been writing about for ten years. It feels weird and kind of crazy to say this because at the end of the day, I made him up, but I've learned a lot about him in that time. In early versions of my work, he was naive and far too earnest. But slowly, as I kept progressing through drafts of the book, I started to realize he had this dark, conniving side to him.
I started to realize he was the sort of guy who liked to seem innocent but was a hustler trading on the emotions of others. Once I learned that about him, the novel really started to take off. I was able to use him as an exciting vehicle to tell this story about how one man noticed our country’s recent obsession with diversity and inclusion and figured out a way to capitalize on it for his own personal gain.
A&S News: Now that you’ve written your first book, what advice would you give other M.F.A. students who want to achieve the same dream?
Boryga: Take your time! I spent 10 years writing various stories and novel drafts that ended up transforming into “Victim.” It’s a long, long process—especially for those of us working on our first books. So, slow down. I think our culture wants everything to happen quickly, but you can’t rush writing and in particular novel writing.
Focus less on writing something you can publish to acclaim and instead focus on honing your craft. Utilize this wonderful time you have been gifted by the University, in which your only real responsibility is to write, edit, read, and teach. Learn as much as possible from the amazing professors at UM, play around with things, and worry about the accolades later. They’ll come when the time is right.
A&S News: Are there any contemporary authors you’re reading right now?
Boryga: There are a lot of exciting writers that I am a fan of these days. Patricia Engel is certainly one of them. I’ve read all her work and it was a true honor to work with her while I was at UM. I’m also a big fan of Paul Beatty, Ottessa Moshfegh, Mat Johnson, and Alejandro Zambra.
A&S News: What’s next on your horizon?
Boryga: I have been slowly working on a draft of a brand-new novel. It has been written in fits and starts thus far. Also, I have two kids under three years old and a full-time job, so time is hard to come by. However, I’m hoping to get a first draft of this new book done by the end of the year.
