Tara Tamburello’s short fiction, poems, and essays have appeared in Schuylkill Valley Journal, Ghost City Review, Bone Parade, and other journals, as well as in anthologies by Vestal Review and the Ireland-based Sans. PRESS. Her short plays have been produced in Pennsylvania. She was the 2023 Poet Laureate of Bucks County and a past winner of the Bucks County Short Fiction Contest.
Poetry
“Sing, But Only So,” Featured Poets 2025, Moonstone Press, 2026
“Tooth Cutting,” Schuylkill Valley Journal, Volume 59, Fall/Winter 2024
“Weeds or Wildflowers?,” Schuylkill Valley Journal, Volume 59, Fall/Winter 2024
“Working Girls,” Bucks County Herald: Poet’s Corner, 2024
Originally presented at the 2024 Bucks County Women’s History Month Award ceremony, honoring Mae Krier.
“Dream House,” Ghost City Review, March 2023
“Familiars,” Bone Parade, Issue #9, 2022
“Regrowth,” Rust + Moth, Spring 2020
Short Fiction
“The Bride Revenant,” Because That’s Where Your Heart Is anthology, Sans. PRESS, 2021
A deceased young woman comes knocking for her grieving fiancé.
“Of Stench & Sisters,” Menacing Hedge, Winter 2020
A deadly illness sweeps over a farm, leaving two young girls to deal with the effects of unburied decomposition.
“Country Crypt,” Winner of the 2019 Bucks County Short Fiction Contest
A widower attempts to clean his cluttered house with horrifying results.
“…a gorgeously vibrant portrait of grief and dread [that] offers the reader abundant tension and story questions throughout….” – Kelly Simmons, contest judge
“Provisions,” The First Line, Volume 19, Issue 4, 2017
A pair of post-Revolutionary American missionaries’ clothes are stolen while they’re bathing in a creek.
“The Wandering Governess,” Condensed to Flash: World Classics anthology, Vestal Review, 2015
A flash retelling of Jane Eyre.
Short Nonfiction
“A Chocolate Challenge,” Tikkun.org, 2009
An investigation of the chocolate industry and the pros & cons of buying Fair Trade.
“Mr. Roadtrip (PDF),” The Blue Route, Issue 2, 2009
Memoir about an odd cross-country road trip with my best friends.
Short Plays (produced)
“Missed Connections: A Craigslist Fantasia,” with Brian Farrell, Shannon Flannery, Alex Harne, Beth Johnson, Rachel Lambert, and Mark Tebben, 2009
One-act play produced by Curio Theatre Company during the Philadelphia Fringe Festival, directed by Liz Carlson.
“Syntax Error?” 2009
10-minute play produced by Eastern University as part of its Performing Arts Living Room, directed by Brian Farrell.
Travel Writing
“For the Love of Sydney,” with Nicole Carretta, Café Abroad InPrint, Spring 2009 Issue
“A Tribute to the Opera House,” CafeAbroad.com, 2008
“Aussie Delights,” CafeAbroad.com, 2008
“Secondhand Goods, First Rate,” CafeAbroad.com, 2008
“Coffee Culture,” CafeAbroad.com, 2008
“Canberra: A City of Architectural Diversity & Diplomats,” CafeAbroad.com, 2008
“Sanctioned Acts of Vandalism,” CafeAbroad.com, 2008
“14k in a Day,” CafeAbroad.com, 2008
“Pleased to Meet You, Sydney,” CafeAbroad.com, 2008
Awards
47th Annual Bucks County Poet Laureate Competition, winner, 2023
45th Annual Bucks County Poet Laureate Competition, runner-up, 2021
Bucks County Short Fiction Contest, first place, 2019
Dorothy McCollum Siebert Award for consistent performance in creative writing, Eastern University, 2009
Tara Tamburello 