Meet Albert Sgambati, Award-Winning Author and Student at Alliant-Mexico City
Mexico City, March 27, 2007 — Last year Alliant International University student Albert Sgambati entered Miami University Press’ first novella contest, and won. His manuscript for The Waiting Room beat out 150  | | Alliant Mexico student and author Albert Sgambati | | 
| others, garnering him a $1000 prize, publication of his book through Miami University Press, and introduction into a family of fellow novella authors including Herman Melville, Henry James, Katherine Anne Porter, and Stanley Elkin. It was in 2004, as an International Relations master’s degree student at Alliant’s Mexico City Campus, that Sgambati brought together the ideas that would form The Waiting Room. There was a moment of clarity and definition and boom, “It hit me like a bolt of lightening,” said Sgambati. “All of a sudden I just figured out how I was going to put it all together.” This wasn’t the first time Sgambati had sat down to write what would turn out to be a successful piece of work. He was awarded The Diver Poetry Prize (Portland, Oregon) for his poem, "Everything Up Until Now," in 2000. He has also experienced success as a freelance film consultant, features writer, translator and editor. During the 1990’s, he worked as a beat reporter for The News in Mexico City. His writing has appeared in a range of magazines. His poetry has been included in Anthology of American Poets 1980’s, Big Scream, and is featured in All Roads...But This One. “The Waiting Room” is Sgambati’s first book. He attributes Mexico City, the place of the book’s inception, with bringing him good luck, which he also experienced while leaving there in the 1990’s with his son, following a stint in his Native New York teaching English to non-native speaking adults at the Borough of Manhattan Community College. As a creative person and a student at Alliant-Mexico City, Sgambati appreciates his everyday encounters with people, both outside and inside the classroom, who create an open atmosphere conducive to the exchange of ideas. He was initially attracted to Alliant-Mexico City by its experienced and accomplished professors and now appreciates the experience of the program and how it’s helping him to transition from cultural and travel writing for newspapers and magazines to more meaningful contributions to political science- and history-oriented publications. For Alliant’s newest author, Sgambati is in a good place: in Mexico City, a place that has always provided him good vibes; about to finish his master’s degree, working towards a dream job; on his way to becoming a recognized author on either side of the border, and making Alliant proud. For More Information
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