Michelle Brafman is the author of Swimming with Ghosts, Washing the Dead, and Bertrand Court: Stories. Her essays and short stories have appeared in Slate, LitHub, The Forward, Tablet, and elsewhere. She teaches fiction writing in the Johns Hopkins University MA in Writing Program. A former swim mom and NCAA All-American freestyler, Michelle has never lived more than a mile away from a pool, lake, ocean, or river. Learn more at www. michellebrafman. com.