Our Teachers
The Muse's instructors are all working writers and published authors who have taught courses at colleges, universities, and other community organizations. Read our teachers’ biographies and see what classes they are currently teaching.

John Aguiar
John Aguiar earned a Master's in marine biology from ODU and a Ph.D. in wildlife biology from Texas A&M. His doctoral research focused on the biogeography and conservation of small mammals in the Brazilian Amazon. He has worked as an editor at several international journals, where he shepherded manuscripts in three languages—English, Spanish and Portuguese—through every stage of the publication process. He has also worked as a science writer for the Cousteau Society and other environmental groups. He writes in a variety of fiction and nonfiction formats, although people tell him that his short stories really need to be thousand-page novels.
Previous Classes Taught
- 1-Day Creative Writing "Camp" for Adults (Fri. Aug. 18)
- (Summer 2023)
- 1-Day Creative Writing "Camp" for Adults (Sat. June 3)
- (Summer 2023)
- Alien Life on Exoplanets
- (Summer 2021)
- Creative Writing Camp for Adults
- (Summer 2022)
- Lost Languages: Uncovering Ancient Writing and Pictographs (Now Online)
- (Winter/Spring 2020)
- Practical Starship Design
- (Summer 2020)
- The Deep History of English
- (Fall 2022)
- The Muse Fiction Camp for Adults Day 1
- (Summer 2024)
- The Worlds Next Door: A Grand Tour of Our Solar System
- (Winter/Spring 2021)
- World Building: Oceans & Waterworlds
- (Winter/Spring 2021)
- World-Building Through Language Creation
- (Winter/Spring 2024)