Four writers connected with the global St. Stephen’s alumni community — sharing their creative journeys and their views on AI.

St. Stephen’s alumni often credit the school’s strong English program for sharpening their writing skills. For some, that foundation became a lifelong calling they now share with readers far beyond The Hill and four of them, who are now published authors, recently returned to campus virtually to share their writing experience.

The St. Stephen’s Alumni Association sponsored its annual Spartan Authors Series. The series further reinforces the school's mission: to inspire a lasting love of learning and spirit of service so that each of its students lives a life of meaning and enriches the world. One of the ways the association accomplishes this is by building closer relationships among its members and between the Association and the school.

“The true success of the school is often measured in the success of its alumni and this series is a way for us to not only continue fostering the strong relationship with our alumni community but to also create opportunities for our community members to share knowledge with each other,” said David Allen, alumni engagement officer.

The Author series began in 2024 but this is the first time the department hosted a virtual panel as they wanted to expand the opportunity for more alumni who are not in Austin. The panel featured Charles Chamberlain ’83, Carolyn Cohagan ’90, Hank Ewert ’70, P ’05, ’98, and Prosser Stirling ’73 and moderated by Clay Nichols P ’22, ’19, ’16, leadership giving officer, author and playwright.

“It's a point of pride seeing so many authors with connections to St. Stephen’s,” said Nichols. “This is a school that has a long tradition of honoring and encouraging kids towards self-expression.”

Alumni nationwide joined the Zoom discussion as panelists, two of whom joined the call from Europe, reflected on their writing journeys, how they developed their voices and the growing role of artificial intelligence in storytelling. Charles Chamberlain ’83, a professor at the University of New Orleans, recently released his second book “New Orleans: A Concise History of an Exceptional City.” He said his love of reading, music and performance at St. Stephen’s first sparked his interest in writing, crediting Dobbie Leverton Fenton’s transformative African literature course. Fenton taught English and served as a school counselor for 33-years at St. Stephen’s.

Adapted from his dissertation on mobilizing the American South during World War II, Chamberlain published his first book in 2003 and is already working on a third book about the history of New Orleans music. He aims to engage readers from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences. “I love getting in that zone where everything flows,” said Chamberlain. “In terms of my voice, I try to write as though I’m speaking to a tour group or class.” 

Carolyn Cohagan ’90 has published five novels. Her debut, “The Lost Children,” was released by Simon & Schuster in 2010 and later featured in the Scholastic Book Club. Her “Time Zero” young adult trilogy earned more than 10 literary honors. Her most recent novel, “Drowning Song,” is an adult mystery set in the Texas Hill Country. Cohagan said St. Stephen’s emphasis on student choice in reading helped shape her literary voice, and her discovery of improv on The Hill. During summer workshops she offers to young writers, she tells them that being a big talker, like she was as a teenager, is an asset to finding your own voice.

“Have you ever been in school and your teachers are telling you to stop talking? Do your parents tell you to stop talking?” said Cohagen. “When you’re writing, no one can tell you to stop talking.”

Former St. Stephen’s English instructor and music lover Hank Ewert '70, P '05, '98 published his first book “Let the Music Speak,” in 2025. He said becoming an author was never his goal but something he was passionate to learn more about and exploring.

“This was a personal project — to get more information about stuff that interests me,” said Ewert. Award-winning poet Prosser Stirling ’73 said his writing path required patience and trust. “Are poets born or do poets become? That will be the lifelong question for me,” said Stirling.

Stirling, who attended St. Stephen’s as a boarding student, said he has long kept a notebook of words and ideas. A poetry workshop eventually helped him realize he was a poet.

“I see the world in metaphor and simile,” said Stirling.

While the authors talked about their work for much of the conversation, the topic of AI and its prevalence, accessibility and usefulness in the writing process was hard to ignore. Some panelists acknowledged AI’s relevance in the editing phase but they agreed it becomes problematic when used to replace human originality and creativity.

“The idea that now you can say, "Write me an entire novel in the style of Carolyn Cohagen,” said Cohagen. “I mean, as a writer all I've got is my voice, right? All I've got is my individual voice.”

Click here to watch the virtual panel recording and stay tuned for details on the next Spartan Alumni Author Series in fall 2026. Be sure to check out the growing collection of books written by SSES alumni in Becker Library.

Have you written a book — or know a Spartan alum who has? Email David Allen, alumni engagement officer, at dallen@sstx.org.