I am an author from Central New York, and the former chief medical examiner of Onondaga County. Performing thousands of autopsies in my 25-year career, I elaborate a strong voice for the deceased. From Chicago and Peoria, Illinois, to Syracuse, New York, my job has been as an advocate for the dead. They have communicated to me through wounds, disease, and the circumstances of their last living moments.
I explore through creative non-fiction the imprint my patients have made on my humanity. By retelling their tales, I am also telling mine.
My publications and awards include:
“Role of Forensic Pathologists”, pages 197-207 in Mass Disasters, Encyclopedia of Forensic Sciences, edited by Jay Siegel and Pekka Saukko, Elsevier Press 2005 and 2012
“Death as My Colleague”, pages 139-148 in Final Acts, Death, Dying, and the Choices We Make, edited by Nan Bauer-Maglin and Donna Perry, Rutgers University Press 2010
“Prague”, Top Ten in Memoir Contest, AARP/Huffington Post, 2014
“Flies”, pages 152-153, A collection of vignettes from across the globe, edited by Jessica Bell, Vine Leaves Literary Journal 2017
“The Morgue”, pages 92-94, GFT Press Anniversary Contest Grand Prize Winner, GFT Presents: One in Four, GFT Press 2017
“The Boy”, ‘On Courage’ First Place Winner, Tortoise and Finch 2017, http://www.tortoiseandfinch.com/on-courage-first-place-winner-mary-jumbelic/
“Home”, Foliate Oak Literary Magazine 2017, www.foliateoak.com/mary-jumbelic.html
“The Scream”, Matterpress, July 2017, https://matterpress.com/journal/2017/07/17/the-scream/
“Watching Her”, Creative Nonfiction Essay Contest First Place Winner, Women on Writing, April 2021, https://www.wow-womenonwriting.com/99-FE1-Q22021EssayContest.html
“Feral Child”, Top Ten in Creative Nonfiction Contest, Tucson Literary Festival, 2021
“Pandemic, the Game”, Themed Issue – Aldous Huxley, The Closed Eye Open, July 2021, https://theclosedeyeopen.com/ripples-on-the-pond-ed-2/
“The Champion”, pages 30-41, Grapple Alley, Inaugural Issue, August 2021
“Scents and Sensibilities”, Prometheus Dreaming, September 9, 2021, https://www.prometheusdreaming.com/scents-and-sensibilities
“Stairwell”, pages 114-126, Black Lives Matter special edition, Bluegrass Writer’s Studio, Eastern Kentucky University, Jelly Bucket, September 2021 NOMINATED FOR PUSHCART PRIZE
“On the Way to School”, International Grand Prix Essay Competition – Honorable Mention, Hektoen International, October 22, 2021, https://hekint.org/2021/10/22/on-the-way-to-school/
“The Visit”, pages 197-200, Iron City Magazine, Issue #6 2021
“Collapse” page 3, First Place in Flash Nonfiction Contest 2021, Dreamers Creative Writing, Issue 10, https://www.dreamerswriting.com/mary-jumbelic/
“Vesey Street”, Change Seven, January 2022, https://changesevenmag.com/vesey-street-by-mary-jumbelic/
“The Taking Tree”, pages 182-184, It Was A Mistake, Free Spirit, January 2022
“The Shoe”, Griffel, Issue # 10, January 2022, https://www.griffel.no/article/the-shoe-by-mary-jumbelic/
“In the Kitchen”, Humans of the World, March 6, 2022, https://www.howblog.org/post/in-the-kitchen-mary-jumbelic
“First Interview”, pages 40-56, Conversation Anthology, Unleash Press, 2022
“Dead End”, The Write Launch Creative Nonfiction, April Edition 2022, https://thewritelaunch.com/2022/04/dead-end/
“Authority”, Sterling Clack Clack, accepted November 2021, awaiting publication
“The Backpack”, Multiplicity Magazine, Spring/Summer Issue 2022, awaiting publication
“The Trailer”, Creative Nonfiction Writing Contest runner up, Women on Writing, April 2022, https://www.wow-womenonwriting.com/downloads/printable/103-FE1-Q22022EssayContest-Mary-Jumbelic.html
I teach on-line courses that combine my love of forensics and writing for the Downtown Writer’s Center of Syracuse (YMCA), and am an Assistant Editor for Stone Canoe.
Final Words 