Education
Stanford University; Brigham Young University. University of Iowa.
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Douglas Thayer
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Growing up in Provo, Utah, Thayer spent his boyhood largely running free and hunting, fishing, and hiking in the surrounding Wasatch Mountains. He dropped out of high school in 1946 to join the United States. Army, serving in Germany. Thayer’s early work experience included helper on a uranium drill rig, construction laborer, railroad section hand, janitor, restaurant dishwasher, insurance salesman, and seasonal ranger in Yellowstone National Park.
After graduating from Brigham Young University (Brigham Young University) with a bachelor"s degree in English, Thayer applied to law school, but then decided not to attend and started a doctorate in American literature at Stanford.
Finding that he had little interest in research, he left the program after finishing a master"s degree. Returning to Provo from Stanford, Thayer taught briefly in the Brigham Young University English Department, considered studying to be a clinical psychologist, and then started a doctorate in American studies at the University of Maryland.
However, still not liking research, he decided that what he really wanted to do was write short stories and novels. He transferred to the University of Iowa, and finished an Master of Fine Arts in fiction writing.
After completing the Master of Fine Arts, Thayer returned to Brigham Young University, where he taught fiction writing and other classes for fifty-four years, before retiring in 2011.
Membership
A member of the Utah State Bar, she is a freelance writer/editor and a certified mediator with specialized training in family mediation and high-risk victim/offender dialogue.
