Sanctuary is a creative writing thesis project for the M.A. in English program. The story of this novella follows young wife and mother Mary Miller who defends herself from her abusive husband one night and thinks she may have killed him. Panicking, Mary flees with her young son Carter to the North Carolina mountains, to the land she inherited from the grandparents who raised her. Unsure whether they are pursued for the crime she has committed, Mary’s mental state, and thus the tone of the piece, is one of tension and anxiety. The novella mainly follows Mary’s first-person narration, though select chapters also include narration from other characters. My hope going into this thesis was to create a piece that explores the features of a genre I love dearly, that of the Gothic. I believe that this thesis has fulfilled that goal.