The gray mattress the officer gave me almost slid out of my sweaty hands.
Throwing Myself into Walls by Jessica Slice
We almost said no when they asked if we had space for a newborn. We had been foster parents for only a few months….
A Trip to the Pit by Nilsa Rivera Castro
The gray mattress the officer gave me almost slid out of my sweaty hands.
Mathematical Proof for Body by Ali Tarbox Saperstein
Our pre-calculus teacher called us the “Loquacious Lilies” — bright-eyed and giggling at girlhood’s perimeter.
Swallow by Candice May
Six years old, I’m having a standoff with the small, polished red Advil my father gives me….
Things Grow Here by Leah Richards
We make music in our house, though none of us are particularly gifted. We sing each other to sleep and plink on children’s tiny pianos.
CREATIVE NONFICTION
A Trip to the Pit by Nilsa Rivera Castro
On the Pandemic, Baby Gawking and Unshakable Love by Nancy Townsley
Tommy stabs at the air with adorable, chubby fingers. “Uck!” His eight-month-old torso goes rigid with excitement, then relaxes….
Bells by Ashley Bethard
I sat alone on a chair in a soundproof booth…. Heavy headphones were placed on my head.
Swallow by Candice May
Six years old, I’m having a standoff with the small, polished red Advil my father gives me….
Mathematical Proof for Body by Ali Tarbox Saperstein
Our pre-calculus teacher called us the “Loquacious Lilies” — bright-eyed and giggling at girlhood’s perimeter.
Throwing Myself into Walls by Jessica Slice
We almost said no when they asked if we had space for a newborn. We had been foster parents for only a few months….
Your Wife Knows You Are Here by Helene Kiser
I don’t know this yet, but I will remember this moment always. Our heads pressed together, M’s face in my hands, breathing each other’s breath…
Things Grow Here by Leah Richards
We make music in our house, though none of us are particularly gifted. We sing each other to sleep and plink on children’s tiny pianos.
Screwdriver by Deb Fenwick
My father tells me to come to the hardware store with him because my brother’s too busy playing with dolls.
This is Not Baby Weight by Adina Ferguson
I often catch myself doing that thing pregnant women do as their hands rest just below the tip of their bosoms….
ARTICLES & COLUMNS
INTERVIEW: Lizz Schumer, Author of Biography of a Body
I was drawn to lyrical, fragmented form of Lizz Schumer’s Biography of a Body …
CRAFT: The Hermit Crab Essay: Forming a Humorous Take on Dark Memoir by Susan Mack
Effective use of the hermit crab structure doesn’t have to be limited to standalone essays.
WRITING LIFE: The Arc of Disappointment by Kristen Paulson-Nguyen
Was I ready to read writers’ celebratory tweets?
REVIEW + INTERVIEW: The Daddy Chronicles by Jayne Martin
Like many fatherless daughters, myself included, Jayne Martin wasn’t without a father in the strictest sense of the term.
REVIEW: Quagmire: Personal Stories from Iraq and Afghanistan edited by Donald Anderson
The collection offers multiple perspectives of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, told in short essays by soldiers, sisters, scholars, lovers and more.
REVIEW: Slow Fuse of the Possible: A Memoir of Poetry and Psychoanalysis by Kate Daniels
Stream-of-consciousness, vivid imagery and poetic mechanics yields a memoir vividly capturing the author’s experience in psychoanalysis.
REVIEW: My Fourth Time, We Drowned: Seeking Refuge on the World’s Deadliest Migration Route by Sally Hayden
The horrific experiences of African migrants seeking asylum in Europe is the focus of this reported nonfiction book.
REVIEW: A Braided Heart: Essays on Writing and Form by Brenda Miller
Focusing on form, process, and hybridity, creative nonfiction guru Brenda Miller offers guidance and inspiration for writing the lyric essay.
CRAFT: Tell Me Your Stories — Travel Among Friends and Family as a Research Methodology in Narrative Nonfiction by Sarah Einstein
The manuscript I’m working on both is and isn’t travel writing….
WRITING LIFE: The Black Panther Needs to Sprawl by Connie Kinsey
Soon, I will bring the outside in.
INTERVIEW: Maud Newton, Author of Ancestor Trouble: A Reckoning and Reconciliation
Maud Newton took a break from her myriad publicity and writing obligations to chat with me, via email…
REVIEW: City of Refugees: The Story of Three Newcomers Who Breathed Life Into a Dying American Town by Susan Hartman
The story of three immigrants helping to transform the city of Utica, N.Y., gives fresh insights about refugees forced to flee home.
REVIEW: Thin Places: A Natural History of Healing and Home by Kerri ní Dochartaigh
The memoir of growing up amid Ireland’s strife weaves together politics, the natural world and the author’s story.
REVIEW: Dreadful Sorry: Essays on an American Nostalgia by Jennifer Niesslein
Americans’ affinity for nostalgia becomes a personal exploration of family, race and memories in this thoughtful essay collection.
REVIEW: Killer Looks: The Forgotten History of Plastic Surgery in Prisons by Zara Stone
The little-known history of plastic surgery for prisoners reflects a societal bias about attractiveness and a surprising aid to convict rehabilitation.
