Long before I knew of ghosts as apparitions, I understood them simply to be the presence of the deceased. In this way, I was raised with death, a silent death that lurked largely unmentioned in corners.… more
Category Archives: CREATIVE NONFICTION
Man Enough
CREATIVE NONFICTION by Christian EscalonaWhen I think of model trans men, I think of those brave enough to share their stories on social media, brave enough to ignore the comments that say go kill yourself or you will always be a woman. I think of those proudly wearing pink, blue, and white, the colors of the trans flag, those who march in rallies, holding signs that say, “Protect Trans Kids,” those who use their preferred bathroom regardless of how their outsides appear to the rest of the world. I was never that brave.… more
My Father and Me Too
CREATIVE NONFICTION by Anthony J. MohrMy father sexually harassed Mamie Van Doren. He did so in a scene from Guns Girls and Gangsters, a crime movie released in January 1959, the month Alaska became a state, the year Mattel launched the Barbie doll. I was a sixth-grader.… more
Please Excuse My Rrhoid Rage
CREATIVE NONFICTION by Jasmine MosherImagine popping a squat to take your regular morning shit and looking down to discover that some homicidal maniac had committed murder in the water right below your unsuspecting cooter, despite the fact you’re an innocent salad eater who doesn’t even consume bread. Not cool, bro.… more
Salina
CREATIVE NONFICTION by Kent QuaneyDad had rarely spoken of Salina. Said they’d been poor, and that was that. But once, he told us that his mother, long dead from a drunk driving accident, had been considered the most beautiful woman in Kansas.… more
Cooking Iftar
CREATIVE NONFICTION by Ilari PassI thought I was moving in exponentials. Things blurred or bent in me, like a dance between chaos and order. No. We all move a notch on this sprocket, the specifics of which I will never be able to shake.… more
The Force of Objects in Summer
CREATIVE NONFICTION by Tetman CallisTwice I have heard young women scream when they have seen someone they love torn open or crushed and bleeding and dying in front of them. There is no other scream like it.… more
Things Boys Do
CREATIVE NONFICTION by Raymond BeaucheminThey hammer nails into their fingers tear themselves with saws and do everything left-handed which is why their father calls them maudit gaucher but when was being left-handed a bad thing and their mom and aunt say they were smacked by the nuns to learn to write with the right hand and they should count themselves lucky nuns don’t do that now… more
Opioids, Cryptozoology, and One Bad Ombré
CREATIVE NONFICTION by JD ClappBeing a fresh transplant from California I wanted to see the state, so I took the blue road route meandering through mile after mile of woods, dead and dying farms, and based on the epidemiological data, dozens of tiny one-street oxy towns and heroin hollers.… more
My Father Calls Me, Wondering About His Car
CREATIVE NONFICTION by Becky TuchIt was his taxi where he got stuck daily in crosstown traffic that sent him exploding with rage. This was the taxi where he was once held up at gunpoint and this was the taxi where he took naps during slow afternoons. This was the taxi whose seats he scrubbed with bleach and this was the taxi in which he picked us up from our mother’s house and drove us to school, home from basketball practice, and came to get us in, always, when we needed him.… more
