Six weeks after giving birth, one morning Beth lacked the strength to lift a hair dryer. Soon tugging a diaper tab spiked piercing pain. Her immune system assaulted her muscles. A drug cocktail restored her somewhat but with cruel side effects. Meanwhile, a book about the disease offered this on page two: “A good carpenter can extend the doorways in your house to accommodate the wheelchair.”… more
Category Archives: CREATIVE NONFICTION
My Father’s Son
CREATIVE NONFICTION by David BarkerI’ve written it a thousand times and never gotten any further. My father is a murderer. My father is a murderer. We haven’t seen each other in two decades but it repeats in my head like a mantra I cannot shake. If half of me is him and he is a murderer, what did I inherit? Who am I if I am some of him?… more
Waiting for It
CREATIVE NONFICTION by Joseph BardinThe speaker says something about are you doing what you want in your life, or are you believing in yourself, or something along those lines, and I may as well have been struck by lightning, because the answer, I realize, in no uncertain terms is no, I’m not.… more
My Father, My Uncle
CREATIVE NONFICTION by Maud LavinSomething other than forgiveness for a con man… more
Compliance
CREATIVE NONFICTION by Mileva AnastasiadouSomeday we’ll talk about us, but today is not that day.… more
Soft Talk
CREATIVE NONFICTION by Elaine BuckleyI just started talking to myself. I’m not sure it’s a good thing.… more
Four Essays
CREATIVE NONFICTION by Trey RhoneI have a ritual before I get my haircut. I take off my nail polish. Earrings have to come off, too. The rainbow lanyard that hangs from my pocket must stay inside my car. Most importantly, my voice must get deeper. Queer folks aren’t as welcome in these parts. Only the manly men. Only the straight men.… more
These Days
CREATIVE NONFICTION by Corey MillerToday my eyes are filled with drywall dust. The gypsum fire deterrent bonded by thin cardboard breaks easily with the prying crowbar. The new house gutted and needing more work than expected; holes in the sheathing from pests and soggy with water damage. I just wanted something to go our way, for once, Amy says.… more
Pain
CREATIVE NONFICTION by Myles ZaveloHe’s trying to hold me. He’s trying to comfort me. He’s trying to force me into his lap. He’s grabbing at me. He’s clutching me. He’s forcing his comfort, his support, onto me, severely and earnestly.… more
Man to Man
CREATIVE NONFICTION by Jason SchwartzmanIn the voice of this charismatic stranger, basketball is a mystical game you can control before the ball is even in your hands. There’s a way of feeling out the court, of knowing where to stand. He generously shares his knowledge with me, as though, like the sun and the stars, it belongs to everyone.… more
