“The Triplets” originally appeared in Shadows & Tall Trees, Vol. 7 (March 2017) The Triplets Their mothers had been careful to conceive the girls under the same blue moon. Kaylee’s mother had heard from her sister-in-law, who had heard from her tennis partner, who had heard from her hairdresser that there was an old Chinese or … Continue reading My Original Fiction: The Triplets
If you live in Minnesota, you need to read A Good Time for the Truth: Race in Minnesota Edited by Sun Yung Shin. If you don't live in Minnesota, you still need to read it. It's way past time people started listening to OTHER PEOPLE DESCRIBE THEMSELVES. This country has gone on too long letting … Continue reading Recommended Reading: A Good Time for the Truth: Race in Minnesota
I published this article on Medium today, but since they're capping at three articles a month, I'm posting it here too. Please share widely so we can put an end to White Supremacy and the pervasive "accidental racism" in our culture. It's no accident that most white people remain monumentally and inexcusably ignorant about racism … Continue reading Wired for Story Promotes White Supremacy: An Open Letter to Lisa Cron
I didn't have access to or knowledge about the Riot Grrls when I was a teenager. I missed it all, instead just having Courtney Love and Hole, which you can pry out of my cold, dead hands, regardless of the ass Love can be. A couple years ago, I watched The Punk Singer on Netflix, … Continue reading Recommended Viewing: The Punk Singer: “All girls to the front. I’m not kidding. All girls to the front! All boys be cool for once in your lives. Go back. Back. Back. Back.”
I saw Danez Smith perform Waiting On You To Die So I Can Be Myself on facebook, and that sealed it: I requested off work so I could go to their reading at the Northfield Public Library last night. I'd seen and read a few other poems that also resonated with me, and I went … Continue reading Recommended Reading: Don’t Call Us Dead by Danez Smith
Janelle Monáe. Janelle Monáe. Janelle Monáe! I'm all about PROJECT Q.U.E.E.N. Janelle Monáe is the hera I've needed my whole life. The songs and videos exist to be read. She speaks up and out, for all of us. I love her so much. I like this list of her videos on youtube. And yes, "Make … Continue reading Recommended Listening/Viewing/Reading: Janelle Monáe is EVERYTHING
Just look at that cover! Two years ago, I started searching harder for books I knew must exist, but that I hadn't been told to read. Lagoon by Nnedi Okorafor did exactly what I was craving at the time: put humans and the rest of nature on equal footing. I cried reading the first chapters; … Continue reading Recommended Reading: Lagoon by Nnedi Okorafor
Liberation never comes from oppressing someone else, and this anthology has everything you need to really get started learning about the lives and realities of others and thinking about how to make the world a better place for all of us. When I finally picked up This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women … Continue reading Recommended Reading: This Bridge Called My Back: Writings by Radical Women of Color
I've been thinking A LOT about Erasure by Percival Everett lately. Everything is so complicated, and so much is lost when people don't educate themselves about the big picture. It's great that some publishers and editors are actively seeking diverse voices. It's awful when they start telling writers that they need to be MORE X, … Continue reading Recommended Reading: Erasure by Percival Everett
Current students at my alma mater are asking for a decolonized education. The push back and sleight-of-hand based on fear, ignorance, and adherence to harmful ideologies really really upset me. I wrote a letter supporting the students and explaining just how baked in and pervasive white supremacy is. If you're not aware that everything in … Continue reading Letter I Wrote Standing with Knox Students
harmony is a witch 