One of the issues with writing is that people always compare themselves to the rest of the world. It’s understandable to read a short story by Hemingway; to admire the master-class in compression and repression; and think to yourself: “I could never write like that.” That’s an easy way to score points against yourself. Because…
Category: A Piece of Our Minds
Disability Wrath Month
July is Disability Pride Month. And I could write some empowering piece about how I make my life work even though fibromyalgia and I’ve got all these things that don’t work in the ways bodies and brains typically do and rah rah rah. I know how to write about Pride. I’ve done plenty of it,…
Cat Poems (Caturday)
Cat Poems What are Some Cat Poems? Okay. The aforementioned verses by Christopher Smart really are lovely. We mention them a lot on this site, and there’s a reason for that. A bit of background: Smart was an 18th century poet whose verse tends to sound very Biblical. He wrote a larger poem called “Jubilate…
Coming out versus Letting In
It’s the end of Pride Month. Usually I’m overflowing with words about queer topics, especially in June. I had a year of queer rage in 2022. And 2023 has me filled with even more rage. And yet this month, when I should have been able to say something I’ve had trouble saying anything. Every time I…
How to Write a Story?
I want to share something with you. Partly because I think it’s funny, and partly because I think it’s interesting: “The Himalayan salt crystal his mother sent him for his last birthday tasted quite good on eggs. Did they taste better on eggs than the salt that came a can? Of that, Sisyphus couldn’t be…
Birthday Suit (Big Cat, Little Cat)
Big Cat, Little Cat: Birthday Suit The Birthday Suit and the Paradox of the Cat I think I like cats because they combine some of the best traits–affection, playfulness, musicality–with some of the worst traits–distrust, schadenfreude, lack of accountability–of people. A cat will break something and just walk away. A cat will play with its…
Pride is for… ?
I began June not with celebration, but with tears. “Happy” Pride, right? Who the fuck thought I would be watching a TV show with a character who was wearing overalls and I would absolutely breakdown in tears? And now, I’m alternating between writing and ugly crying. And the makeup I put on earlier today is a mess…
Mental Health Awareness Month 2023
There’s a joke about a writer. Mental Health Awareness Month was around the corner and this writer, being an expert in mental health–from both experience and education–was given the reins that month: their editor expected them to write weekly articles, daily blog-posts, and hourly tweets. The strain was so intense that the writer went mad….
Catching Up With Poetry
Did you know that April is National Poetry Month? We did. And we’ve been celebrating it joyfully as part of our annual 30 Days, 30 Poems project. Oh So That’s Where You’ve Been All Month. But Why? We love poetry here. It’s no secret. We know there’s something magical about finding a poem that feels…
I’m Officially Disabled Now; Where’s my Prize?
Update on the Sydney Beers Story–Remember? The Wheelchair being Pushed Down the Stairs? Anyone? I really don’t follow hockey. Definitely not NCAA hockey. But Carson Briere’s name has popped up on my various news notifications for the last month or so, ever since the wheelchair incident. So I saw the news that he’d been removed…