Issue 24
December 2021
There is no doubt fiction makes a better job of the truth. -Doris May Lessing
Dear Readers and Writers:
Of the 32 selections in our December issue, seven of them are fiction pieces. There’s a short flash piece about taking on a bully (Turtle Girl), a funeral with a widow who is decidedly NOT grieving (Pray), and one about some wall art that seems a little.. shifty (Portrait). Check out Seedless Soil, —a very unusual duel at high noon, two ‘smoke’ stories (Smoke Ghosts and Smoke in the Air), and The Window, a quirky/imaginative vignette we couldn’t say no to.
You’ll also find a dozen splendid poems, a handful of poignant essays, an outstanding book review (When Breath Becomes Air) and some incredible art and photography.
December 1st was the deadline for 2021 Pushcart nominations, and though it was a challenge to select only six pieces from everything we published this year, it was such an honor to recognize these students:
Flotsam(poetry)- Oluwafisayo Akinfolami
Reader, I (poetry)- Zoe Reay-Ellers
Polyester (poetry)- Rena Su
Give & Take or how God Takes his revenge (poetry)- Roseline Mgbodichinma Anya-Okorie
Snow Day (fiction) -Crystal Peng
Bottle Baby (fiction)- Matt Hsu
Congrats to these writers, and to every student who fills out our submission form, attaches their writing and hits SEND. You all are the best.
Molly Hill
Editor