Black women

Momma, Did You Hear the News?, and Where Are the African Literary Magazines?

Curated reads Favorite Essays I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Fall in love with writing againCan you see me?Other motherMy name is a mountainTo force a tenured professor to be done… to be out… to be giving up a tenureThe curl of timeThe rise of emotional divestment Favorite Short Stories I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Elbow in Zulu, Dara KellThat Chookaloski …

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What Happens When We Stop Remembering and 100 Small Acts of Love

Curated links. Favorite Essays I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Favorite Flash Fictions I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Favorite Short Story I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Favorite Writing Advice I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Finding rest in creative labor, Holly Haworth, LitHub Favorite Sentence I Read in the Past …

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24 Favorite Essays I Read in 2023

And favorite sentence and paragraph of the year — My favorite essays of the year will take you all over the world—Antarctica, Somalia, Rikers prison in New York, Afghanistan, West Africa, and more—and touch vast topics—our climate, grief, childbirth at 45, abuse, love, and identity. Favorite Essays I Read in 2023 Favorite Sentence of the …

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My 5 Favorite Short Story Collections I Read in 2023

And honorable mentions. I don’t remember when I read Lauren Groff’s short story collections—Delicate Edible Birds and Florida—but once I did I couldn’t stop, I didn’t want to stop, I wished I had all the time in the world to read the stories again. That never happened to me before. Now, writing short stories—especially stories where my …

Black women

You Will Bear This Pain Long After You’re Gone and 100 Notable Books for 2023

Curated links. Favorite Essays I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Favorite Short Story I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Favorite Sentence I Read in the Past Two Weeks: “I feel successful when I have gap in my day to read a novel, slowly.” Emma Gannon, A year of change Favorite Paragraph I Read in …

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Betrayed by the City That Raised Me and ‘America Does Not Deserve Me.’

Curated links. Favorite Essays I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Favorite Flash Fictions I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Favorite Short Stories I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Favorite Sentence I Read in the Past Two Weeks: “I’ll never stop hating this place, and I will never, ever leave it.” Little Fish, Big …

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I Remember Arthur, Some Things I Know About Elvis, and Librarians on the Front Lines

Curated links. Favorite Essays I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Favorite Flash Fictions I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Favorite Short Stories I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Favorite Writing Advice I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Octavia Butler’s advice on writing (which applies to all creative practice) Favorite Sentences I Read in …

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I Never Called Her Momma, the Cost of Straight Hair, and Love Unto Crypt

Curated links. Favorite Essays I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Favorite Flash Fictions I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Favorite Short Story I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Favorite Writing Advice I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Favorite Sentences I Read in the Past Two Weeks: “It’s so fucking exhausting to …

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On the Intimate Costs of Becoming an American, AI stole My Name, and the Amharic Alphabet

Curated links. Favorite Essay I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Favorite Flash Fiction I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Favorite Short Stories I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Favorite Writing Advice I Read in the Past Two Weeks: Etcetera Did You Know? If you’re wondering about the meaning of my name—Banchiwosen—and you …