Atmospheric Disturbance

Make it through, and bring others with you.

Last week we lost power as an atmospheric river bore down on the Pacific northwest, causing king tides in Seattle and sneaker waves on the coast. We sat in the candlelight in our bedroom listening to the rain coming down and playing guitar and singing. Four months earlier we sat in the candlelight in the bedroom playing guitar and singing while 80 mile an hour winds fanned the flames of nearby wildfires. The yardstick flips over.

I have been so mad. Maybe it’s just because my shot was overdue and sometimes when I remember 10 days on there’s a rush of emotion a few hours later. I hope that’s not the reason. I hope it’s because I’ve been paying attention. 

It’s MLK day, and perhaps there are marches you could attend, or someone who might need your help or a friendly word. There are certainly other things you could be reading. A few days ago I had the privilege of listening to W. Ralph Eubanks, author and former Director of Publishing of the Library of Congress, speak on archives; not just how archives can be used and explored in writing, but also how our own memories and experiences shape the archive of the human condition. I’m looking forward to his new book out in March, A Place Like Mississippi: A Journey Through a Real and Imagined Literary Landscape. For now, I’ll leave you with two offerings: Reverend and Senator Raphael Warnock’s Martin Luther King Jr. Shabbat sermon, and some words from Jacqueline Woodson (who, among other things, is building Baldwin for the Arts, a BIPOC artist colony in upstate New York) that make me excited about the future:

“Another thing about being a writer is you get to create content and you get to change the narrative. For me, writing allows me to have some control in that way. Living in my head and imagining what the world can be like — where there can be beauty, hope, empathy, social justice, and change — is really a way to make it through every day.”

Take care, friends. I’ll be here on the other side of this week with more to say.

What I’m Reading

While I don’t have a copy yet, I’ve been excited for Craft in the Real World by Matthew Salesses since Catapult announced it last spring. Salesses will be in virtual conversation with Brandon Taylor on January 19th, hosted by McNally Jackson.

How to Relax

Like watching people make things? Need to calm down? I’ve enjoyed watching videos from CurrieGOAT on YouTube where he takes us through the process of making leather bags, sketchbooks, and rugs set to relaxing music, ASMR (never works for me, but maybe for you?), and generally fun and funny edits that don’t give me whiplash. 

Publishing Opportunities

Fifth Estate is accepting submissions of essays, articles, poetry and fiction “imagining and making the kind of future designated impossible by rulers and their collaborators.” Deadline March 15.

Perennial Press is open for fiction, nonfiction, and poetry manuscripts until March 6. Submission fee can be waived with an email. 

Salt Hill Journal is open for submissions of fiction and poetry until February 15. 

Transfixt: Transgender Aesthetics at the Tipping Point, an anthology edited by Jules Rosskam and Jaclyn Pryor, is accepting proposals until March 15.