The Boiling Point: Critical Contemporary Albums on Blackness, by McKinley Johnson
Race is a subject that bring with it many negative emotions, making it hard to talk about, and some people avoid it all together. But some musical artists think of this as an entry point to the conversation, jump past or sometimes right into the middle of those...
Blogging Past the Block: Jump Start Creative Writing with a Blog Post, By Justin Delzer
You're a student who has been in multiple writing classes before. You've written a few stories that impressed your teachers, your friends, your parents. That red A-plus written on the top corner of your Magnum Opus still smiles at you when you collect the milk for...
Poetry From Metal, by Corva León
When I sit down to draft a poem, it is almost always in silence, headphones in to dampen the noise of whatever coffee shop I am in. Which is funny because I get so much inspiration from listening to music— especially metal. I listen to metal any time I am able,...
Houses of the Holy, by Caitlin Skaalrud, Reviewed by Anna Krenz
Houses of the Holy Caitlyn Skaalrud uncivilizedbooks October 2015 ISBN 194125005X (ISBN13: 9781941250051) 180 pages Reviewed by ANNA KRANZ Caitlin Skaalrud’s graphic novel, Houses of the Holy, is a wild, surreal ride into its unnamed protagonist’s mind, full of...
Travel: How It Can Help (And Hinder) Your Writing, by Connor Rystedt
Last summer I stepped away from labor and academia to visit my girlfriend in the German town where she lives. Not everyone is lucky enough to cross the pond and get the European experience, but I spent two and a half months busting my tail on demolition sites to save...
Writing From Observation: Why it Matters, by Corva León
I was struggling with my writing, frustrated that none of my images were accurate or vivid enough. I asked my poetry professor, Gretchen Marquette, if she had advice on how to practice my images in poetry. She gave me a copy of Jim Moore’s Invisible Strings and told...
In a Writing Workshop? Advice for Productive Participation by Morgan Miller
Seasoned writer or a newcomer, workshops are great places helping you see needs improvement from fresh perspectives. However, there are a few things you need to be aware of before you get into one. Don't Share a Piece Without a Middle In my final year of undergrad,...
Meridian, by Kathleen Jesme, Reviewed by Debbie Johnson-Hill
Meridian Kathleen Jesme Tupelo Press September 2012 ISBN: 978-1-936797-18-9 40 pages Reviewed by DEBBIE JOHNSON-HILL I left the cemetery knee-deep the snow laying a wreath and then blotting it. (3) In the brief space of two stanzas, readers are introduced to the...
One Summer Day: An Essential Short Story Reading List for Every Writer, by Caitlin O’Brien
Throughout my college career as a creative writing major, I’ve been taught to read as a writer. Instead of simply enjoying a story for what it is, I look at it with a magnifying glass in hand, trying to decipher what the author has done and how. Once you can identify...
Five Spoken Word Resources for Young Writers by Blythe Baird
1. Young Chicago Authors (Chicago, IL) YCA is the nonprofit birthplace of “Louder Than A Bomb,” now recognized as the largest youth slam in the world. YCA provides a variety of free programs for young writers such as weekly open mics, and poetry/hip hop workshops. YCA...
Perfectly Good White Boy by Carrie Mesrobian, Reviewed by Grant Brengman
Perfectly Good White Boy Carrie Mesrobian Carolrhoda LAB 2014 ISBN 9781467734806 304 pages Reviewed by GRANT BRENGMAN Writer of the best book of 2013 according to Kirkus Reviews and Publishers Weekly, Carrie Mesrobian excellently renders the high school party life,...
Writing An Authentic Experience by Anna Kranz
In order to represent the diversity of our world, writers should strive to try to increase the diversity in the casts they write. It’s not that every story ever written from now has to be about a certain marginalized group, it’s just something the literary community...