In This Moment

He brings me watermelon cubes in bed, in a kind act of sharing a favorite treat of his with me. I see him so clearly then for what he is: human, flawed, stormy, kind, beautiful, caring, and perfectly made for me. I notice the way I can’t look away from Read more

Aja B.

Aja wears a colorful spectrum of professional hats including many years as a model, wellness coach, project manager, and horse rider. She is a prolific writer and is now prioritizing publishing. She surrendered her life to Jesus several years ago and since then has experienced an incredible amplification of life and purpose. She knows in a deeper way now more than ever before that love and forgiveness are real and by using these tools we can heal the world.

Creating a Feminist Future

My daughter started Kindergarten this year, and in the fourth week of school, a little boy kicked her in the face while she was playing on the monkey bars. It was the same little boy who kicked her best friend in the face while she was playing on the monkey Read more

Lauren Halsted

Lauren Halsted Burroughs teaches English at Cuyamaca Community College in San Diego, CA. She began her career in writing as an editorial assistant at Surfing Girl Magazine almost two decades ago, and has worked as a journalist, grant writer, online content writer, and has dabbled in research and academic publishing. She is happiest when spending time with her two young children, family, and friends and/or playing in the ocean.

What the Therapist Said

i unloaded the dishwasher that morning and then i went to therapy and unloaded on this new doctor and she said, perhaps, maybe, possibly my post-partum depression was because i just missed having attention because all the babies i had lost apparently hadn’t given me enough unwanted side-show-status-attention i wondered Read more

Amanda Linsmeier

Amanda Linsmeier is the author of Ditch Flowers and Beach Glass & Other Broken Things. Her writing has been featured in Portage Magazine, Literary Mama, and Brain, Child Magazine. Besides writing Women’s Fiction, she loves reading and writing fables, fairy tales, and fantasy, and sometimes she pretends her Hogwarts letter is still coming. When she’s not writing, she works part-time at her local library and brings home more books than she has time to read. Amanda lives in the countryside, surrounded by trees, with her family, two dogs, and two half-wild cats. For her, writing is the best kind of magic, and her work is heavily influenced by mysterious women, nature, and beautiful images and fueled with lots of iced coffee and background music. She’s the kind of monster who dog-ears book pages, and she has read her favorite book, Beauty by Robin McKinley, probably a hundred times. She loves pizza, tattoos, shopping, and pretty much anything French.

My Mother’s Heart

I remember my fascination as a young girl of six or seven, laying on my parent’s king size bed watching my mother comb out her long, light brown hair. My mother was always different than all the other moms. Sure, she was sweet, made cookies and drove us to the Read more

Erin Righetti

Erin Righetti is a professional writer across multiple media channels. She has over 20 years experience as a freelance writer/reporter, and has been a contributor to newspapers and online magazines and blogs. Erin works as a public relations and social media strategist in Carlsbad, California.

Down Sizing for a Bigger Life

Take a moment and imagine… Imagine cutting your bills in half. Imagine making significant changes; affording yourself the opportunity for choices. Imagine clearing out the mounds of clutter in your closets, cabinets, and drawers. Imagine having a home that is well organized, appealing to each of your senses. Imagine starting Read more

Renee DeMont

Renee DeMont is a SURVIVOR. She was born into poverty; spent much of her childhood homeless, living on the streets of Los Angeles, and in foster care. Renee learned early on: life is about adapting to adversity. The greatest gift she ever received? No one expected anything from her. By 18, she was ready to experience life on her own terms. First one in her family to attend college. After college, her focus and determination earned her a spot working at Paramount Studios, on the #1 show in television, "Cheers". At 29, Renee gave entrepreneurship a go and began a Biomedical engineering business out of her garage. Twenty years later, that risky venture grew into 8,000 square feet of success. She broke the cycle of poverty that plagued her family for generations. Recently, Renee turned fifty, filed for divorce (he declared WAR), and trudged through a debilitating nervous breakdown. Through therapy and writing, she reclaimed her sanity. Sold her half of the business to the ex, and now she has clarity and choices. Renee is personally and financially independent. With her new found freedom, she chooses to write in a sincere effort to reconcile her past with her present. Hopefully, through this cathartic process, the second half of her life will be led by her soul's desire, rather than by the fears and doubts of her first half. Currently, she lives in South Orange County with her teenage son and daughter, and her high maintenance yet lovable dog, Joe. Soon to be an empty nester, she plans to downsize the big house in the OC bubble, for a bigger life in the real world. Her days are spent gently launching her almost grown children into adulthood, and passionately penning her memoir. In the mean time, you can find her essays on pain, positivity, and empowerment at: onedropofgrace.blogspot.com

How My Childhood Cat Ruined My Dream of Children

All my life I have wanted children. Perhaps this was a product of my being an only child and dreaming of a world where my kids could play with each other rather than the weird games I made up. My favorite was a game I called ‘marriage,’ where my mom Read more

Natasha Diaz

Natasha Diaz is the real kind of born and raised New Yorker who has never been behind the wheel of a car and a recent Oakland transplant. Her screenplays have placed in prestigious literary competitions, such as the Austin Film Festival, and the Sundance Episodic Story Lab. Natasha is currently completing her first novel, a memoir.

Manners: Why Our Kids Need to Learn Them

I went to Catholic school. We had to, of course, wear our uniforms. Starched white shirts, pleated burgundy plaid skirts and burgundy sweaters with the top button buttoned, and the collar of the shirt pulled out over the sweater. We had navy blue school shoes that my mother bought at Read more