A Honduran’s Christmas: Then and Now

Christmas – always bring back memories from my childhood, and one of those fondest memories is my father decorating the house while playing Jolly Old St. Nicholas by Ray Caniff’s singers in the background. This memory always makes me nostalgic as those times were simple and innocent, bringing greater pleasure Read more

Stephanie Ortez

Stephanie is a highly caffeinated mother of two wonderful boys. She is hopelessly addicted to non-fiction books and literature that moves her to tears. She is an admissions advisor for George Washington University online where she assists homeschooled students internationally. Stephanie lives with Bipolar Disorder, PTSD, and Generalized Anxiety Disorder. She is a passionate mental health advocate, member of Stigma Fighters. Her writing has been featured on The Elephant Journal, The Mighty, The Organic Coffee Haphazardly and Feminine Collective.

If I Was Your Child    

Would you cover me in a coat of armor So my blood didn’t weep If I was your child Would you shield me from the dark The boogeyman that wiggled my doorknob whilst I sleep If I was your child would you smother me with sweet scented well-meaning kisses If Read more

Jacqueline Cioffa

A retired, international model, and celebrity makeup artist. Co-Author of Model Citi Zen, the guide. Founder of http://modelcitizenmakeup.blogspot.com/. Author of numerous prose pieces in various literary magazines. Most recently published in Little Episodes Brainstorms the anthology, among esteemed artists Sadie Frost, Melvin Burgess and Todd Swift.

Women Rising

I am not a political person; I am however a people person. I grew up in a middle-class home where morality, decency, and integrity were instilled in me since before I could walk. I was shown that everyone deserves the same respect no matter the race, gender, sexual preference or Read more

Jacqueline Cioffa

A retired, international model, and celebrity makeup artist. Co-Author of Model Citi Zen, the guide. Founder of http://modelcitizenmakeup.blogspot.com/. Author of numerous prose pieces in various literary magazines. Most recently published in Little Episodes Brainstorms the anthology, among esteemed artists Sadie Frost, Melvin Burgess and Todd Swift.

Good Girl

“Why are you so quiet over there?” a relative asked in my general direction at a family gathering. I was around 10 or 12 years old and lost in thought. An older relative fully snapped me out of my reverie when she replied, “Shannon’s a good girl. She’s always quiet.” Read more

Shannon Williams

Shannon is an interior designer turned stay-at-home mom who had three kids in two years (boy-girl twins + another little guy). She lives for coffee, reading, pedicures, and a good beer. She is a regular contributor to the Twin Cities Moms Blog and has also had her work featured on Coffee + Crumbs. You can find her working to use her voice by writing her thoughts on motherhood and life over at shannonscribbles.net.

Prosper

We raise our hands at the sound of the gun. We stand still waiting to be called on, but the race has already begun. Time ticks slowly, as we stare down the clock. Uncomfortably squirming, biting our lips and keeping them locked. It’s polite to be quiet and to wait Read more

Andrea Nardi

Andrea was born and raised in a small town in Upstate New York. She has had a passion for writing from a young age, and has recently been focused on getting back to her creative roots. After spending several months abroad, she has become more wanderlust than she thought possible, and has a strong desire to see and learn about the world around her. Ice cream, sunsets, and red wine are some of the little things in life that she enjoys most.

INCANTATION

I want so much to serve with this magic you have given me these words that will reveal how much we have done how much we have learned from the men who have led us in their games of violence they didn’t know any better I have felt the seduction Read more

Beate Sigriddaughter

Beate Sigriddaughter, www.sigriddaughter.net, lives in Silver City, New Mexico (Land of Enchantment), where she was poet laureate from 2017 to 2019. Her latest collections are short stories Dona Nobis Pacem (Unsolicited Press, December 2021) and poetry Wild Flowers (FutureCycle Press, February 2022). In her blog Writing In A Woman's Voice, she publishes other women's voices.,

I am a Mother

sick of this shit, white men and their bible blather, pathetic tough talk, grinning chins lifted as if they float above the scum they swim in. I am a mother listening to mournful sobs of a thousand children and more with bellies empty, these babies, their cries of pain and Read more

Marsha Owens

Marsha is a retired educator who lives and writes in Richmond VA. Her favorite quote for these troubled times: “Take your broken heart and turn it into art.” (Meryl Streep) Her work has been published at NewVerseNews, The Wild Word, and Life in 10 Minutes. #Resist

Don’t Box Me In

I understand you. The unlucky, the unwanted, the misfits, the downtrodden. The middles, the lower class, the majority. I have been the underdog, the stigma, and the less desirable. I have been locked up, and it the lowest, most terrifying depths of despair. I have been locked up for my Read more

Jacqueline Cioffa

A retired, international model, and celebrity makeup artist. Co-Author of Model Citi Zen, the guide. Founder of http://modelcitizenmakeup.blogspot.com/. Author of numerous prose pieces in various literary magazines. Most recently published in Little Episodes Brainstorms the anthology, among esteemed artists Sadie Frost, Melvin Burgess and Todd Swift.