Tag: relationships

Floorboards

Gretchen Corsillo

The floorboards creak as you shift your thin frame closer to mine. They groan like the ghosts of our past, the persistent and unwritten tension between us. They speak of the unspoken desire, suddenly rekindled by our proximity. The ghosts sigh as your breath brushes my neck, a welcome rush Read more

Gretchen Corsillo

Gretchen Corsillo is a librarian and writer from the greater NYC area. She holds a B.A. in Literature with a concentration in Creative Writing from Ramapo College and a Masters in Library & Information Science from the University of Pittsburgh. Gretchen is the author of a bimonthly column for Public Libraries Magazine, and her work has also appeared in Salon and the American Library Association's Intellectual Freedom Blog. She is currently working on a novel. Learn more about her at gretchenkaser.com.

Misfit

Susan Shea

Young and full of new answers, I remember wanting a pair of red shoes so much I thought half a size smaller wouldn’t matter too much, until a blister made of burning lava told me not to settle for tormenting strolls anymore. But, I still had to learn that slow Read more

Susan Shea

Susan Shea is a retired school psychologist who was born in New York City, and now lives in a forest in Pennsylvania. She feels like she is coming alive again, able to return to writing poetry. Susan has been published in Plainsongs, Pudding, The Bluebird Word, and The Agape Review. Recently Susan has had poems accepted for Last Stanza Poetry Journal, The Bookends Review, Exstasis, Poetry Breakfast, and four anthologies by The Moonstone Arts Center:The Weight of Motherhood, by Wingless Dreamer: Darkness Within Me, by Pure Slush Books: Lifespan Series:Achievement, and by Poet’s Choice: Nostalgia.

Big Sky

Carolyn McAuliffe

Montana is so far now. I don’t know if I can get back. Why? You ask. I don’t know. I say. But I do. Late nights sucking On those skinny menthol cigarettes. The ones that make me feel so elegant. Like a proper lady helps me think. I still hear Read more

Carolyn McAuliffe

Carolyn McAuliffe resides in Southern California with her husband Mike and son Michael. She holds an MFA in Creative Writing from San Diego State University. Carolyn’s work has appeared in a Wising-Up Press Anthology, The Motherhood Muse, Califragile, and From Whispers To Roars

A Love Deserved

Lindsay N Marshall

Sebastian points to the letter T, alone in the center of the child-sized magnetic white board. T for Tyler. T for tired. I sit criss-cross applesauce next to my four-year-old charge, who is excited and proud he’s found the letter that’s been missing from the set for days, and glance Read more

Lindsay N Marshall

Lindsay N Marshall is a student pursuing her MFA in Fiction at Arcadia University. She helps care for children with special needs by day, and writes about women who fight back by night. Currently querying her first novel, she’s previously written pop culture features and personal essays for newspapers and online magazines. When not writing, she’s often found rewatching Supernatural or crowdsurfing at a punk show.

Not about that – not about love

Elisabeth Horan

I miss that stupid ache — Fiona Apple Floating in a slick of oil – arms out Funneling the pollution through my hair Mermaid on her back — I protect the brain Coral. I am myself: a filthy Exxon liar Exposed, naked bulge of plastic waste; Daliesque my fans and Read more

Elisabeth Horan

Elisabeth Horan is a poet mother student lover of kind people and animals, homesteading in Vermont with her tolerant partner and two young sons. She writes to survive and survives to write - We are all battling something. Let's support each other. Elisabeth enjoys riding horses and caring for her cats, chickens, goats and children (not necessarily in that order). She teaches at River Valley Community College in New Hampshire.

I Saw Charles Darwin On Tinder

Ericka Russell

I take the Plan B at 8am sharp in the Walgreens’ parking lot. He says he’ll split the cost with me, but we never talk again. I blink, and I’m 15, ravenous, researching male species.        The toll to impregnate their mate. Of course he drowns his Anas Read more

Ericka Russell

Ericka Russell is a writer of fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry. After obtaining her BA at Ohio University, she received her MFA from Western Kentucky University. Ericka now pursues college instruction, photography, and outdooring.

Serial Lover

Yvy Niyom

Truly yours with no Resistance, Time to tell the Classic Tale, Twelve not Seven, History echoed, I am a serial lover with a Heart. Fearfully tangled in the Phantom web, From nowhere Lies came to Life, Forsaken by Thee, History echoed, I am a serial lover with a Mind. Curiously Read more

Yvy Niyom

Writing has always been my passion, but speaking multiple languages never helped me as I could never be fully immersed in one language. Having learned English last, I have felt more comfortable but also more insecure about writing. My education is diverse, and so are my work experiences. I am currently finishing my thesis in Counselling Psychology. I have a college degree in sciences, a first bachelor's degree in Psychology and Sociology, and a second bachelor's degree in Adult Education. Personal favorite saying: Love Life, Mysterious, Unpredictable

Constellation of Pleasure: Only the Stars Can Hear Me

DB Maddox

Chapter 1: Bloodguilt “You’re done with your period, right?” Elijah asked as he lit the candle on the nightstand beside his bed. It was already burnt down from use, but I knew better than to ask why. I wasn’t sure how to answer him at first. I had seen some Read more

DB Maddox

I was a clueless kid back then but I always followed my heart; I knew I wanted to be a Writer but I didn't know what that meant, or what my options were. So I became an Editor--it was something that just came naturally to me. Twenty-plus years later, I'm still an Editor. It has served me well, at least in the day-to-day; and when you're in survival mode, just getting through the day is enough. But at roughly the midway mark of my career, and looking up from the precipice of what must have been my 17th relapse, I thought that maybe this was just my destiny, and if so, there simply had to be value in chronicling it. And while my reasons for writing a memoir may have been tenuous and ever-evolving, it was never about catharsis. Instead, by reliving the trauma of my upbringing and the desperation of my youth, I discovered that I had had agency all along, in my own twisted way; and I felt compelled to share that revelation and have spent years searching for a platform to do just that--until I found the Feminine Collective. I invite you to engage therein with this ongoing series of excerpts from my debut memoir, "Constellation of Pleasure: Only the Stars Can Hear Me," a tale unduly tragic, but through which I expect readers will perceive a reflection of themselves to whatever degree, and be empowered.