“On Buying a Second Pair of Birkenstocks” by Pamela Mosher in The Maynard
The cadence traveling throughout this poem made me feel like I was in her shoes, a fellow traveler, nearly hearing the footfalls. Mosher’s tale of love lost, love found, as I read it, reflects a familiarity as intimate as the space between foot and sole-(heart & soul?) It is soft and comforting, yet a practical piece, a vigorous attempt at truth-uncovering, leaving you wanting to keep walking, and to keep reading her engaging words. The Maynard generously offers the audio of the poem as well, along with most of the rest of their new issue.~ Laurel Dowswell, Features Editor
“Black Sonnet” by Candace Williams in sixth finch
Williams’ poetry blows me away each time I read any of her works, but this one did more than blow me away. This piece punched me in the gut. It’s simple, short, and one of the most impactful pieces of literature I have read in years. ~Emily Ramser, Editorial Assistant
“MRS. WASSERMAN ONE, WORLD WIDE WEB ZERO” by Phyllis Rudin, Illustration by Olivia Pecini, and music- “Blind Ambition” by Sophia Bastian in Issue #122 in Storychord
This trio of story + image + one-song soundtrack is tremendous. A carousel, a full and delicious dinner plate of storytelling. Mrs. Wasserman is a saucy, tough-ass octogenarian Canadian with a devoted crew of business associates that I wish I had. Dialogue-driven and hilarious, this story is like nothing I have read before. Go to it, you must. My inner Yoda is giving instructions. Are you listening? The accompanying illustration by Olivia Pecini is full of intention, strength, and more than a little mischief. Sophia Bastian’s song is drenched with attitude and soul with such sexy vocal stylings. Enjoy it. Enjoy it all.~Laurel Dowswell
“Fifteen-Year Forecast” by Kristina Moriconi in Brevity
Kristina Moriconi’s bio describes her as a poet and an essayist, and her poetic ability certainly shines in this essay. Her piece flows like the water she describes, gently caressing the reader’s mind. In one section, Moriconi writes “I forget to breathe,” and I noticed by the end of the essay, I had forgotten to breathe while reading, too caught up in the magic of Moriconi’s words.~Emily Ramser, Editorial Assistant
“Full and Plum-Colored Velvet” by Anne Graue in THE FEM
Language like the words of this poem will entrap me as a reader. Graue creates such vivid images, I felt like I was watching a movie rather than reading a poem. The last two lines are the most impactful and left me wanting to reread the poem twenty more times. ~Emily Ramser, Editorial Assistant
“LinkedIn Thought You Might Be Interested in This Post-Climate Impact Job: Environmental Migrant Management and Soil-Free Solutions” by Ashley Shelby in the spark
Shelby’s flash fiction/short story/job posting/prose piece extraordinaire is hilarious and thought-provoking. I am not quite sure what to call it short of amazing, as it’s not your typical short story. It’s written like a job posting for the position of Director of Disaster Resilience and Refugee Feeding Programs for Hydroponic Nutrient Solutions in 2024. It details the job requirements (one of which is willingness to travel to Florida), and even payment, which is food. It’s a mixture of comedy and seriousness, and leaves readers wondering about where the world is headed.~Emily Ramser, Editorial Assistant
Like a Book at Evening, Beautiful but Untrue, Like a Book on Rising, Beautiful and True by Chard deNiord in The Cortland Review
Truth. This is the subject of deNoird’s (check author’s name) essay. It reads as philosophy; it reads as poetry. It is critique. The piece is stunning in its treatment of the idea, the ephemeral concoction of truth… In one section of the piece, he speaks of the enormity of the word (world?) in juxtaposition to the reality of our world.
“In the polarized Zeitgeist of today’s politics and social media in which religious absolutism wages war with secular indeterminacy, truth-telling falls between the cracks of belief and fiction, doctrine and art, cynicism and fundamentalism.”
He moves on to some beautiful dissections of the portrayals of truth across time and perspective in several poems, including Emily Dickinson’s, Fr554. I shall be reading this piece again, and again. This essay is a true work of art, a venerable sermon, pouring out the liquidity of truth, as a representation of life/art/wisdom/being. ~ Laurel Dowswell, Features Editor
Laurel Dowswell is the Features Editor at Change Seven. Her short story “I Am theEggman” was nominated for the 2016 Pushcart Prize. She was a copy editor for an independent feminist newspaper in Santa Fe, NM, after being raised and educated in Florida. She lives and writes in Georgia, just outside of Atlanta with her son. She is currently working on a novel filled with oil paintings, family drama, and the spectrum of sexuality. Follow her on twitter @laurels_idea.
Emily Ramser is an undergraduate studying English, Creative Writing, and Religion at Salem College in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. She is currently pursuing her Bachelor of Arts in English and Creative Writing, and is expected to graduate in May of 2017. Some of her inspirations include Thornton Wilder, Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Bhanu Kapil, Andrea Gibson, Gabriel Gudding, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Gail Simone, and Alfred Lord Tennyson. Check out her black out poetry collection I Forgot How to Write When They Diagnosed Me. You can find more of her work at her blog.
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