“Poll: Which one of these erotica stories would you most want to read?”
I am emerging from my sabbatical from social media and serious online activity to post about this great article and fun poll on the blog of Best Lesbian Erotica of the Year, Vol. 6 editor Sinclair Sexsmith.
Wishing I could celebrate…
Wishing I could celebrate my latest publication on Melissa Fondakowski’s blog Unfit to Print, but I’m still hurting over the death of my longtime colleague from the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder, editor-journalist-activist Mel Reeves. Still, I’m grateful for the publication and for Melissa heaping such great praise upon me.
![Essay: “An Immodest Proposal” [CONTENT ADVISORY]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60ecbacdd12a436a7f7550ae/1637786993450-HY85IRRZ09B7RLFFC4RK/pistol.jpg)
Essay: “An Immodest Proposal” [CONTENT ADVISORY]
CONTENT ADVISORY: Discussions of sexual assault, gun violence, domestic violence, physical child abuse, child homicide and violence against peaceful protesters.
Article: “I Am a Victim of a Harmful Algorithm”
I’ve written about bigotry in algorithms, artificial intelligence and other technologies before. However, I never expected this issue to hit me at home in such a personal and invasive manner.
My End-of-the-Year book sale
This year, in addition to participating in the Smashwords End-of-the-Year ebook sale, I’ll be putting the print versions of both books on sale from December 21 — January 1.
My star day
Tuesday, December 7, 2021, was my star day, with a session with a photographer for the Minnesota Women’s Press, gracious accommodations made for me by my local library, and an interview on a local radio station that was video-streamed on Facebook Live.
Finally made it into Best Lesbian Erotica!
I have a story in the upcoming Best Lesbian Erotica of the Year 6! This was my fourth attempt at trying to get into BLE. I wasn’t even going to bother submitting this time, but editor Sinclair Sexsmith emailed me personally asking me to submit after reading my story in a Black lesbian erotica anthology and seeing I had previously submitted to BLE.
Essay: “Madness”
“Madness” is a graduate school-era rant, plain and simple. It’s wild, messy, pissed off, but there’s a lot of truth in it.
Essay: “The Sacred, the Ceremonial, and Substances”
As a longtime proud lightweight drinker, I’ve always been interested in people’s mores, values and practices when it comes to casual substance use. This essay explores some of my observations and my own values when it comes to mind-altering chemical use.
My second Brick Architect article
My second writing assignment for Lego-centered website The Brick Architect is a contribution to a collective article reviewing all five of the 2021 Lego Advent Calendar sets. I got to review the City Advent Calendar, which meant receiving a free Lego set courtesy of The Brick Architect himself, writer Tom Alphin, to assemble.
Essay: “Ars longa, life ain’t shit”
This graduate school prose piece is based on the ancient aphorism “Ars longa, vita brevis.” The essay applies the idea to my life and purpose of making art and being alive.
![Essay: “Scars” [CONTENT ADVISORY]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/60ecbacdd12a436a7f7550ae/1635879611634-Z0JPD3ISCU6V48ORUVIP/razor+blade.jpg)
Essay: “Scars” [CONTENT ADVISORY]
CONTENT ADVISORY: Discussions of suicide attempts, behavioral health conditions including PTSD, psychiatric imprisonment and self-mutilation, including cutting, piercing and tattooing. Graphic descriptions of cutting.
Essay: “Fear and Desire”
“Fear and Desire” is a graduate school essay that reflected my struggle to reconcile what I wanted out of life to what life seemed to want out of me. Though my life has changed a lot since I wrote this, the basic message of it is still true.
Fiction: “Soul Train Time”
“Soul Train Time” is another fiction experiment from graduate school. Sadly, it’s based on a very true incident of adolescent violence.
My erotica story excerpt on The Good Bits
The Good Bits is a website that publishes and promotes excerpts from erotica books. An excerpt from my contribution to the anthology “Owning It: Embracing Our Bodies, Sexuality, and Power” is now posted at thegoodbits.com.
Essay: “Lessons from a Coffee-Table Art Book”
A $4.95 coffee-table art book from a mail-order remainder bookstore inspired me so much I wrote an essay about it — and then placed it in the pages of the book. This is the first time this private essay on a monograph of Henri Matisse has seen the light of day.
Poetry: “My Romance”
“My Romance” is a poem/spoken word piece I wrote as a teenager. In this work, I was trying to portray what I now know is called “intrusive thoughts,” a symptom of PTSD, depression and anxiety, among other conditions.
Poetry: “Solitude”
I wrote “Solitude” when I was a teenager. My life was pretty miserable then, so this poem portrays that.
Flash fiction: “Tonight Is the Night”
“Tonight Is the Night” is a very early flash fiction piece, written when I was an undergrad. This story is a mix of fact and fiction about the trauma of attempted first PIV intercourse, and it’s named after a great song by a great songwriter, the late Betty Wright.
Nonfiction: “Kill”
“Kill” is another prose experiment from graduate school. This depicts painfully true events from junior high school, the place that The Simpsons creator Matt Groening rightfully calls “the deepest pit in hell.”