Published in Wholistique·PinnedMember-onlyThe Impersonator in the Mirror“It was good!” My girlfriend lied. “I really liked it!” How could she keep a straight face, telling me this? She’d read my most recent piece of writing and I knew it was bad, knew she was just being nice. I waved my hand in the air. “Eh,” I grunted…Self5 min readSelf5 min read
Published in An Injustice!·Nov 11, 2021Member-only“You Have to Scream” — An Interview with Nique CraftNique Craft was a force to reckon with, making national headlines as a protester in Pittsburgh — Interview from June 2020 Face to face, you’d be foolish to say Nique Craft looked vulnerable. You might wake up on the ground if you did. Yet as a Black, nonbinary metalhead, there aren’t many people in this city more marginized; because of this, Nique has been at the forefront of the Pittsburgh protest…Self7 min readSelf7 min read
Aug 31, 2021Member-onlyThe First Ride (was Barely a Ride at All)For a couple years now I’ve been working on a novel about train hoppers. It’s been a constant project in the sense that it’s the only thing I’m working on, but it’s only been worked on in fits and starts. I have a few chapters. I can say they’re fairly…Travel6 min readTravel6 min read
Aug 18, 2021Member-onlyMental Health in the Deodorant AisleIt’s like a radio stuck between stations. Static and half-thoughts. I’m nervous all of the time. I can’t stop picking and chewing at my skin. Yesterday I hung something on a wall and spent hours thinking about the fact that I didn’t center it properly. I try to unwind with…Mwc Space5 min readMwc Space5 min read
Jul 31, 2021Member-onlyThe Vote You Didn’t Know You HadYou can always come back but you can’t come back all the way — Bob Dylan, “Mississippi” I’m walking along with Summer Lee, a progressive democrat running for state representative of District 34 of Allegheny County in Pittsburgh. Lee and I are walking through Homestead, an area I’ve lived in…Mwc Reentry7 min readMwc Reentry7 min read
Jul 15, 2021Member-onlyWatching the Read ReceiptI stare at the little bubble on Facebook Messenger. It does not move. The bubble does not descend. The messages I’m sending will not be seen. At least not on a phone or laptop or any other device. Messenger is the only reason I keep Facebook. It’s been the only…Self10 min readSelf10 min read
Jun 26, 2021Member-onlyThe Scent of ImaginationHow many pandemic novels do you think anyone actually finished? I would bet surprisingly few. Once it was clear I wouldn’t be going anywhere for a while — that my job wasn’t reopening anytime soon and everything was shutting down— I knew for sure I’d finish my train hopping novel…Life6 min readLife6 min read
Published in The Startup·Sep 8, 2020Member-onlyThe Pains and Pleasures of RitualsA look at the ways I’ve tricked myself into writing (or not) — I can’t write for shit. I don’t mean that the things I do write are bad but that, as a practice, I am horrible at this. Writing agonizes me in a way that, if I passed Kafka on the street, we’d high-five in recognition of each other’s inabilities, then we’d…Writing6 min readWriting6 min read
Apr 16, 2020Member-onlyThe Selfishness of My Self-LoathingThe cycle continues. I, of course, am going to miss a— let’s be real — somewhat self-imposed deadline for submitting a novel draft. For the past four months I’ve been trying to work on a project that an agent I greatly respect wanted to see, and I’ll still try to…Self4 min readSelf4 min read
Mar 25, 2020Member-onlyThe American Dream Fooled MeI feel like I am experiencing life without my body for the first time, and it scares me. In jail, my job was to collect trash, run errands, and scrap copper wire for the county to get a little guard food every night; when I was released I sold my…Self5 min readSelf5 min read
