STORY OF THE WEEK

STORY OF THE WEEK

Honey Buns and Cream Soda in the Stairwell By A. T. Steel

Honey Buns and Cream Soda in the Stairwell

By A. T. Steel
You got to live in one of those apartments in the sky where you can see the Statue of Liberty from your window. Otherwise, you’re down here with us, jumping the subway and eating bagels out of the trash.

POEM OF THE WEEK

POEM OF THE WEEK

To Hold a Kingdom By Brian Gyamfi

To Hold a Kingdom

By Brian Gyamfi
Let father be a man walking to the river. A man ready to bargain with water, ready to float. But God, if father must fall in his mind, let it be soft.

17th ANNUAL POETRY CONTEST

17th ANNUAL POETRY CONTEST

17th ANNUAL POETRY CONTEST
Poetry is “the eldest sister of all arts, and parent of most,” wrote William Congreve. We agree and are seeking poets and poems to celebrate with prizes and publication.

Please see the Guidelines.

FINAL DAYS TO ENTER

FINAL DAYS TO ENTER

FINAL DAYS TO ENTER
Deadline: Sun., June 15, at 11:59 p.m., PDT.

THE $5,000 NARRATIVE PRIZE is awarded annually for the best work by a new or emerging writer.

Please see the Guidelines.

POETRY

POETRY

POETRY

POETRY

Cameo By Katie Beswick

Cameo

By Katie Beswick
And Mum, driving, notices nothing; she’s parsing familiar streets sketched weird in moonlight. Carrie’s white eyelashes blink.

POETRY

POETRY

Skylight By Jaswinder Bolina

Skylight

By Jaswinder Bolina
Now I’m no longer the buzzards glooming over the mango tree. Now I’m the fuzzy orange sunbeam glazing the buzzards’ shoulders.

POETRY

POETRY

POETRY

POETRY

Failure to Appear By Rosalie Moffett

Failure to Appear

By Rosalie Moffett
To be the grass someone’s memory spins its wheels in, the globe brimming with gumballs, or the palm—but I’m not, maybe never.

POETRY

POETRY

Derelict By Nina Peláez

Derelict

By Nina Peláez
The sun starts its strain, rupturing through clouds, melting dusts of snow. My shadow appears and disappears in front of me

POETRY

POETRY

POETRY

POETRY

Willamette Shipyard Blues By Alex Tretbar

Willamette Shipyard Blues

By Alex Tretbar
Lost when they let me out
Just my welding gun
So I went down to the
    shipyard
Where it all began

POETRY

POETRY

Reasons to Go On By Craig van Rooyen

Reasons to Go On

By Craig van Rooyen
Because grass sprouts from the stump’s rings like tiny soldiers, lost in a labyrinth. Because this mess I’ve made I haven’t made alone.

FICTION

NONFICTION

FICTION

FICTION

So Far Gone By Jess Walter

So Far Gone

By Jess Walter
Books covered every available surface and much of the floor. Leah loved books more than she loved anything in the world, but this . . . this seemed like a sickness, like an infestation of words.

NONFICTION

NONFICTION

John Irving at Iowa By Ron Hansen

John Irving at Iowa

By Ron Hansen
Suddenly John was there, in slim blue jeans and a rough white shirt that could have belonged to a Spanish troubadour or a sixteenth-century pirate.

CARTOONS

GRAPHIC STORIES

CARTOONS

CARTOONS

Cartoon Art Volume 2025-05 By Various Artists

Cartoon Art Volume 2025-05

By Various Artists
Great new toons by Dan Misdea, Theora Kvitka, Peter Vey, Kyle Bravo, and Chris Weyant.

GRAPHIC STORIES

GRAPHIC STORIES

Let’s Learn English! By Tracey K. Berglund

Let’s Learn English!

By Tracey K. Berglund
A visual exploration of some amusing homophones and homonyms in the English language.