Yellow Arrow Publishing Blog

Kapua Iao 8/1/24 Kapua Iao 8/1/24

Yellow Arrow Journal (IX/02) Kitalo Submissions are Now Open!

Yellow Arrow Publishing is excited to announce that submissions for our next issue of Yellow Arrow Journal, Vol. IX, No. 2 (fall 2024) is open August 1-31, exploring the concept griefulness, an intertwining of grief and gratitude. Guest editor, Tramaine Suubi contemplated about the term and how “it feels deeply resonant for our current times. My life, my very body, feels full of grief. As I tried to find home on 15 wildly different streets, in five cities, across four nations, on three continents, my body certainly kept the score. . . . In my present season of life, I am reclaiming darkness and blackness as spaces of goodness—as spaces of rest, reflection, and revival. . . . Grief and gratitude are often intertwined in my findings.”

This issue’s theme is kitalo

: an empathetic Luganda term of solidarity offered when someone experiences a spectrum of loss

: directly translates to “this/that is tragic” but is far richer than that

Our hope is that this issue gives women-identifying creatives a place where they can meditate on communal grief and communal gratitude. Here are some guiding questions about the theme:

1) In the midst of grief, how have others cared for you, how do you care for others, and how do you care for yourself? What are the most striking or profound examples you have experienced or witnessed?

2) If your grief were to take the form of an animal (remember, humans are animals, too), which animal (fictional, nonfictional, or extinct) would it be and how would this animal behave? Be as specific as possible. Feel free to defy logic and science; grief often can.

3) Have you ever immigrated to or emigrated from a different nation than your current nation of residence? What potential life paths and livelihoods did you leave behind as a result? Which ones do you still yearn for and why, if any?

4) Have you ever experienced a platonic break-up (real or imaginary friend)? If so, how do you specifically navigate or ignore the gaps left by lost friendship?

5) Who (fictional or nonfictional) is no longer present in your life, whom you would like to offer your deepest gratitude to?

Yellow Arrow Journal is looking for creative nonfiction, poetry, and cover art submissions by writers/artists who identify as women, on the theme of kitalo. Submissions can be in any language as long as an English translation accompanies it. For more information regarding journal submission guidelines, please visit yellowarrowpublishing.com/submissions. Please read our guidelines carefully before submitting. To learn more about our editorial views and how important your voice is in your story, read about the journal. This issue will be released in November 2024.

Kitalo’s guest editor, Tramaine Suubi (she/they) is a multilingual writer who was born in Kampala. She is a graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. Their forthcoming debut is a full-length poetry collection titled phases, which will be published in January 2025. Their forthcoming second book is also a full-length poetry collection titled stages, which will be published in January 2026. Both books will be published by Amistad, an imprint of HarperCollins. Tramaine was one of our 2023 writers in residence and their poem "begin again" was included in Yellow Arrow Journal ELEVATE (IX/01). We appreciate all that she has done for Yellow Arrow and are excited to welcome Tramaine on this new venture.

The journal is just one of many ways that Yellow Arrow Publishing works to support and inspire women-identifying creatives through publication and access to the literary arts. Since its founding in 2016, Yellow Arrow has worked tirelessly to make an impact on the local and global community by advocating for writers who identify as women. Yellow Arrow proudly represents the voices of women from around the globe. Creating diversity in the literary world and providing a safe space is deeply important. Every writer has a story to tell, every story is worth telling.

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Yellow Arrow Publishing is a nonprofit supporting women-identifying writers through publication and access to the literary arts. You can support us as we AMPLIFY women-identifying creatives this year by purchasing one of our publications or a workshop from the Yellow Arrow bookstore, for yourself or as a gift, joining our newsletter, following us on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter, or subscribing to our YouTube channel. Donations are appreciated via PayPal (staff@yellowarrowpublishing.com), Venmo (@yellowarrowpublishing), or US mail (PO Box 65185, Baltimore, Maryland 21209). More than anything, messages of support through any one of our channels are greatly appreciated.

Kapua Iao 7/30/24 Kapua Iao 7/30/24

Weathering Rejection

By K.S. Palakovic, written March 2024

Rejection is a bit like rain.

Sometimes you expect it, and sometimes it comes out of nowhere and ruins your bright and beautiful plans. Some days you can light a candle that smells like Vanilla Serenity Me Time and hygge your way out of it. And other days, you get that one unfortunately we have decided to pass on this that you really, really wanted to be a yes, please your work is beautiful and so are you, and it feels like stepping in a puddle and discovering just then that your old rubber rain boots are not quite as waterproof as they once were, and now you’ll be stuck running four hours of errands in wet socks, and of course that car is coming up just a little too close to the sidewalk and a little too fast to hop away from in your now-squishy boots, and hello, you and your belongings have been baptized with half a street’s worth of gutter water.

Hallelujah.

I’m not a big rain fan. Much like the publishing slog or trying to find a writerly social media experience that doesn’t make me want to eat my own head, rainy days feel anywhere from dreary to genuinely depressing. Plus, I think my joints heard Steinbeck say, “one can find so many pains when the rain is falling,” and took it as a personal challenge.

But to paraphrase a wise anonymous person: if you don’t find joy in the rain, you will have less joy in your life but still the same amount of rain. If you want to write, and you want other people to see that writing, it means facing the rain of rejection: the steady, soul-eroding drip of no and this wasn’t really for me and sorry I didn’t finish it and thank you for submitting but we have chosen not to accept/represent/fund your work.

This isn’t just a problem for the echelon of novelists hoping to get a Big Five publication, or essayists chasing fame and fortune online. It’s for students in overly competitive MFA workshops. It’s for earnest new creators who’d be content with just some friendly community interaction, but whose posts meet a void of silence. It’s for writers who only share what they write with their moms (hi, Mom), because if you’re even slightly interested in growing or learning or trying new things, eventually you’re gonna make something that even your biggest fan—try as she may—just doesn’t love.

Rejection is an inescapable part of trying to connect with others through words. You just can’t hit the emotional bullseye every single time. And even if you know this on a logical level—no matter where you sit on the spectrum of writing optimism, from “getting published is essentially winning the lottery” to “it only takes one yes!”—having your dear words rejected doesn’t feel great. It can bring on confusion, frustration, shame, loneliness, and the kind of moping fits of creative insecurity only we artists are capable of. That rain, she’s gonna fall.

And while some rejections can feel kind, or helpful, or simply neutral—like just another kind of weather—it’s maddeningly unclear how to predict the depth of literary ennui one might sink to upon hearing no. For many writers, delivery makes a difference, even in the wording of a form letter: “thank you for taking the time to submit this piece; we will be passing on it, but we hope you find a place for it elsewhere” can be easier to swallow than “your piece was not accepted, goodbye.” To my brain, a no is a no whether it comes as warm wishes for future success, or a single automated notification, or as a blank silence that stretches on until I forget I’d sent anything in (track your submissions!). It’s all just water when I’d hoped for clear skies.

But how that intellectual no lands in the soft writer’s heart, well, that’s where things get curious.

Sure, I was devastated when my dream agent passed on representing my lumpy firstborn novel without a word of feedback. I’d been bursting with nervous excitement for the possibilities of fulfilling my oldest and dearest childhood ambition: I had written a book! I was going to get it published! I hadn’t learned yet that it truly wasn’t ready. Or that you do not re-query agents who’ve declined your manuscript, even if you revise the bejesus out of it, and even if, months of searching and learning later, you still think she would be the bestest, most perfect agent for your work. So, when that no arrived, it came with the realization that I had blown my one chance, in a way I could have prevented.

Be ye warned! Do not query too early.

But there’s actually another rejection that stings even more than that day-ruining, doused-in-grimy-city-water loss. Years of nos and yeses later, a small queer lit mag about plants very gently declined all six poems I sent them—including the one I’d written, with loving attention, just for that submission call. I’d assumed at least one piece would make it in. I’m queer! I love plants! I’m bisexual leaning against a trailing pothos vine right now.

Still, to this day, I don’t quite know why it hurt so much. I’ve put more of myself into other poems; I’ve felt surer elsewhere about my chances of acceptance and been wrong; I’ve spent far more time and effort and money on other submissions. But that’s how it goes, sometimes: can’t control the weather or your instinctive emotional reactions.

When you submit different things to different audiences at different times—literary magazines, contests, grants, agents, publishers, performances, applying for a mentor, applying to be a mentor—of course no two rejections will feel exactly alike. Even the same piece of your own writing, without a single revision, will change and grow in your reading of it as you do too. Over time, your goals and motivations may evolve. Your relationship to your audience may shift. Your relationship to rejection itself may change, too.

Fortunately, not every rejection will make you want to go hide under the covers. These days, for me, many of them feel like nothing at all: I see the notification, say a mental “oh well,” and in a few seconds it’s forgotten.

Some rejections can even be unexpectedly refreshing. The first writing grant I ever applied for, to fund a poetry manuscript, took many hours hunched over a laptop trying to describe my work like a “Real Poet” while the janky nerve in my right arm grew increasingly and unpoetically numb. I was proud of the effort, the learning experience, and the step forward in my writing career—tingly arm notwithstanding. A few weeks later, I decided to go in a different direction with the project and started bracing myself for the possibility of having to send the grantor an awkward “actually, thanks but no thanks.” So, when I learned I wouldn’t be awarded the grant, it came as a relief.

Meanwhile, a writing friend of mine talks with joy about an agent who declined her historical fiction novel after requesting the full manuscript. This agent read her novel closely and thoughtfully, understood what it was trying to say, and genuinely liked it. She had no idea her feedback would be the first time my friend received creative validation from a stranger. Because peers and coaches and family members have reasons to spare your tender writer feelings, but not an agent you’ve asked to read tens of thousands of your unpublished words, for free, when they’ve got a perfectly adequate form rejection saved and ready to go.

When my friend tells other people about how happy that rejection made her, they don’t get it. And you absolutely do not need to try and find a silver lining in a thundercloud of disappointment. Because the thing is, all of this, all these feelings and reactions that might not even make rational sense to the one feeling them? That’s ok. You can dance in the rain, or you can light that candle that smells like cupcakes and self-pity, or you can just sit and wait for it to pass. Feeling isn’t failing; you’re still a writer if rejections hurt.

Agent Naomi Davis has talked about how writers have to walk a tightrope of being thick-skinned enough to withstand rejection and criticism and indifference—but also vulnerable enough to be open to the human experience, to emotionally connect with readers. We can’t lock ourselves away from the world’s realities, including our own internal realities, and expect to have material anyone wants to read.

I don’t believe writing is precious, or particularly noble: it’s marks on a page that we hear as sounds in our head. But writing can be hard and it’s okay to say so. Having your creative baby turned away is tough, and pretending otherwise doesn’t make it any easier.

What does? For many of us, time and exposure help. I find that regular submissions, and the subsequent regular rejections, build a kind of tolerance against the emotional drop of hearing no. And casting your net widely, instead of pinning all your hopes on one opportunity, spreads out the disappointment and gives you a more realistic chance of success. Getting the odd acceptance once in a while helps, too.

Set goals that are important to you, even if they’re not what people around you are aiming for. Play a long game. Find reasons to write other than external recognition. When it’s rough, commiserate with other writers who get it.

And do some rejecting yourself: weed out the shoulds and musts that don’t work for you. I’ve got a fussy brain and a hoard of diagnoses that keep things interesting, so finding sustainable ways to keep writing means a lot of experimenting and adapting and politely ignoring anyone who claims to know the “One Weird Trick” to writing success. When you have a disability, or other big demands on your body, mind, or time, typical writing advice may not work for you—including how to handle hearing no. That’s okay. Find what you do need and defend it to no one but yourself.

Because sometimes rejections will just suck, and it’s comforting to recognize this, and to know you have a choice. Maybe at some point you’ll get tired of the deluge of nos and want to do away entirely with other people’s opinions of your writing. Sequester your work away from even your loving mother’s eyes. Move to Los Cabos, never deal with rain or disappointment again.

That’s always an option, for a while or forever. Allison K. Williams puts it frankly: “you have to be the kind of person who can hear a hundred nos before you get to yes, and . . . if you are not that kind of person, selling your art may not be for you.”

But she goes on to say: “It is not a cruel world full of no. It is a beautiful world in which the one (or many) persons to whom your work—your particular, personal work—speaks are waiting for you. Waiting for you to grow, to revise, to polish, to publicize, to sell, to share. Waiting for you to make art they love and will pay for.”

This is one piece of advice that I and my “Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria” come back to, however begrudgingly: don’t self-reject. Assuming someone won’t read or accept or pay for your work is a self-fulfilling prophecy. And, anyway, you’re not getting paid to reject your own work—so why not let someone else have that delightful responsibility?

For me, it’s always worth the risk of getting a little rain on my writing parade, because I’ll always have that itch to connect. What would I even be doing if I wasn’t trying to reach out across the foggy expanse of humanity to see and be seen? Algebra?

Writing’s easier. So, I’ll put on my peeling red rubber boots and keep at it. I hope you do, too, puddles and all.

Katherine Sarah (K.S.) Palakovic (she/her) is an editor for money and a writer, singer, model, and rock climber for fun. For no money and questionable fun, she is also a disabled queer lady. Her words have found homes in The Berlin Review, Renaissance Press, Yellow Arrow Journal, and Exposed Bone, and if the writer could, she would crawl into their pages and live there, too. Until then, she lives in Toronto, Canada. You can learn more about K.S. at kspalakovic.com or on Twitter @kitkatkelly. Join her Substack Writing Through at writingthroughitall.substack.com.

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Kapua Iao 7/26/24 Kapua Iao 7/26/24

Her View Friday

Yellow Arrow Publishing supports women-identifying writers from a wide variety of backgrounds, not just because it’s the right thing to do, but because it makes us stronger. Women’s voices have historically been underrepresented in literature, and we aim to elevate those voices and stories through our programs, publications, and support.

Part of our mission in supporting and uplifting women-identifying creatives is to promote the Yellow Arrow community’s individual accomplishments. We’d like to further expand that support and promotion outside of our Yellow Arrow publications. Twice a month, we’d like to give a shout out to those within the Yellow Arrow community who recently published:

single-author publications
single pieces in journals, anthologies, etc., as well as prizes/awards, book reviews, and podcasts/interviews

You can support our authors by reading this blog and their work, sharing their news, and commenting below or on the blog. Congratulations to all the included authors. We are so proud of you!

Every writer has a story to tell and every story is worth telling

“Claybody” by Samantha J. Pomerantz from Germantown, Maryland

Genre: Poetry

Name of publication: Blue Marble Review

Date released: June 2024

Type of publication: online

bluemarblereview.com/claybody/

“Quiescence” by Kellie Brown from Kingsport, Tennessee

Genre: poetry

Name of publication: Wise Owl

Date released: July 2024

Type of publication: online

dailyversethewiseowl.art/copy-of-week-4-june-2024

You can find Kellie on Instagram @kelliedubelbrown, Threads @kelliedubelbrown, Twitter @kelliedbrown1, Bluesky @kelliedbrown1.bsky.social, and Facebook @kelliebrown.

Yellow Arrow (past and present) board, staff, interns, authors, residents, and instructors alike! Got a publication coming out? Let us help celebrate for you in Her View Friday.

Single-author publications: here.

Single pieces as well as prizes/awards, book reviews, and podcasts/interviews: here.

Please read the instructions on each form carefully; we look forward to congratulating you!

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Kapua Iao 7/23/24 Kapua Iao 7/23/24

Gratitude is a Divine Emotion: Yellow Arrow Interns

“Gratitude is a divine emotion: it fills the heart, but not to bursting; it warms it, but not to fever.”

from Shirley by Charlotte Brontë

One of the many ways Yellow Arrow Publishing encourages women writers and women in publishing is through inclusion within the organization itself. We welcome (and thrive with) our volunteers and interns, not only for our own benefit but to also (hopefully) provide a prospective future publisher with some necessary tools and knowledge about the publishing world. And even if a volunteer/intern does not plan to continue within the publishing world, the tools and knowledge of working in a women-led, collaborative organization. One that champions the different and the unique. One that looks for partners and allies rather than simple connections (see our growing list of partners here).

It would be impossible to organize, create, and publish without the incredible help of our volunteer staff and interns. They provide the thought process behind each journal by picking each issue’s theme and reading/voting on each submitted piece. They then read through the chosen submissions and edit them carefully and thoughtfully, not to change the voice of the author but to ensure that the voice flourishes. They provide continuous feedback and proofread the final product before release. And the same goes for our published chapbooks; the process of forming something for publication is thoughtfully long but fulfilling, nonetheless.

We try to find each volunteer, each intern, space in our organization to grow and flourish in the area they are most interested in (and of course where we need the most help!). Past staff members have worked at our live events and at Yellow Arrow House. They hand bound our publications and put as much love and tenderness into each copy as we could hope. Now that we are a mostly virtual publishing company, they focus on copyediting and proofreading as well as writing blogs and press releases. They create promotional material and images for our authors and create marketing campaigns. They help at live and virtual events and readings. And above all else, they support. Not only the Yellow Arrow team but our authors as well. I am so thankful to have had them with me on this journey.

So let’s introduce the summer 2024 interns. Each has our appreciation.

Caroline Kunz

Publications Intern

From Rochester, New York
*What do you do*? As a publications intern, I am largely responsible for formatting, copyediting, and proofreading Yellow Arrow chapbooks, vignette pieces, and journal pieces before publication. Additionally, I help to manage the Yellow Arrow blog by posting monthly Her View Friday and .Writers.on.Writing. content, as well as sharing my own personal blog posts. I assist in marketing these various publications by creating social media posts and designing graphics to promote Yellow Arrow’s many wonderful authors.
*Where do you go to school*? I am a rising senior at Loyola University Maryland studying English with a minor in writing. I will graduate in May of 2025.
*What are you currently working on*? As a college student, my most important job outside of Yellow Arrow is working toward my degree. However, since it’s currently my summer break, I’ve had the opportunity to substitute teach at a school district in my hometown. This, along with my publications internship, has been a great way to gain experience in one of my fields of interest. Plus, I’ve loved having the extra time recently to read for leisure and write creatively.

Caroline Kunz (she/her) is a rising senior at Loyola University Maryland, where she studies English and writing on a pre-MAT track. She enjoys traveling, scouting out new coffee shops, and, of course, reading and writing. As an aspiring educator, she hopes to share this love of the written word with future generations of students. Her current favorite authors include Taylor Jenkins Reid and Celeste Ng.

She plans to stay at Loyola for one year post-graduation to receive her MA in education. From there, she hopes to share with students her loves of literature and writing, as well as continue with her own personal creative pursuits!

Why did you choose an internship with Yellow Arrow?

I was immediately drawn to Yellow Arrow because of its mission to highlight and empower the voices of female authors across the world. As a young woman with a passion for writing, myself, Yellow Arrow and its impacts on the community were especially inspiring to me.

How are things going so far?

My experience as a publications intern has been meaningful in a variety of ways. I feel that I’ve gained valuable, hands-on experience in the publishing field, strengthened my skills in writing and editing, and found a deep appreciation for the female writers in our communities—all while working alongside women whose values align so closely with my own.

Sophia Lama

Program Management Intern

From Scotch Plains, New Jersey
*What do you do*? As the program management intern, my focus is centered around creating posts and graphics to support the team on social media, aid in building workshops, and assist with any and all programs Yellow Arrow has in the works. I also will be assisting in the editorial process as a reader and editor.
*Where do you go to school*? In the fall I will begin my senior year at the University of Maryland in College Park, and will be graduating in May of 2025. I have been pursuing a degree in English.
*What are you currently working on*? At the end of April, I completed my semester abroad in Spain, so I am trying to perfect my Spanish and become fully bilingual. Outside of that and Yellow Arrow, I am preparing to begin my senior year at the University of Maryland and I will be completing my degree in English in the spring.

Sophia Lama (she/her) is a rising senior at the University of Maryland, College Park, majoring in English. She is a part of a fundraising organization at college that raises money for Children’s National Hospital in Washington D.C. Sophia spends her summers in New Jersey with her family, and in her free time you may find her running, skiing, or reading. Her favorite thing about reading is sharing her passion with friends during book club!

She will be graduating next spring and completing her degree, so the next step is pursuing a full-time job. Ideally she would love to work in New York City because it’s so close to where she calls home, but the true end goal is to work in publishing, wherever that may take her.

Why did you choose to do an internship with Yellow Arrow?

I chose an internship with Yellow Arrow not only because Maryland connections run strong, but because of their mission. As a female student at a large school dominated by computer science and business majors, I find solace in the smaller classrooms surrounded by predominantly female students. I see the hard work my classmates put in, reading several books a week and writing 10 papers per semester, and I also see it go unnoticed outside of the classroom. Yellow Arrow’s mission truly resonated with me because they put a spotlight on dedicated women readers and writers, and ensure their chance to shine. I chose Yellow Arrow because that is something I will always want to be a part of.

How are things going so far?

After about a month and a half of interning at Yellow Arrow, I’ve been given the opportunity to meet and learn from so many intelligent people. We are currently gearing up to host an advisory event with local individuals in the Baltimore/Maryland arts scene, so I am extremely eager to hear from those with great success in the field I hope to stay in.

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Thank you to everyone who supports these women and all writers who toil away day after day. Please show them some love in the comments below or on Yellow Arrow’s Facebook or Instagram. If interested in joining us as an editorial associate or intern, fill out an application at yellowarrowpublishing.com/internships.

Kapua Iao 7/16/24 Kapua Iao 7/16/24

On the Fullness of Grief

Yellow Arrow Publishing would like to announce the next guest editor for Yellow Arrow Journal, Tramaine Suubi. Tramaine will oversee the creation of our Vol. IX, No. 2 issue (fall 2024).

This next issue of Yellow Arrow Journal explores the concept grieful, whether grief is unconventional, unexpected, unpredictable, unabashed, undying. How can grieving and its rituals and odes be a loud testament to what it is that one is grieving and gratified for? To learn more about this term, read Tramaine’s words below. Mark your calendar! The theme will be released next week. Submissions open August 1 and the issue will be released in November.

Tramaine Suubi (she/they) is a multilingual writer who was born in Kampala. She is a graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. Her forthcoming debut is a full-length poetry collection titled phases, which will be published in January 2025. Her forthcoming second book is also a full-length poetry collection titled stages, which will be published in January 2026. Both books will be published by Amistad, an imprint of HarperCollins. Tramaine was one of our 2023 writers in residence and their poem "begin again" was included in Yellow Arrow Journal ELEVATE (IX/01). We appreciate all that she has done for Yellow Arrow and are excited to welcome Tramaine on this new venture.

Please follow Yellow Arrow on Facebook and Instagram for the theme announcement. Below, you can read more about Tramaine’s perspective on grief. We look forward to (re)working with Tramaine over the next few months.

Show some love to Tramaine on YouTube here.

By Tramaine Suubi

The idea we plan to explore for the forthcoming issue of Yellow Arrow Journal (Vol. IX, No. 02) is grieful. This term was created by my psychologist, and it feels deeply resonant for our current times. My life, my very body, feels full of grief. As I tried to find home on 15 wildly different streets, in five cities, across four nations, on three continents, my body certainly kept the score. We began the COVID pandemic with emails hoping to find us well, when most of us rarely were. Government officials and publications often wrapped the chaos of our lives in the package of “these unprecedented times.” The times were definitely unprecedented, but they are also so much more than that. Many social media users still allude to the profound exhaustion of living through major historical events. I am right there with them. Decades from now, I wonder what scientific studies will teach us about the unquantifiable loss that our society is simply not processing.

As a writer, editor, and teacher, I am obsessed with words. Not only is “Words of Affirmation” my primary love language for receiving, but it is also the primary way I give love. When it comes to grief, words do not feel adequate because language is inherently limited. I eventually found freedom from this finitude of language by being content to bear witness to the infinity of human experience. There really is an art to witnessing. My favorite essay is “Poetry is not a Luxury” by the late, great Audre Lorde. She is one of my guiding lights not only in the practice of writing but the practice of living. In the first half of the essay, she illustrates the beauty of the dark as a place of transformation. She believes, “These places of possibility within ourselves are dark because they are ancient and hidden; they have survived and grown strong through darkness.

In my present season of life, I am reclaiming darkness and blackness as spaces of goodness—as spaces of rest, reflection, and revival. And so, as I wade through these depths, I keep encountering grief. I commune with my grief and listen to her diligently. She is teaching me so much. Whenever I come up for air, I am struck by what grief leaves in her wake: gratitude for the good that remains. My philosophy studies taught me how to ask questions more than they taught me how to find answers. My creative studies are teaching me how to ask better questions. I was trapped in why we suffer, now I am exploring how we love as we suffer. Grief and gratitude are often intertwined in my findings.

Through my chronic pain and chronic fatigue, I try to adhere to a daily gratitude practice. The muscle is weak, but the movement is growing. In this issue of Yellow Arrow Journal, I invite us to meditate on communal grief and communal gratitude. The infinite manifestations of our griefulness can find space here. A teacher once told me that we write out of the wound. Though the wound never fully heals, the wound always changes. I hope we move beyond the farce of individualism and into the power of collectivism. After all, as a beloved once reminded me, wounds are for community.

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Kapua Iao 7/14/24 Kapua Iao 7/14/24

Meet a Staff Member: Natalie Wollenzien

Yellow Arrow Publishing recently hired several new readers for our chapbook submissions (round 1 reading is currently taking place!) and would like to introduce each of them in a blog series over the weekend: Anna Leonard, Jillian Tremblay, and Natalie Wollenzien. Spring publications intern, Mel Silberger, also decided to stay on staff and has joined our new readers during our first-round selections; we’ll reintroduce Mel later in the year.

We are excited to have fresh eyes on this year’s chapbook submissions and to hear what they have to say about the beautiful voices shared with us. Thank you Anna, Jillian, Natalie, and Mel, for taking the time to join us this summer.

Finally (for now!), we would like to present Natalie Wollenzien. Natalie is a fiction, nonfiction, and poetry writer. Located in Louisville, Kentucky, she works at Sarabande Books as the marketing coordinator and writes freelance reviews for Foreword Reviews. As of late, her writing has been shifting towards the kooky, the strange, the reality tilted slightly to the left. Her cats remain ambivalent but supportive. She has work out in San Antonio Review and Anti-Heroin Chic and is building toward a full-length short story collection.

Natalie states, “I am so incredibly excited to start reading for Yellow Arrow! It’s such an honor and privilege to be included in a group of fellow passionate creatives. I look forward not only to finding those incredible works but also to be in conversation and collaboration with the lovely editorial team in finding which work to publish.”

Tell us a little something about yourself:

Past publications include “Healing My (Feral) Inner Child,” a poem in Anti-Heroin Chic, and “A Tacit Prayer,” a poem in San Antonio Review. I had the honor and privilege of attending my very first residency earlier this year through the Kentucky Foundation for Women in Loretto, Kentucky, and it was great! I’m on year three of being rejected from the Lambda Literary Retreat, but I’m biding my time.

What do you love most about Louisville, Kentucky?

The thing I love most about Louisville (where I live) is that it is so genuinely weird. Everyone that lives here, in my humble opinion, has a uniqueness to them, for better or worse. They all have something that’s solely theirs, and I find that most Louisville folks are unapologetically themselves. The food is pretty great, too.

How did you get involved with Yellow Arrow and what do you do for us? Why did you want to join the Yellow Arrow team?

I was so delighted to see that Yellow Arrow was offering reader positions through CLMP’s job and volunteer postings! I loved Yellow Arrow’s mission to uplift marginalized voices, particularly women voices, and that they strive to be a welcoming and open space for writers of all backgrounds: “yes, we belong here, too.”

What are you working on currently?

Right now, I am trying to get back into more consistent mindfulness: journaling, meditation, meditative movements, and so on. I find for myself, at least, that it’s incredibly important to take time for myself that doesn’t involve a screen. I’m also trying to cobble together some short story ideas and actually put them to paper!

What genre do you write or read the most and why?

I cycle through different genres pretty often! Lately I’ve been very, very into speculative fiction, but I can feel myself starting to edge closer towards the essay. It’s hard to say why I go through cycles of writing genres like this.

What book is on the top of your to-be-read pile?

I found out about this book this morning [in May] actually! It’s Bright and Tender Dark, a thriller novel by Joanna Pearson. I’m not typically a murder mystery kind of person, but I will read anything that Joanna Pearson writes, as with her writing there’s always something darker and frighteningly human lurking beneath the surface.

Who is your favorite writer and why?

Oh, this one is so tough! I think my most recent favorite author is Mona Awad. Just this year I’ve gotten to read Bunny, All’s Well, and Rouge! She is such a fearless writer, so unafraid for her characters to think the darkened thoughts, to behave in ways strange and uncouth, to make the wrong decisions (almost) to the very end. Her ability to be a master in worldbuilding in her word usage is a masterclass in and of itself, as well.

Who has inspired and/or supported you most in your writing journey?

Honestly, no singular person comes to mind so much as a myriad of stepping stones in the form of supportive loved ones, teachers, professors, TAs, and coworkers throughout my life. I’ve found that sharing your writing can be such a vulnerable thing, and it’s the folks that responded with such compassion and care that I owe so much to.

What do you love most about writing?

It feels transformative, in a way. Even when I’m writing something from my own perspective, it feels as though I enter a different universe when I get in a proper flow state, like everything else falls away and it’s just me and the world that I’m creating. It can bring about huge amounts of catharsis and joy as well as despair and frustration, a very life-full kind of experience.

What advice do you have for new writers?

Rejection is okay! Being rejected is not at all a reflection of your talent as a writer. The most talented people you or I know have been rejected by many, many literary magazines and agents and publishers. I’ve found that what helps me the most is to submit my work en masse. Oddly enough, it feels like less of a blow rather than waiting with bated breath for one response to one story or poem I send in.

What’s the most important thing you always keep near wherever you work?

I have a small collection of stress balls, each with a different “squish” factor, if you will. The more stress I need to exert, the tougher the stress ball needs to be. Also, water! Anytime I can feel myself getting in a more negative frame of mind, I am not joking when about half of the time it’s because I’m dehydrated.

What’s your vision for Yellow Arrow in 2024?

When I think of the term “amplify,” I think of a megaphone, amplifying a voice. There’s a loudness to it, a call to attention. In the case of women’s voices, we have been historically silenced, sometimes through legislation, sometimes through barring us from important rooms and conversations, and often through cultural conditioning. We’re told that we are too loud, too aggressive, “too much” generally speaking. I hope to find the works that bite back, the unapologetically themselves, the works that say that “I am not too much, you are simply thinking too small.”

*****

Kapua Iao 7/13/24 Kapua Iao 7/13/24

Meet a Staff Member: Jillian Tremblay

Next, we would like to present Jillian Tremblay. Jillian is a recent graduate of the University of Scranton, where she received her degree in English, with minors in political science and philosophy. She is an aspiring writer, and her short stories have been published in her university’s literary magazine, Esprit, on which she also served as an editor and assistant production manager. Jillian is constantly in pursuit of knowledge and hopes to continuously do work that elevates the voices of those around her while also developing her own voice.

Jillian says, “I am looking forward to learning more about the process behind the Yellow Arrow publications and reading all the submissions! I cannot wait to work with the staff and just to fully immerse myself in the role.”

Tell us a little something about yourself:

This past academic year, two of my short stories have been published in my university’s literary magazine, but I have been working a lot more on my creative writing and feel much more confident in my abilities. I hope to eventually publish a collection of my own short stories.

What do you love most about Long Island?

Living on Long Island has given me the privilege of being near New York City and the busy life of it all but also distanced me enough to find solace in a slower paced life when necessary. The first time I left home was for college, and while I will be returning home after graduation, I am most excited at the possibility of traveling in the future and seeing wherever I land.

How did you get involved with Yellow Arrow and what do you do for us? Why did you want to join the Yellow Arrow team?

I got involved with Yellow Arrow after finding them through Instagram and going through the application process to join the staff as a reader. I was especially drawn to the team because of Yellow Arrow’s mission to uplift women-identifying voices.

What are you working on currently?

As I am completing my undergraduate degree, I am currently looking further into graduate programs and generally working to see what best suits my goal to change lives through literature.

What genre do you write or read the most and why?

One of my favorite genres to read is fantasy, but I have yet to write any fantasy of my own. When I think of my favorite fantasy books, I largely credit them for the quality of worldbuilding and how committed the work is to immerse the reader in that world. As I continue to write more contemporary fiction, I hope that down the line I can develop a confidence in my writing that will allow me to explore that level of creativity.

What book is on the top of your to-be-read pile?

The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoevsky. The length is daunting, but I’m determined to get through it!

Who is your favorite writer and why?

Fredrik Backman is one of my favorite contemporary authors. I find his prose to be breathtaking, and evidently reflects the care with which he handles every single character in his works. I also find myself most inspired to write after reading something of his.

Who has inspired and/or supported you most in your writing journey?

One of the greatest inspirations for pursuing creative writing has been an English professor at my university who is the moderator for the literary magazine I have been an editor on. I have also had the privilege to take two of his classes, and he entirely changed the way I write, both critically and creatively, for the better.

What do you love most about writing?

Something I love about writing is the ability for a piece to take on an entirely different shape in its execution than when the idea originally formulated in your head. I love to hand write my first few drafts of a piece in my journal, so I can look back and see how a sentence I initially wrote to be the concluding line actually works better as the opening line or how the seemingly inconsequential bullet points of an idea grow into a pivotal plot point. As rewarding as it is to see a piece in its completion, I revel in the step-by-step planning.

What advice do you have for new writers?

Invest in a journal and write out all your ideas as they come to you! Writing is a process and going straight to typing out your stories sometimes forces you to feel like your piece is finished too soon. Writing out your ideas lets you be messy and unfinished without the intimidation of a blinking cursor and an imposing word count.

What’s the most important thing you always keep near wherever you work?

Headphones are always a nearby necessity when I am doing work. Listening to music helps me drown out the overwhelming input of the world around me and gives me the ability to focus solely on what is in front of me. I also just love listening to music and glean a lot of inspiration in my own creative process by listening to different songs.

What’s your vision for Yellow Arrow in 2024?

When I think of amplifying, I picture a lit stage in need of a spotlight. While some may be attentive to certain voices, others willfully overlook these people and ignore what could possibly enrich them. A spotlight is what forces people to stop, watch, and listen. I think that using the tools we have to project other’s voices is one of the most important things we can do as humans.

*****

Kapua Iao 7/12/24 Kapua Iao 7/12/24

Meet a Staff Member: Anna Leonard

First, we would like to present Anna Leonard. Anna (she/her) is a poet, musician, and artist based in Richmond, Virginia. She is entering an MFA program to study creative writing (poetry) at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) and got her BA in theater with a minor in creative writing from VCU in 2019. Writing serves as a vulnerable exercise in her dedication to sincerity and peace-seeking. Her poems can be read in Emerge Literary Journal, Anti-Heroin Chic, Ghost City Press, Eunoia Review, and The Rising Phoenix Review. She has songs available to stream on all streaming platforms.

Anna says, “I am obsessed with the contemporary. I want to be in the here and now of literature as much as possible, so getting the inside scoop as to what people are moved to create and share to publications right here and now is thrilling. In line with that, I feel lucky to be playing a part in advocating for other female-identifying writers and helping to build a space where we all can explore, create, play, and share our voices with the world. We deserve it.”

Tell us a little something about yourself:

Writing has always been about connecting with others, so I’m honored to have a handful of poetry publications and songs available to stream. Throughout my life, I have fervently pursued performance and creation in many forms: classical opera, producing music, ballet, acting, stand-up, sketch comedy, film studies, woodworking, film, etc. Aside from creating, I am deeply moved by spending time outdoors, enjoy playing video games, and love my two rambunctious cats, Cricket and Cherry.

What do you love most about Richmond, Virginia?

I love Richmond because it feels like everything is at my fingertips. It’s a small enough city that I run into someone I know wherever I go, but it’s big enough to connect with every type of person or niche interest I could possibly be seeking. It hosts a uniquely friendly and authentic community of creators. I didn’t expect to like it so much!

How did you get involved with Yellow Arrow and what do you do for us? Why did you want to join the Yellow Arrow team?

I first heard of Yellow Arrow when I was looking for creative nonfiction classes. I stumbled upon a Yellow Arrow Write Here, Write Now one-off workshop taught by Kerry Graham, and I knew it was a welcoming community I would be lucky to be part of! When I saw Yellow Arrow was looking for readers, I remembered the quality of the conversations I got to take part in during that workshop and immediately reached out.

What are you working on currently?

I am currently working toward my goal of being better at video games (Fortnite at the moment). In August of 2024, I am beginning my MFA journey to study poetry, so I’m hoping to throw myself into academia shortly!

What genre do you write or read the most and why?

I write poetry and songs the most. I think of short form writing as an invitation with a generally low commitment level, and it’s amazing what you can accomplish in such little time. Short form writing like this gives me the chance to explore so many different perspectives and lives in a short amount of time. Don’t get me wrong, I very much so labor over these pieces and, at the same time, still love writing long scripts/working on chunks of novels. However, that’s the big draw. We can work hard to change the world in only a few words.

What book is on the top of your to-be-read pile?

For weeks, I have been reading about four different books at the same time, rotating through them at random, picking them up and putting them down, constantly moving through others. In my current repertoire [in April/May 2024], I am working my way through Sarah J. Maas’ Throne of Glass series, I have both Beautiful World, Where Are You and Conversations with Friends by Sally Rooney checked out from the library, and I am soon to start A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki.

Who is your favorite writer and why?

If I had to choose just one person, it would be Danez Smith . . . or Ocean Vuong or Naomi Shihab-Nye or Rainbow Rowell or Michelle Zauner or even John Green. I think there’s a powerful story to be written in everyone, but of course, the superpower of writers is craft. Danez Smith sticks out the most for the way they can manipulate a page. Their poetry collection, Don’t Call Us Dead, is what first showed me the scope of poetry. It can be accessible, heartbreaking, an act of protest, a stand-up set draft, and everything in between. Danez is so graceful yet hilarious and challenges biases just by writing about their life and experiences. I recommend that collection to anyone looking to get into poetry. It is a bridge, a connection point to a life that I can never call my own, which is the best thing writing can be.

Who has inspired and/or supported you most in your writing journey?

My professors, workshop leaders, mentors, family, friends. . . . They have all supported me. I am lucky that I haven’t been met by those around me with anything but love on my ever-changing career goals and interests, but my biggest motivator has always been my mom. Even now, after losing her to cancer, I am continually thinking about what she would think of me. She always made me believe that I was meant to live a unique and wonderful life. And she is always right!

What do you love most about writing?

In each of us lives an entire world, a rich life that often feels peerless. Writing serves as my connection point to those worlds, splinters into foreign skin. It provides an incredible opportunity for reacquaintance with my sense of self, other people, and the natural world, three pieces of life that feel growingly alien with age. Writing about grief, religion, queerness, femininity, and the search for joy beyond what has been given, beyond humanity’s both isolated and shared tribulations, has become my passionate and personal protest to suffering.

What advice do you have for new writers?

In preparation for applying to MFA programs this past cycle, I was having a dramatic number of meetings with people who I was sure would crack the “how to be a good writer” code for me. Turns out, there’s not a real answer to that. I know. It’s terrible. I’m a really analytical person who is also passionate about creating, and it makes things wildly challenging and evil at times. But this is to say: stop looking for an answer. Write in earnest and do it often. Recognize that you are always learning. Right or wrong, good or bad: these things don’t have room here. The people who are meant to see you and connect with your words will fall in line. Keep working.

What’s the most important thing you always keep near wherever you work)?

My emotional support water bottle. That phrase is a bit tired now, but it’s so true. I started studying opera when I was nine years old and found out that our vocal folds are not a hydration priority for our bodies. I always stay dramatically hydrated in fear of something vague and terrible happening to my voice. Don’t worry; I’m in therapy.

What’s your vision for Yellow Arrow in 2024?

The word “amplify” invokes a sense of pride. Each year, it seems that different aspects of advocacy and community have been part of the Yellow Arrow yearly values, and I am excited to be joining the team in its season of loud, proud, and undeniably here. I envision a year of increased accessibility to workshops and other resources because behind this value is a greater push to reach an even wider scope of female-identifying writers. What an exciting part of Yellow Arrow history to take part in!

*****

Kapua Iao 7/9/24 Kapua Iao 7/9/24

You will see so much beauty: Iridescent Pigeons by Candace Walsh

Yellow Arrow Publishing announces the release of our second chapbook of 2024, Iridescent Pigeons by Candace Walsh. Since its establishment in 2016, Yellow Arrow has devoted its efforts to advocate for all women-identifying writers through inclusion in the biannual Yellow Arrow Journal as well as single-author publications and Yellow Arrow Vignette, and by providing strong author support, writing workshops, and volunteering opportunities. We at Yellow Arrow are excited to continue our mission by supporting Candace in all her writing and publishing endeavors.

Candace’s poems in Iridescent Pigeons, her debut poetry chapbook, serve as a restoration project by articulating the everyday unsaid of love, not just in romantic contexts, but as a friend, sister, daughter, dog parent, wildflower admirer, and mother. Amid free verse, Candace’s use of archaic poetic forms (the Sapphic stanza, ode, curtal sonnet, and cento) and homages to Virginia Woolf, William Wordsworth, and Gerard Manley Hopkins claims literary legacies that have historically excluded women and queer writers. This wry celebration of good, bad, ugly, thirsty, reverent, compassionate, unrequited, and fully granted love rouses new lexicons of connection and belonging. As poet J. Allyn Rosser observes of Candace, “Her poems—intensely, warily—celebrate familial, platonic, and romantic bonds, even as they ponder vestiges of the trauma love can leave behind.”

Candace is a queer poet, fiction writer, and essayist with Cuban and Greek ancestry and New York and New Mexico roots. She currently calls pastoral southeast Ohio home, where she lives in an old farmhouse with her wife, their two dogs, hundreds of books, and every kitchen and camping gadget you didn’t know you needed (most recent addition: cherry pitter). Iridescent Pigeons is for the black sheep, the eldest daughters, the overly ardent friends, the dissociated, the dispossessed, the ones surprised by love, and the eschewers of received wisdom. The unashamed divorcées, the lost cousins, the off-season travelers, and the cockamamie schemers. The late-in-life lesbians, those called “precocious” and “old souls” as children, the truth-blurters, and the ruminators. The Heathers with two mommies and the exvangelical pantheists, the brash empaths, and the shy extroverts. The family archivists, the stationery collectors, and the forgetful overcommitters. The underestimated and the overcompensators, and all those hungry for the everyday unsaid.

The cover art was created by Anna Chotlos, and cover design was by Laura M. André. Candace stated that she “wanted a pigeon with the right attitude, which [Anna] captured beautifully. The cover pigeon does not have low self-esteem. It is rocking its iridescent neck feathers and looking out at the world with intention. I love it and I love the journey it took us [Anna, Laura, and Candace] on together.”

Paperback and PDF versions of Iridescent Pigeons are now available from the Yellow Arrow bookstore. If interested in purchasing more than one paperback copy for friends and family, check out our discounted wholesale prices here. You can also search for Iridescent Pigeons wherever you purchase your books, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Kobo. To learn more about Candace and Iridescent Pigeons, check out our recent interview with her.

You can find out more about Candace and follow her publication news on her website candacewalsh.com and Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook @candacewalsh, and connect with Yellow Arrow on Facebook and Instagram, to share some love for this chapbook. You can also share a review to any of the major distributors or by emailing editor@yellowarrowpublishing.com. We’d love to hear from you.

*****

Kapua Iao 7/2/24 Kapua Iao 7/2/24

Meet a Staff Member: Claire Taylor

Yellow Arrow Publishing would like to introduce Claire Taylor, chapbook prose editor. Claire writes for both adults and children. She is the author of a children’s literature collection, Little Thoughts, as well as multiple chapbooks, including Mother Nature and One Good Thing. Her debut picture book, Benjamin’s Sad Day, is forthcoming from Golden Fleece Press. Claire is the founder and editor-in-chief of Little Thoughts Press, a literary magazine for young readers. She lives in Baltimore, Maryland, with her family and pets in an old stone house where birds love to roost. You can find her online at clairemtaylor.com.

Claire says, “I am looking forward to working closely with authors on their chapbooks and discovering new-to-me writers. Editing and revision have always been my favorite parts of the writing process because you get to take what is already strong and beautiful and polish it up to really make it shine. Writing can be lonely work and getting the opportunity to collaborate with both other Yellow Arrow editors and team members, as well as with individual authors to help finetune their chapbooks will be a lovely counterbalance to the isolation that so often accompanies writing. I’m excited to have an early peek into the books that Yellow Arrow will be publishing so that when they officially launch, I’ll be able to loudly shout about how great they are and encourage readers to check them out!”

Tell us a little something about yourself:

I am a mother of two and a recently retired licensed massage therapist. I spent over a decade operating my own practice specializing in integrative bodywork to help treat chronic pain and tension, relieve symptoms of anxiety and depression, and assist in the management of prenatal and postpartum wellness. I recently shifted my focus to working full time on writing projects and publishing my children’s literature magazine, Little Thoughts Press. Much of my writing centers on themes of mental health, motherhood, and the intersection of these two experiences. I write fiction, poetry, and a bit of creative nonfiction.

What do you love most about Baltimore?

I have lived in Baltimore for nearly 20 years, in several different neighborhoods, but am still struck by how many new-to-me corners of this city there are to explore. There is so much unique history and culture throughout the city and every neighborhood has its own vibe and style. In my neighborhood specifically, I love how many different things are within walking distance. I’m sandwiched between Druid Hill Park and Stony Run, so I’m surrounded by nature and can easily escape into the quiet of the trees, but I can also walk to shops and restaurants, to my son’s school, to an art museum, to the library. There’s so much to do and I don’t even have to get into my car to do it!

How did you get involved with Yellow Arrow and what do you do for us? Why did you want to join the Yellow Arrow team?

My initial involvement with Yellow Arrow was as a contributor to the journal. I had a poem published in the RESILIENCE issue and was lucky enough to take part in a reading at the Yellow Arrow House shortly before the pandemic hit and everything shut down. Since then, I have had additional pieces published in the EMERGE zine and as part of the Vignette online series. I also run a workshop, The Written Womb, with Yellow Arrow which explores writing on the themes of pregnancy, parenthood, and the postpartum experience. I am excited to now serve as the chapbook prose editor!

My poem in RESILIENCE was one of my first published pieces. That early experience working with Yellow Arrow and the support I received was foundational in building my confidence and motivation to continue pursuing publication for my poetry and other writing. I am so thankful to Yellow Arrow for that early boost, and I am excited to be able to play a role in providing that same level of support and encouragement to other Yellow Arrow writers.

What are you working on currently?

I am currently working on two novels, one is a middle-grade story about a boy who is gifted a journal that holds the surprising ability to turn his stories into reality, and the other is an adult novel about a group of women brought together by a shared grief experience.

I work on poems whenever the spirit moves me and throughout the year you’ll find me reading submissions for, or editing and designing, the latest issue of my kid-lit magazine Little Thoughts Press.

What genre do you write or read?

I write fiction the most because I like making up stories and I like how the genre has the flexibility to contain many other genres within it. You can infuse fiction with elements of nonfiction, history, and personal experience, and you can add aspects of poetry and poetic writing. It lets me dip a little into all the types of writing I like to do, but it also challenges me to piece together a full, complete narrative. There are so many elements that need to be managed and corralled. It’s fun.

What book is on the top of your to-be-read pile?

I really want to read Cloud Cuckoo Land by Anthony Doerr. I started it in the past but had to stop because I kept falling asleep every time I picked it up, but that’s just because I was pregnant at the time and constantly exhausted and is not a reflection on the book. I’m looking forward to returning to it now that I am better rested and have more free time during the day to read.

Who is your favorite writer and why?

I don’t really have a favorite writer, but I do have books that I return to whenever I need to feel inspired by the way really good writing pulls you in. I’ve read Ann Patchett’s Commonwealth a bunch of times. I love Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes.

I read a lot with my kids and though I’ve been disappointed to find that many of the books I loved as a child don’t really hold up when I read them again now, I recently read Charlotte’s Web with my son and I think it may be the most wonderful, perfect book ever written.

Who has inspired and/or supported you most in your writing journey?

I am very lucky to have a nice, big web of support. My husband reads early drafts of everything, and I can always tell if I’m on the right path by whether he says, “This is good,” (No) or “Oooh, this is good,” (Yep). Every time I send my friend Judy a new piece to read she tells me she thinks it’s her favorite one yet, and I think every writer needs a friend who is just your ultimate cheerleader and fangirl. My friend, Vic, who is a fellow writer I met online, is always open to exchanging drafts in any genre and offers great feedback and insights. My mom and my sister read all of my published work and pass it along to people they know.

As for inspiration, growing up, everywhere we went, my dad brought a book along with him, and he always had a notebook and a pencil in his pocket so that he could jot down his ideas and thoughts no matter where we were. I’ve never met anyone who spends as much time reading and writing as he does, and I think that constant visual example had a big influence on me.

What do you love most about writing?

I love it when a piece of writing you’re working on reveals itself to you. You can start with one idea or a specific direction, but when the writing is going well, it feels like the piece eventually takes over and leads you where it needs to go. It’s a great feeling.

What advice do you have for new writers?

If you’re able, volunteer as a submissions reader for a journal. It exposes you to so many different kinds of writing styles and voices and the experience provides invaluable insight into what makes writing stand out in both good and bad ways. Reading submissions and discovering what really sets good writing apart will make your own writing so much stronger and sharper. It also helps you recognize that not every good piece of writing will make it through to publication, and that’s a helpful perspective when dealing with rejections of your own work.

What’s the most important thing you always keep near wherever you work?

A cup of coffee and pen and paper. I drink too much coffee and I like to go back and forth between writing by hand and writing on my computer. I will switch forms whenever I get stuck while working.

What’s your vision for Yellow Arrow in 2024?

I would love to see Yellow Arrow itself amplified! Small presses are so important to the literary ecosystem, but it is difficult for them to sustain and thrive. Yellow Arrow has really grown in the few years since I first published a piece in the journal and that growth has been exciting to observe. I would love to see even more of it and to see more recognition for the work the Yellow Arrow team is doing to support its authors and contributors.

And I am always looking to elevate work from parents, chronically ill writers, and those with mental health struggles. Anyone whose creative pursuits must be squeezed into the small pockets of free time and well-being that exist in their lives, those for whom “write every day” is an impossibility, but who are out there making the time when they can, these are the writers I especially want to support.

*****

Kapua Iao 6/28/24 Kapua Iao 6/28/24

Her View Friday

single-author publications
single pieces in journals, anthologies, etc., as well as prizes/awards, book reviews, and podcasts/interviews

You can support our authors by reading this blog and their work, sharing their news, and commenting below or on the blog. Congratulations to all the included authors. We are so proud of you!

Every writer has a story to tell and every story is worth telling

“Fractions Are Numbers that Are Not Whole” by Nancy Huggett from Ottawa, Canada

Genre: poetry

Name of publication: Waterwheel Review

Date released: June 2024

Type of publication: online

waterwheelreview.com

Meet Nancy on Instagram @nanhug, on Twitter @nancyhuggett, and on Facebook @nancy.huggett.35.

Yellow Arrow (past and present) board, staff, interns, authors, residents, and instructors alike! Got a publication coming out? Let us help celebrate for you in Her View Friday.

Single-author publications: here.

Single pieces as well as prizes/awards, book reviews, and podcasts/interviews: here.

Please read the instructions on each form carefully; we look forward to congratulating you!

*****

Kapua Iao 6/25/24 Kapua Iao 6/25/24

Creative Connections: A conversation with Melissa Martini, Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Moss Puppy Magazine

By Melissa Nunez, written January 2024

For Melissa Martini, publishing is more than just a job. It is a way to connect with and support creatives the world over. Melissa M. established Moss Puppy Magazine in 2021 and made it her mission to platform diverse perspectives and encourage artists of all experience levels. The pages of Moss Puppy Magazine are filled with visual art, poetry, and prose that is unconventional yet captivating. You can read past issues of Moss Puppy Magazine and find current calls for submission on their website mosspuppymag.com.

Melissa Nunez, Yellow Arrow interviewer, and Melissa Martini connected in conversation through Discord where they discussed the creative inspiration and passion that fuels this publication.

What inspired you to start Moss Puppy Magazine? What is the story behind the name?

I always felt destined for a career in publishing, specifically as the editor of a literary magazine. In high school, I discovered that we had a defunct lit mag and decided to take on the challenge of reviving it—and I succeeded. We managed to publish a couple of issues before I graduated high school.

Upon entering college, I missed working on a literary magazine so much that I ended up taking over Seton Hall’s lit mag, The Corner Pocket, as well! I began enrolling in publishing courses and delving deep into the intricacies of running a literary magazine—reviewing submissions and orchestrating the creation of a successful issue.

After completing grad school, I found myself without any lit mags to adopt. So, I took up a full-time office job. Initially fine, it soon became apparent that the whole “editor of a lit mag” aspect was missing from my life. Eventually, I quit my full-time job and founded Moss Puppy the very next day.

I named Moss Puppy Magazine after a creature I had created—the Moss Puppy. She originally started as a potential character for a Neopets-esque website I wanted to build. Although there were a few other characters planned for this Neopets-inspired world, Moss Puppy always remained my favorite creation! Some aspects of her lore are based on the original Moss Puppy concept’s backstory as well.

What is your mission as an indie publication?

At its core, Moss Puppy’s mission is to publish artwork and literature from creatives across the planet. Publishing has been so inaccessible to many of us for far too long, and there’s no reason to gatekeep the sharing of our creativity with the world. While prestigious publications have their time and place—and I never mean to discredit them—indie publications are equally, if not more, important for creatives like you and me to share our work and connect with others.

A piece doesn’t need to be by a household name or a famous person to be good, to impact someone, or to be exactly what someone else needs to read or view. Therefore, Moss Puppy’s mission is to encourage publishing to be more accessible to all of us, so that we can share our beautiful work with others.

What other female or BIPOC led publications do you admire? What female identified writers do you admire?

There are way too many to shout out! I’d recommend starting by checking out the Moss Puppy masthead (past and present), as a few of our female/BIPOC team members run their own indie publications. I also deeply admire their work!

What inspires your themed calls for submission? Do you have any advice on writing to a theme?

Our themed calls draw inspiration from both the ‘moss’ and ‘puppy’ elements of the magazine’s name. We typically alternate between themes that are more closely related to the ‘moss’ aspect and those aligned with the ‘puppy’ aspect. For instance, issue 1 featured the theme ‘swampland’ for the ‘moss,’ while issue 2 embraced ‘puppy love’ for the ‘puppy.’

When selecting themes, I draw from various aspects of Moss Puppy’s lore and story. As I develop the character’s narrative, the issues reflect her journey. For example, our [last] issue focused on the ‘whimsical woodland,’ representing the forest Moss Puppy traversed during her adventures.

While I love writing for themes, I recognize they’re not everyone’s cup of tea. To cater to diverse preferences, I provide mood boards and word pools for inspiration. Additionally, we always curate a Spotify playlist for writers and artists to listen to while working on submissions for the theme. Personally, when writing for a theme, I immerse myself in its atmosphere by listening to theme-matching Lofi, conducting related research, and more.

What do you look for in a submission?

I enjoy the lingering impact of a submission, where it stays with me throughout the day or even for a few days. I appreciate those submissions that prompt me to excitedly message the team, saying, “OMG, did you read that one yet?”

For prose I value fully developed characters that are complicated, complex, and memorable. I want to continue pondering about the characters long after I finish reading, becoming invested in their lives both on and off the page. I am drawn to sentences that are a pleasure to read, poetic with effortless flow. Specific details hold significance for me. Rather than generic descriptions, I believe that specific details bring stories to life.

For poetry I appreciate when lines feel natural, as if the words willingly found their place in the stanzas rather than forced rhymes. Regarding length, I don’t necessarily favor long or short poetry, but I seek a length that aligns with the subject matter. The poem should neither leave me wanting more nor risk losing my full investment. Format is flexible; whether traditional or non-traditional, I appreciate when it complements the subject matter.

What is your favorite part of running a magazine?

One of the most gratifying aspects of overseeing a magazine is the day of or the day after we release a new issue. Witnessing contributors eagerly share their work and seeing readers engage with and applaud each other’s pieces is truly magical. It’s a moment of collective appreciation, where we share an understanding of the value of artistic expression. This shared enthusiasm creates a unique bond among creatives, emphasizing the significance of each piece and its impact on an individual’s artistic journey and career. Expressing admiration for a particular work becomes more than just a compliment; it’s a celebration of creativity. I take immense pleasure in encouraging fellow creatives to recognize the worth of their work and witnessing the joy of sharing it with the world unfold right before my eyes on social media.

What is the hardest part of running a magazine?

The most challenging aspect of running a magazine, without a doubt, is the process of sending out rejections. While it’s an integral part of maintaining the quality and cohesion of the publication, delivering disappointing news to talented contributors is always a tough task.

How do you balance running a magazine with your own creative pursuits?

Achieving a balance between running Moss Puppy and nurturing my personal creative projects is an ongoing journey. Recently, I’ve started setting aside dedicated time for Moss Puppy-related tasks and a separate block for my own creative endeavors. This intentional separation helps me compartmentalize these two significant aspects of my life. It’s a strategy in progress, and I’m eager to see how it goes!

Are there any new projects that readers should look out for?

We have a Moss Puppy Encyclopedia in the works! This project aims to delve deep into the lore and intricacies of Moss Puppy’s universe, providing readers with a comprehensive guide to the characters, stories, and themes. Additionally, I’m planning to relaunch the journals at some point.

What advice would you share with other editors/artists?

Never stop creating. Take the breaks you need, but don’t let them become a permanent hiatus.

Print copies of Moss Puppy Magazine are available for purchase through lulu. You can also follow the latest info on issues, calls for submissions, and highlights of the Moss Puppy team and contributors on their twitter account @mosspuppymag.

Melissa Martini (she/her) is a short fiction writer and Capricorn from New Jersey. She studied creative writing in both undergrad and graduate school at Seton Hall University. Currently, she serves as founder and Editor-in-Chief of Moss Puppy Magazine.

Melissa Nunez makes her home in the Rio Grande Valley region of South Texas, where she enjoys exploring and photographing the local wild with her homeschooling family. She writes an anime column at The Daily Drunk Magazine and is a prose reader for Moss Puppy Magazine. She is also a staff writer for Alebrijes Review and interviewer for Yellow Arrow Publishing. You can find her work on her melissaknunez.com and follow her on Twitter @MelissaKNunez.

*****

Kapua Iao 6/18/24 Kapua Iao 6/18/24

Writing Truth: Finding the Nonfiction in Fiction

By Sydney Alexander

In 2023, I attended the Baltimore CityLit Festival, excited to hear Carmen Maria Machado, one of my favorite authors, discuss her work. In addition to reading a new short story of hers that had been published in McSweeney’s Issue 68, she also answered many questions about her creative process, mentioning several things which I felt resonated with my own writing.

Carmen said that she often begins by writing in first person because it’s a point of view intimately familiar to her. When facing the unknown, she begins with what she does know. Thus, the first-person point of view serves as a jumping off point for her to explore more unique or fantastical ideas. What Carmen seemed to be getting at here, at least to me, is just one way in which her “truth” seeps into and informs her writing. While beginning to write, it can be daunting to think about the abundance and endlessness of possibilities. At the beginning of a story, there are so many directions, so many decisions that you can—and ultimately must—make. Thus, I think that her process may also serve as a form of advice: utilizing a personal truth can be a useful way to find direction in fiction, and this element of nonfiction does not have to be mutually exclusive with genre elements.

I think you can start with what you know, and then see how you can reconcile it with your own writerly interests in a story. You don’t have to be writing an autobiography to include elements of your own life, and kernels of truth aren’t inherently antithetical to fantasy or other forms of genre fiction. Especially when writing under a deadline, it is so much easier to write about things that have happened to you than it is to pull things out of thin air. At the festival, Carmen said coyly that she imbued a lot of truth or “real life” into her work, but readers who are not privy to the ins and outs of her life would never be able to discern what’s real from what she has made up. I truly believe in the idea that leaning into reality, and letting it soak into fiction, makes for better fiction.

I think about the way my own truth has surfaced in my writing. In “Homebody,” my newest short story publication, my nameless narrator wrestles with feelings quite real to me: shapelessness, formlessness, the feeling of being a little bit empty. As my narrator does, I conceived the idea while I was lying on the floor in my bedroom, paying attention to the same navy and gray rug that I described in my piece. At the time I wrote it, I was also taking architecture class. I did meet a girl with many tattoos who did tell me about a place in Burlington on Pearl Street, although it wasn’t in the architecture class, but instead an English one. However, to this day, I still have no tattoos, so it isn’t all real. In a way, “Homebody” is almost like an exaggeration or a hypothetical, taking elements of real life. Drawing upon details which had stuck with me over time, I spun a story together with more fantastical elements. In short, an implausible story grew from grains of truth. I like to think it is this truth which made the story feel more real or accessible to a reader.

While reading books, I find myself puzzling over small human details that surface in fiction, looking for details which may be elements of the writer’s truth. I wonder, what are the author’s interests in a piece of writing? Do they align with any facet of the author’s identity? I believe it’s no accident that many authors write about places they know intimately and well: these landscapes are part of their truths, the way they know the world. Over New Years, I visited close family friends in Wisconsin who were related to Mary Helen Stefaniak, a writer and author of both fiction and nonfiction. My friends told me, when they read Mary’s work, they love recognizing the elements of truth which Mary has drawn on, including real places or landscapes in Wisconsin that they have been to and are familiar with. This shared truth, I believe, is what makes writing come alive.

This perspective has even shaped the way I go about my own life. Daily, I find myself watching and cataloging actions, mannerisms, and habits of people around me. I look at what clothes they wear, where those clothes are from, and how they wear them. I look at the knickknacks a person keeps in their room or on their desk. I notice the length at which a friend keeps their hair, and the amount of grease which has accumulated at their roots. I look at the brand and condition of shoes they wear. I have even turned a critical eye to relationships or family dynamics that surround me. My perspective on what was game to write about changed after I began to consider the stories my family was telling me about my own family as potential material for fiction.

Once I told a professor my disinterest with typical literary fiction that I read in all the greatest and most prestigious literary magazines and journals out there: it’s all about boring unhappy people with their boring unhappy lives. I told him I prefer magical realism; I told him I prefer the stories where fantasy intervenes, not just stories about people, and he told me, well, at the end of the day, people are all we have. Thinking about my own real life and the way I can repurpose elements or stories from it in fiction has helped me figure out how to reconcile fact and fiction. I can write fantasy or magical realism without sacrificing the realism; I can write stories about “boring” people without doing away with the magical elements.

I realize now that I have been writing a lot more truthfully than I used to, given that I have become so conscious of all these daily minutiae, and how they make a story feel more real, more human, and more plausible. The borders between fiction and nonfiction are porous. Elements of nonfiction, I believe, are crucial for writing good literary fiction. If you want to write characters who feel real, who seem to exist outside of the container of the story, then I believe the easiest way to breathe life into them is to draw from real life itself.

Sydney Alexander is a junior at Middlebury College in Vermont studying English and geography. She grew up in Ellicott City, Maryland. Her work has been published online in Hunger Mountain Review and Mulberry Literary.

*****

Kapua Iao 6/11/24 Kapua Iao 6/11/24

The Humble & the Glorious: A Conversation with Iridescent Pigeons author Candace Walsh

something flying fast

iridescent pigeons
cloudy future flocks
a peacock butterfly

from “Wild and Frail and Beautiful”

One of the magical elements of literature is its transformative power. Good storytelling, whether through prose or poetry, can change us, and this is the mission of writers like Candace Walsh. Candace’s poetry pushes back against the power structures of capitalist society and celebrates the beauty of the discounted and dismissed. She is a multigenre writer who just completed her doctorate in creative writing at Ohio University whose work speaks to the myriad incarnations of women and the people and worlds we love.

Candace Walsh’s debut poetry chapbook, Iridescent Pigeons, will be published by Yellow Arrow Publishing in July 2024. Today, we are excited to introduce Candace along with the exquisite cover of Iridescent Pigeons. Reserve your copy at yellowarrowpublishing.com/store/iridescent-pigeons-paperback and make sure to leave some love for Candace here or on social media. This collection reflects on the many facets of love and highlights the elements that are often overlooked and mischaracterized. It serves as a restoration project by articulating the everyday unsaid of love, not just in romantic contexts, but as a friend, sister, daughter, dog parent, wildflower admirer, and mother. Iridescent Pigeons is rich with layers of theme and language that call for Candace’s words to be read again and again.

Melissa Nunez, Yellow Arrow interviewer, recently engaged in a conversation with Candace, in which they bonded over a love of languages and the natural world. They discussed the impact of powerful emotions, life experiences, and perspectives on writing.

Who are some female-identified writers that have inspired you and your poetry?

Ada Limón is right at the top of my list. Whenever I want to write a poem, I read one of her poems, and it puts my brain in the creative groove. I love the complexity underneath the conversational tone of her pieces. There is so much working under the surface that is transformative. Every time I read her poetry something shifts inside of me. I also really admire how spare her lines are as I am more on the wordy side as a writer.

I also think about Virginia Woolf and Vita Sackville-West as lovers and contemporaries—and about how poetic their letters to each other were. One of the poems in the chapbook was inspired by a line in one of the letters Virginia wrote to Vita in October 1927: “I want to see you in the lamplight, in your emeralds.” I used it as a title. It felt like a portal into a poem about longing.

I love the lines you pulled from Virginia Woolf’s writing. I enjoyed reading your cento “Wild and Frail and Beautiful” and that phrase “iridescent pigeons,” the name of this collection. It is such an intriguing title.

I’m glad you think so. The title Iridescent Pigeons, a phrase from Virginia Woolf’s novel Jacob’s Room, is important because I want my poems to speak to the overlooked beauty in the world. A pigeon is considered, in places like New York City, a ‘rat with wings.’ They are seen as humble birds, but if you look at them outside of dominant perceptions, you will see so much beauty. I think most good poetry will encourage us or lead us toward seeing things in a new light. It can be wonderful to see things previously dismissed—in terms of the ways that dominant cultural beliefs shape the way we feel about ourselves and power structures having to do with race, gender, and sexuality—in their glory and their beauty. For me, that is what this title represents, and I am so glad it came out of this cento from Virginia Woolf’s novel.

What prompted you to experiment with the different forms in this chapbook?

The first form I started experimenting with is the Sapphic stanza. As someone with Greek heritage and someone who is queer, I got on a Sappho kick a couple of years ago. We see her poems mainly in fragments because of what has been lost, which is so poignant. It also encourages us to fill in the blanks, and it reminds me that whenever we are reading anything we fill in the blanks with our own subject position, point of view, and experience—what resonates. This speaks to the pluriversality of what we share as humans, which is so often obscured by so many cultural beliefs that separate and divide us. I took on the form as a challenge. It is an Aeolic verse, of only four lines; three lines of 11 syllables each, and a fourth line with five syllables. Its meter comprises trochees and dactyls, and I liked the idea of stringing words together in a way that mimics this ancient pattern and rhythm of stresses. When you are listening to a different language you notice the stresses land differently than you might expect. Maybe questions don’t have the same lilt. As someone who has learned a small to intermediate amount of a lot of languages just because I love languages, when I started to learn Greek, it felt very primordial to me. I’ve loved listening to Greek; it is so different and yet also there’s the familiarities of the cognates. Writing Sapphic stanzas put me in a relationship with a queer female lineage of desire-led writing. And it also put me in touch with my heritage. To be able to create a Sapphic stanza that was not made up of fragments was healing and restorative.

How did becoming a parent affect your relationship with your own parents and family? Do you feel this is reflected in your writing?

I think a lot of parents get freshly angered or disappointed by how easy it is to give certain things to their kids that they didn’t get. In many cases what you didn’t get, especially if we have developed awareness, can seem so simple. You want to ask, “Why couldn’t you do it for me?” Before I had children I told myself to get over it. But when you have your own child in your arms and the love is so huge, it just becomes so easy to sacrifice and not put yourself first. It feels so natural to be present. That’s when that wave of what needs to be healed anew hits, even if you’ve done therapy. That was the case for me.

On the other hand, I would also catch myself doing or saying things, usually when I was feeling a lot of emotion, that were exactly like what I didn’t want to say or do. You realize how much programming happens through being parented. When you have unresolved trauma from verbal and physical abuse, again, even though I did a great deal of therapy I had to learn the importance of noticing anger building and make choices while still feeling grounded. I think intergenerational abuse occurs because people don’t necessarily receive the skills in our culture or remediation around those experiences. For parents, specifically, I think that needs to have more emphasis.

I feel this impacts writing in two ways. One, metacognition around emotional experiences is a positive thing for writers because we’re observing, and we can have a clearer position in terms of capturing those things. It gives us a tiny bit of distance. Secondly, these relationships involve such profound emotional connections. I began writing love poems, mostly atrocious ones, as a teenager. Strong feelings and powerful emotional experiences have always been catalysts for me to start writing a poem. It just followed naturally that I would write about the experiences of parenthood. However, I didn’t write a lot of poetry about parenthood because I felt slightly shamed by the ways that parenthood was discounted. Motherhood, especially, was not seen as worthy of writing poetry about and I didn’t want to be overly sentimental. I have maybe six or so poems about being a mother and the experience of having children. I’m sure that I could go back and write more now with distance, but I wish I had written more back then. I wish I hadn’t been so affected by external attitudes around parenthood and whether it was a worthy topic for poetry.

I wrote poetry very enthusiastically and passionately from junior high through college. I was ambitious about my poems, but they generally were love poems or frustrated love poems or heartbreak poems. I dated this guy in my early 20s who was also into poetry. I was 21 and he was about 27 or 28, and I looked up to him. At one point he wanted to read my poetry, and I pulled out my folder of poems and he said, “You know, this is just about guys that you were with.” He just got jealous and petty and, honestly, pathetic. But I felt shamed by that, and it shut me down. It took me a long time to reclaim my voice. When I was going through my divorce from my first marriage, I began writing poems again because that was a breakthrough emotional moment. There was so much to process.

In grad school at Ohio University, I took a poetry class as part of the curriculum with the poet J. Allyn Rosser who wrote one of the chapbook’s endorsements. In that class, the floodgates opened, and I began writing poetry about all sorts of things. Most of the poems in this chapbook come from that class and from my subsequent reengagement with poetry. It felt like coming home again. I got my degree in fiction, but it was wonderful to sustain and nurture my poetry alongside the study of fiction. I feel like they’re very complimentary because of poetry’s attention to the sentence or the line.

I really like how, now, there is a lot more of that conversation around parenting and intergenerational trauma.

Melissa: It leads to people doing the work, learning, and growing, and making necessary changes in the family dynamic and society. The conversation about motherhood and how valid or important it is, is very poignant. I homeschool my kids and right now that’s basically my job. I am a writer but, as for many, it is not necessarily a paying job. It has been difficult to frequently encounter the question, “But what do you do?” There has been progress toward seeing stay-at-home moms or parents as productive members of society, but it can be hard to line that up in my mind with being a feminist and the judgment I can receive from others. There are so many hard things about all the aspects of motherhood however you do it, and I very much connect to it as a theme in creative writing. I’m glad that you are feeling a push to write more about this important experience. There are so many women and mothers who need and want to hear these stories about parenting, especially in connection to issues with our own parents and childhoods and trying to do better now. It is a very important topic for writing, whether prose or poetry, and it aligns very well with the mission of a press like Yellow Arrow.

Candace: Feminism very much involves doing what you want and what you choose to do with your life. That’s a feminist choice because it’s the one that you’re making and invested in. It is unfortunate that working in the home and raising children is not valued or recognized for what it is, and I think it has to do with patriarchy and shame. What has helped me is to see how other countries, in Europe, for instance, do recognize childbearing and rearing. Their benefits extend to paying parents to stay home, giving them generous leave. At least we can be validated by what’s happening someplace else. At least we know it’s possible. It’s not just theoretical. They’re living the theory, and we can be inspired and heartened by that.

Melissa: Yes, that is amazing, and I hope that in the future we might take some steps toward that in our country.

I love her: curved, swelled, stacked, arched, sloping;
Her satiation-slackened, hunger-unencumbered lips
Allude to pleasures undeferred. I fall,
And soft she takes me in. Sly lusts so unaligned with life-denying:
Praise them.

from “Bowed Beauty”

You include many intriguing and beautiful phrases throughout this collection. Is there anything specific that impacts your word choice in poetry?

I am a shameless thesaurus user. I recently read an article in The New York Times by Susan Dominus about how women have been deprived of menopause treatments based on one faulty study. It can be a miserable experience. She quotes a writer friend who said that with menopause, she consistently couldn’t think of the right word, so she stopped writing. And I’m like, thesaurus, hello, you know? You don’t get any points for not using a thesaurus. It’s a great place to find the word that’s on the tip of your tongue.

I’m also attentive to rhythm. A key thing for me is sound. I love individual words and will even personify them a bit. I connect to them in the same way I love different paint colors or song lyrics or flavors. I choose words based on precision and the charge or novelty they bring. I want to get underutilized words back out there in my writing; maybe they’ll gain a little more significance. We have a rich language with a lot of words in English. I was speaking with somebody who teaches in Denmark, and she said a lot of creative writers who are Danish want to learn how to write creatively in English because there are just so many more words to use than in the Danish language. I thought that was interesting. We have this wealth of words; it leads me to be choosy about them. It has to hit right. In a way it’s kind of like picking out which gems to set in a tiara, on display; we are curating something magnificent. I’m not somebody who is spare like Hemingway. I am about the exhibition of words and how they look next to each other and work together.

Your collection is full of love in many forms and timelines. Can you speak about how you feel love responds or transforms to changes in our lives and relationships? Why do you feel this is important to write about?

You can’t change anyone, and we shouldn’t try, but love is a very transformative power in terms of organically eliciting the desire to change. When that happens with somebody who is a positive influence, it’s a really good improvement to one’s life. When you’re around people who are negatively influencing each other, you can feel that, too, and oftentimes families will have a mix of positive and negative influence. I think that everyone, every human, is spiritual and feels a gravitational pull toward changing or growing because of love. It’s not that people aren’t good enough the way they are, but love is like the sun, and we are like plants that turn toward the sun over the course of a day. Heliotropism! One of my favorite fancy words. Love is like that, but it can also be heartbreaking. What are we left with at the end of an unsatisfying relationship, or when we give up on people changing to treat us better? There are gifts in that reckoning, healing, and grieving that my poems hint at.

I started out writing about people I had crushes on when I was 13 and 14, but the love I write about has moved from being simply romantic to being about parenthood, life experience, friendships, and nature. There’s a diversity of kinds of love that our culture does not recognize or support. I feel my poetry in the last five years has been a journey toward recognizing and amplifying those kinds of loves. It takes away the over-reliance on romantic love. Friendship is not given the attention it deserves. We know how to deal with a romantic breakup, but our culture lacks wisdom about friendship breakups. A lot of times, friendship breakups happen because people don’t know how to navigate conflict or end a friendship gracefully. That was something that came up in my poems as well as the poems on love of nature.

I wasn’t into nature growing up, but in the last 10 years or so, I have found that nature in southeast Ohio has inspired me. I never expected that, so it’s wonderful to notice a new area of growth. I think about Robin Kimmerer’s book Braiding Sweetgrass, in which she mentions “species loneliness,” which has to do with not knowing the names of plants or animals. It’s like being at a party where you don’t know anyone’s name. I have an app that tells me the names of plants if I take a picture, and that’s been a wonderful ongoing journey for me. One of the things I love about summer in southeast Ohio is that when I go for a walk, it seems like I see a new flower every day. Because I’ve been taking this walk for five years, I’ll recognize that it’s red clover time, and then that bumps up against daisy time, which leads to other flowers having their moment. That’s very much in the poem “I Wandered Lonely as a Romantic Friend in the 21st Century,” with the surprise lilies. I still see them come up, and I’m still wondering why there’s that one particular rectangle and who planted them. I have a relationship to that road and the plants that grow along it. I can see that this year there’s a whole bunch more red clover than in previous years and I wonder why that is. Different plants flourish or not depending on factors that a scientist would know, but I love the mystery and surprise of it.

And then even romantic love has under-examined phases. We all love a good romcom, and descriptions of romantic love are often connected to dreamy, imaginative, archetypal, escapist levels of consciousness. But new relationship energy lessens, as do our projections on people we’re infatuated with. When those projections eventually fall, we have to decide if we are still committed to the relationship and still love that person. As we grow, we move away from the Hallmark version of love to the nuances, commitment, and decision of love as a verb, not something that descends on us like being bewitched. Acknowledging and honoring mature, settled love opens us up to other kinds of love that are not as intoxicating and transformative, but gentle, subtle, steady, and interesting if you pay attention.

Again, we were one, paired by the sight
like mushrooms springing from the same mycelial net;
glinting within the beats
of distant forests’ hearts.

And so the redeeming lesson longing wrought:
To hell with the illusion of apart.
To hell with the myth of distance begetting endings.

from “I Wandered Lonely as a Romantic Friend in the 21st Century”

Do you have any rituals or schedules you follow when it comes to reading and writing?

I like to walk beforehand; that really helps me. I’ve found journaling important to clear clutter from my mind, helping me focus on writing. I’m not too precious about when I write. I’ve written on the couch while my wife watches football on mute. I can write in the car as a passenger. I love writing on airplanes; being above everything feels freeing. I don’t have a strict schedule, but I write most days. I have regular Zoom appointments to write with my friend Anna Chotlos (who created the pigeon cover art for the book). The body doubling adds accountability and inspiration to keep going. I was working full time when I did my low-residency MFA program at Warren Wilson College, and I didn’t socialize very much for two years; weekends were for writing, sometimes nights. I’d randomly wake up at 2 a.m. and write if I couldn’t sleep.

I think it’s a good practice to be able to just write as opportunity strikes. There will be times when you don’t feel like writing, but you sit down and just write, and you realize you can create something great. The myth of needing to feel a flash of inspiration is related to the concept of a genius writer, typically a white guy, effortlessly creating masterpieces. This is an oppressive story writers have received and carry around until we put it down. Ultimately, it’s wonderful to feel that flash of inspiration, but waiting for it to descend is comparable to only writing when it’s raining—silly. We need to reclaim creativity from this romanticized notion, much as we need to with love.

Can you describe the process of creating the cover to represent your chapbook and what led to the final design?

When my book was accepted for publication, which was the most beautiful email to receive, I was on Zoom with Anna. Years before she had given me a drawing of a house finch that I framed and put on my wall. She is a wonderful artist. I love the vibe of that house finch drawing, and so I asked her to draw pigeons for the cover and she agreed and she spent months sketching pigeons, noticing how hard it was to draw them. I wanted a pigeon with the right attitude, which she captured beautifully. The cover pigeon does not have low self-esteem. It is rocking its iridescent neck feathers and looking out at the world with intention. I love it and I love the journey it took us on together.

My wife, Laura André, is a gifted graphic designer, and Yellow Arrow was very generous and open to having Laura design the cover. We decided on one strong pigeon with a watercolor background, fitting the pigeon’s watercolor palette. The colors reminded me of the sublime in art and the northern lights. The collaboration with Laura and Anna, thanks to Kapua Iao’s (Yellow Arrow’s editor-in-chief) and Alexa Laharty’s (Yellow Arrow’s creative director) generosity, made it so special.

What drew you to submit your collection to Yellow Arrow?

I put together a chapbook manuscript last summer while procrastinating writing my dissertation, after realizing I’d accumulated enough poetry for a chapbook. I looked for calls for submissions on the CLMP and Poets & Writers lists. I resonated with Yellow Arrow’s focus on women’s and women-identified people’s experiences, as my work wouldn’t be coming up against the barriers of mainstream or male-dominated presses’ devaluing of my experience as a woman, mother, wife, and daughter. Yellow Arrow Publishing offered an efflorescent sense of welcome.

As a multigenre writer, putting together this collection honored my poet self. The beautiful thing about claiming a multigenre writer identity is that poetry feeds into fiction, fiction feeds into nonfiction, and every other permutation. We are better writers when we write in as many genres as we’re inspired to write in.

Do you have any advice for women writers on creating and submitting work?

Submitting work is a numbers game. It’s crucial to have a regular practice of sending out work. One of the things that made me feel really inspired to put together this chapbook collection was that many of my poems were previously published in journals I admire. With my fiction and creative nonfiction, I tend to go toward more of a mid- or top-tier publication, but I was less choosy with poetry submissions. Sometimes it would be in a journal where it is very competitive and has a hipster vibe, like HAD. Other times it would be a brand-new journal, like the Australian Lovers Literary Journal, where I placed a Sapphic stanza. I led with my heart and saw submitting my poems as my fun play area. New writers often feel discouraged by rejections, but most successful writers face many rejections. You might even question what you are doing, why you are doing it: “Am I not good enough?” As somebody who has been a literary journal editor now for three years, there are so many factors that go into whether your pieces are accepted or not. It could be the mood the person is in, that the journal already just accepted something very similar, or that two editors are having a power struggle and are shooting down each other’s favorite stuff. Don’t give up!

One thing I find really helpful is tracking submissions in an Excel spreadsheet, which is funny because we don’t usually associate creative work with spreadsheets, but it helps me stay organized and motivated. When I get an encouraging decline, I highlight it, and I can visually see which places want to see more of my work. Most successful, published writers have gotten dozens of rejections for every acceptance. It is really helpful to try to collect rejections because if you collect a hundred rejections, you have a higher chance of your work getting accepted. And it’s important to continue to revise as you’re submitting. My short story “Trimester” was accepted by The Greensboro Review after over a year of sending it out. I think it collected 39 rejections, but I love that story and I was not going to give up on it. But I also workshopped and revised it multiple times.

Time can be a beautiful revision partner. As we change and mature, we are also changing our position to a piece, and we can bring that back to a revision. The 39 rejections of “Trimester” coexisted with me, making it better and better, stronger and stronger. After it was published, a prominent agent reached out after reading it. And so now when my novel is finished, I’m going to send it to them. If I hadn’t persevered, that couldn’t have happened. The best-case scenario of getting your work published is when it opens doors like that. Persistence, Excel spreadsheets, volume, and reframing rejections as just a part of success. It’s still hard not to take it personally, and sometimes I’ll still get a wave of discomfort or pain, but I just breathe through it, and I think about my spreadsheet.

Do you have any future projects you would like to share with our readers?

I’m finishing up my novel, which is called Everything We Know About Love is Wrong. It’s about two women who find out that they were switched at birth in the hospital. One ended up in a wealthy family and one ended up in a working-class family. It follows how they respond to this earth-shaking news. I’ve done a lot of research on real-life people who have gone through this phenomenon, and it’s been fascinating. It has a lot to do, for me, with privilege, ethnicity, chance, familial bonds, the culture of a family, and other ways that the circumstances under which we are raised affect us as human beings. What you can change and what you can’t, what can be altered and what is innate. I have also been writing craft essays for years about the intersection of the writer’s craft and social justice. I’m pulling those essays together into a book called Craft Re: Form. Craft can be experienced as something elitist or part of gatekeeping in the writing community, but I’m all about democratizing lessons of craft because they really do teach you to be a better writer, in areas like characterization, treatment of time, sensory description, a structure. These are all things that anyone can learn about, and it just so happens that writers who don’t go through MFA programs may not have a consciousness of the craft. The more conscious you are of it, the more your writing can improve. My published craft essays, along with other published work, can be found at candacewalsh.com. I’ve also been writing creative nonfiction essays along the way and would like to publish an essay collection in a couple of years.

Finally, what is one unexpected or overlooked thing about you, you’d like us to know?

I was hit by a car when I was 12. I was very lucky to survive with only a bump on my left outer thigh that most people don’t notice. I allude to it in the poem “Things I Broke,” which was written during a Roi Fainéant Press poetry-writing Zoom party. That journal published my chapbook poem “Inside the Lip.” The phrase “Things I Broke” was one of their prompts.

You can find out more about Candace and follow her publication news on her website candacewalsh.com and Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook @candacewalsh. You can reserve your copy of Iridescent Pigeons today from Yellow Arrow Publishing at yellowarrowpublishing.com/store/iridescent-pigeons-paperback. The collection will be released in July 2024.

Thank you, Melissa and Candace, for taking the time to create and share your beautiful exchange. Edits and additions were made to this interview after the initial conversation.

Melissa Nunez makes her home in the Rio Grande Valley region of south Texas, where she enjoys exploring and photographing the local wild with her homeschooling family. She writes an anime column at The Daily Drunk Mag and is a prose reader for Moss Puppy Mag. She is also a staff writer for Alebrijes Review and an interviewer for Yellow Arrow Publishing. You can find her work on her website melissaknunez.com and follow her on Twitter @MelissaKNunez.

Candace Walsh holds a PhD in creative writing from Ohio University. She holds an MFA in fiction from Warren Wilson College. Recent/forthcoming publication credits include, for poetry, California Quarterly, Sinister Wisdom, Vagabond City Lit, and HAD; for fiction, The Greensboro Review, Passengers Journal, and Leon Literary Review; and for creative nonfiction, March Danceness, New Limestone Review, and Pigeon Pages. Her craft essays and book reviews have appeared in Brevity, descant, New Mexico Magazine, and Fiction Writers Review.

*****

Kapua Iao 6/4/24 Kapua Iao 6/4/24

Meet a Staff Member: Kyra McDonnell

Yellow Arrow Publishing would like to introduce events manager Kyra McDonnell. Kyra (she/her) is a community engagement professional and proud resident of Baltimore City, Maryland. After moving to Baltimore from Rhode Island, Kyra quickly fell in love with the city and works professionally in various neighborhoods with residents to increase civic engagement and transparency with local government. After graduating with degrees in English and communications, she continues to explore her love of stories and is a passionate reader who is excited to connect Yellow Arrow authors with readers everywhere.

Kyra says, “Through working with Yellow Arrow, I’m looking forward to connecting with creatives in Baltimore. I have had the great joy of connecting with so many great neighborhoods and residents in my professional life, and I look forward to working with the creative communities through Yellow Arrow.”

Tell us a little something about yourself:

In my life, reading, stories, and creativity has always brought me a sense of peace. I find joy in hearing about others’ perspectives and experiences, and I particularly love the publications of Yellow Arrow that are so truthful and raw. I am so excited to join Yellow Arrow to combine my two longtime loves of books and community building through assisting in growing Yellow Arrow’s reach in Baltimore and beyond.

What do you love most about Baltimore?

There are so many things to love about Baltimore, the diversity of neighborhoods, amazing food, the joy of a community event, and more. My absolute favorite thing is that there is a little something for everyone here. Baltimore is a welcoming and exciting city that is always looking for new ways to create community while maintaining traditions. As summer approaches, I’m particularly looking forward to neighborhood and community festivals.

How did you get involved with Yellow Arrow and what do you do for us? Why did you want to join the Yellow Arrow team?

A longtime fan of Yellow Arrow’s work, I am so eager to get started and planning some great events for this summer. I wanted to join the Yellow Arrow team to combine my two favorite things, community building and reading. As events manager, I am eager to plan some new events and try new approaches to being out in the Baltimore community and beyond.

What are you working on currently?

I am currently working for the city of Baltimore, engaging community members in the budget process. While this sounds like another world from Yellow Arrow, I find it to be surprisingly similar. Oftentimes, I am with residents throughout Baltimore sharing information about the budget and how it connects to their experiences as residents of the city.

What genre do you write or read?

I gravitate most toward fiction, both romance and fantasy. I think I love hearing stories of love, adventure, and particularly when world-building is central to the story. The universe that authors can create is my favorite part about reading, and I love diving into it!

What book is on the top of your to-be-read pile?

Yulin Kuang’s How to End a Love Story and Mona Chollet’s In Defense of Witches.

Who is your favorite writer and why?

My favorite authors are Emily Henry and Roxane Gay. Emily consistently takes romance tropes and puts her own unique twist on them, and I find myself gravitating towards her stories again and again. Roxanne’s Hunger is incredibly honest and sticks with me today.

Who has inspired and/or supported you most in your writing journey?

My friends have always been my inspiration and support in my writing journey.

What do you love most about writing?

As a recreational writer, I love writing to see where it goes, not putting any pressure on the output, rather using it as a tool to process my experiences and the world around me.

What advice do you have for new writers?

Don’t overuse the delete button! I find that sometimes I delete in frustration, and I often wish I had that thought to go back to, for me pen to paper will always help with this.

What’s the most important thing you always keep near wherever you work?

My coffee, a good gel pen, and SO many sticky notes.

What’s your vision for Yellow Arrow in 2024?

As the events manager, I am looking forward to being a part of the amplified effort of the team to share Yellow Arrow’s incredible work with the world. Everyone’s story has a space for being heard and I am eager to find those spaces for Yellow Arrow’s authors.

*****

Kapua Iao 5/28/24 Kapua Iao 5/28/24

A Song and Dream: My Writing Process by Amaya Lambert

By Amaya Lambert, written February 2024

It begins with a song and then a dream.

I choose a song that stirs something within me, something that rattles my bones and plucks the strings of my heart. And when a song is chosen, a dream occurs, and a singular image appears to me that embodies the entire story I want to tell.

There’s nothing more that I love than sinking my teeth into a new idea, meticulously uncovering the secrets of a story, and putting it onto paper. My writing process is complicated, and I don’t fully understand it, only that my brain, while sleeping, seems to be dreamier and more vivid, grasping concrete ideas and breaking them down into themes and messages.

If I were told that I had to explain it in simpler terms, then perhaps I would say that I am an emotional writer, a writer that focuses on the inner aspect of stories that entwines the concept of their writing with a particular theme and identity.

I call what I write introspective fantasy. I love to write fantasy and add contemplative elements throughout the story.

My writing process involves deep meditation, a solitude mindscape that I only have access to. Yes, it typically starts with a song, a song that is elevating and emboldening, a song that unravels on its own and becomes a story. It comes out as fragments for me, pieces of a puzzle not yet complete, that I will put together into a finished story.

My writing process comes in five steps.

Step One: Choose Songs/Music

This is the structure of my writing process. This is where I begin to write.

I already explained the song selection. So, I won’t go into too much detail, but I can tell you the type of songs that are usually chosen for my stories. I go for calmer, emotional, and swelling songs. If they are upbeat and/or the lyrics run deep, I consider them perfect for both introspective and lyricism.

Some of my favorite songs to write to are:

“First Love” by Hikaru Utada
“Above the Chinese Restaurant” by Laufey
“Anna,” from the When Marnie Was There soundtrack by Yomirui Nippon Symphony Orchestra
“Merry-Go-Round of Life,” from the Howl’s Moving Castle soundtrack by Joe Hisaishi
“Enchanted Life” by Samantha James
“Dreamer” by TOMORROW X TOGETHER

Music is integral to my process. I can’t write without it.

Step Two: Dream

Then, my dreams will pair off with the music. I close my eyes and imagine my characters interacting with the world based on the intensity and lyrics of the song. When I open my eyes, I grab my phone and write down my dreams.

Usually, I write only a couple of sentences, nothing too big as it is meant for expansion.

“Dreamer” by TOMORROW X TOGETHER invokes this image of tiny stars floating about and the ripples of the milky night sky.

“Anna” from the When Marnie Was There soundtrack invokes the spring, clear ponds, long grass, and a young girl staring out into the distance. Longing. Yearning.

Step Three: Look for Aesthetics

Next, I look for aesthetics.

I am the daughter of artists and there’s nothing that makes my dream come to life more than looking up photos, quotes, concepts, and direction. I have a Pinterest account filled to the brim with secret writing/topic boards. I typically name them after a certain concept I want the story to convey. For example, one of my Pinterest boards is titled ‘divine,’ where I can explore spirituality and religion, especially when it comes to women.

My Pinterest boards show various concepts I’m playing with, for example, photos meant to represent certain themes, certain characters. I browse through the app, spending a lot of time sorting together a moodboard for my story. Once I’m satisfied with the board, I’ll leave it alone for a bit, though the board will likely go through several changes as the idea for my story comes into fruition. My current board destiny has three different names: kiss me goodbye, wishes, and oracle.

My mind is constantly moving, the gears turning for hours, I can’t go to sleep without being able to think about something.

Step Four: Finalize the Themes

Once I finish my board, I go deeper into the story. See, I like reading novels and dissecting themes. It is fascinating how many layers of complexity an author can write into their story. Concepts stacked upon concepts, intertwining messages. This is one of my favorite parts of my writing process.

I look up a list of literary themes and correlate them with the story I want to tell. My head buzzes with excitement as I read down, eyes scanning for the perfect piece.

For one of my works in progress, I have down identity, womanhood, religion, the role of man and woman, corruption, and love.

And once it is complete, I go to my final step.

Step Five: Add My Identity

Writers tend to put a piece of themselves in every story they create. It is almost alchemic, like pricking your finger and using the blood as the last final ingredient.

I am integral to my story; my identity is integral to the process as whatever stage of development I am in usually influences my writing. For both of my work in progress, I am currently developing the theme of identity and finding your place in the world, as this is something I am thinking about for myself.

As a young Black woman, I believe my perspective of the world is quite unique, and my view of certain themes and concepts differs from the norm. I tried to write like others, write like the authors I grew up reading; imitate their styles and viewpoints, but my writing dulled. The tip of the pencil was flat, barely making any marks, as I carefully tried to trace the words of others.

I grew stagnant, colorless, until I realized the missing component: me.

I remember a conversation with my father who pushed me to write stories about people who looked like me. I was hesitant, but eventually, I came around, and now my mind is full of possibilities for potential stories. I want to write stories for my people, for young Black girls who dream too big.

Our stories are shadowed, pushed to the sidelines. I wish to bring them to the forefront. I research Greek mythology and notice the similarities of the women in myths to Black women. I notice how I can spin the myths into a fresh, intriguing concept with a Black person on the cover because we aren’t usually centered in those retellings.

And once I put myself into my progress, once I intertwined writing with my identity; only then did it grow.

And this is my writing progress. This is what I do before I sit down and pump out words. It is important to me that these steps are followed, because without them, I wouldn’t know what to do, nor would I know what to write.

Amaya Lambert is a senior at Towson University, studying English and creative writing. She loves a good book, slow music, and tasty food. When she isn’t reading, she’s writing, lost in her inner world. Amaya tutored for her high school’s writing center and the elementary school across from it. One of her proudest accomplishments is winning second place in a writing competition in the seventh grade.

*****

Kapua Iao 5/21/24 Kapua Iao 5/21/24

The Thing I Needed but Didn’t Know Why I Needed It: Reflecting on the ELEVATE Issue

By Jennifer N. Shannon

When Yellow Arrow Publishing Editor-in-Chief, Kapua Iao, emailed me asking if I’d take on the role of guest editor for Yellow Arrow Journal’s spring 2024 issue (Vol. IX, No. 1), without much thought I said yes.

1)     Yes, because it was Yellow Arrow; I used to be on the board, and I have deep respect for the organization and its mission.
2)     It would allow me to be immersed in other people’s writing, given that my own writing had been stagnant.
3)     I’d be the guest editor for a literary journal . . . how many times would I get that chance? Of course, I said yes.

After I sent the Yellow Arrow team several possibilities, the theme that was chosen was ELEVATE. It was right up my alley. Elevate means “to raise or lift (something) up to a higher position,” which is what I had been trying to do in my life and career. There was no better time for me to explore the subject for myself, than through the lens of others.

Once the call for submissions went out, my immersion into other women’s work was busy and delightful. I read with a hunger I hadn’t had in a while. I was blown away by the talent I was witnessing and happy that I would be the one to make the final selections, and that I’d get to fulfill my vision for ELEVATE.

So much of what I was craving for myself I found in the words I read, the artwork I saw, and the collaborations with the Yellow Arrow readers, who were heads down, also reading and exploring the 181 submissions sent in. I was inspired to write and pursue my own dreams more wholly just as the women who sent in their work were doing. Even if writing wasn’t full time for them, I realized that it was the kind of elevation I was looking for: to hike a mountain and reach its summit, aka start a new venture called Creative Communion and make sure I get to the top.

I’ve refined my writing skills and reaffirmed several truths during my time as guest editor for Yellow Arrow Journal:

1)     I figured out how to meet deadlines even though my world already seemed overwhelmed with time constraints.
2)     I was reminded that putting in the work of sitting down and writing is what creates the space and energy for more writing, and more ideas.
3)     I realized that my intuition is still undefeated. Whenever I’ve trusted my gut over what others wanted or thought was best, things have always worked out better than imagined. The same is true for ELEVATE.

Becoming a guest editor and working on every aspect of the issue has done so much to move me forward while pushing me to take chances in my creative life. This experience was exactly what I needed to be doing to jump start my writing and to encourage me to create the things I want to see in the world.

I’m thankful to Yellow Arrow Publishing for this opportunity. I’m also grateful for the incredible women-identifying creatives who furnished the stories and artwork for this awesome issue. My hope is that everyone who reads ELEVATE will be inspired to pursue something more wholly, push fear out of the window and soar.

If you haven’t already got your copy, order ELEVATE at yellowarrowpublishing.com/store/yellow-arrow-journal-elevate-paperback. Thank you for supporting independent publishing.

Jennifer N. Shannon has published three books: Silent Teardrops; for the LOVE, short stories and poems, vol. 1; and for the LOVE, short stories and poems, vol. 2. Her poetry, short stories, photographs, and essays have been in an anthology and literary magazines, including North Dakota Quarterly, Yellow Arrow Journal, Deep South Magazine, Auburn Avenue, and others. Jennifer was a 2022 Baker Artist Awards finalist, a poetry fellow at the Watering Hole, and in 2023, she was selected as a Maryland State Arts Council Triennial Artist for Literary Arts. Jennifer is a proud South Carolinian and Gamecock who lives in Maryland with her son and fiancé. Visit jennifernshannon.com or follow her @writerjns on Instagram and Facebook.

*****

Kapua Iao 5/14/24 Kapua Iao 5/14/24

Meet a Staff Member: Leticia Priebe Rocha

Yellow Arrow Publishing would like to (re)introduce Leticia Priebe Rocha, a reader for Yellow Arrow publications. Leticia is a poet, visual artist, and editor. She is the author of In Lieu of Heartbreak, This is Like (Bottlecap Press, 2024). Leticia earned her bachelor’s from Tufts University, where she was awarded the 2020 Academy of American Poets University & College Poetry Prize. Born in São Paulo, Brazil, she immigrated to Miami, Florida, at the age of nine and currently resides in the Greater Boston area. Her work has been published in Salamander, Rattle, Pigeon Pages, Protean Magazine, and elsewhere. Leticia also served as guest editor for Yellow Arrow Journal’s EMBLAZON issue (fall 2023). For more information, visit her website at leticiaprieberocha.com.

It’s been a joy getting to know Leticia and working with her. She says, “I deeply value spaces like Yellow Arrow which prioritize uplifting underrepresented voices and empowering us to be heard. As a writer (and human!), I seek to align myself with publications that truly live their values. I have witnessed the staff embodying this at Yellow Arrow, and I have had nothing but good experiences as a submitter, contributor, and editor. I believe that this speaks to the tremendous dedication and care that Yellow Arrow has for this work. It has been a privilege to make contributions to their mission of uplifting women creatives and I am incredibly excited to continue to do so as a reader!”

Tell us a little something about yourself:

My first chapbook, In Lieu of Heartbreak, This is Like, (highlighted in Her View Friday!) was recently released with Bottlecap Press (2024). I have been writing poetry since I was in high school and fantasized about being a writer long before then. Having a poetry collection in print is a literal dream come true! Aside from writing and surrounding myself with as much poetry as possible, I also love collaging. Since I don’t have formal artistic training, I did not think of myself as a visual artist for a while, but I am leaning into that label now. Outside of my creative pursuits, I am really into film and television. I may have a slightly unhealthy obsession with mafia-related media, and I could talk about The Sopranos for hours!

What do you love most about where you live in Medford, Massachusetts?

I love how many opportunities for cultural engagement there are in the Greater Boston area. Poetry readings, museums and galleries, music shows—I am constantly surrounded by art, beauty, and community. It is such an expansive place to live!

How did you get involved with Yellow Arrow and why did you want to join the Yellow Arrow team?

I became involved with Yellow Arrow when my poem, “Lost In,” was published in Yellow Arrow Journal’s PEREGRINE issue (fall 2022). Later I served as guest editor for the EMBLAZON issue, which is how I became familiar with Yellow Arrow’s process for reviewing submissions. I greatly enjoyed reading submissions and collaborating with a team that invests great levels of care into every piece sent. I had such a wonderful experience that I applied to join the Yellow Arrow team as a reader!

What are you working on currently?

Now that my first chapbook has been published, I am finding ways to build my audience and share my work more broadly through readings, interviews, and being in community with writers. Writing-wise, I am exploring directions for a full-length manuscript and seeing where the poems take me.

What genre do you write or read the most and why?

Poetry. Even before poetry found me, I’ve always had the disposition of a poet, gifted in the art of observation. I love the possibilities that poetry opens up, its inherent subversiveness, it’s ability to dismantle language and experience, rebuild with love.

What book is on the top of your to-be-read pile?

Diannely Antigua’s Ugly Music.

Who is your favorite writer and why?

Ocean Vuong. Whether he is writing poetry, fiction, or an Instagram caption, Ocean strings words together in a brilliant way, with utter clarity that illuminates what it means to be alive.

Who has inspired and/or supported you most in your writing journey?

I was lucky enough to take poetry classes with Natalie Shapero while I studied at Tufts University. She fostered an incredibly nurturing workshop environment, helped me solidify my identity as a poet, and her lessons on craft hugely influence my work. I also feel immensely inspired by the writing community at MassPoetry, an organization that supports poets and poetry in Massachusetts.

What do you love most about writing?

Writing has always been an outlet for untangling life’s messy and miraculous experiences. It has served me as a form of resistance and is always a labor of love.

What advice do you have for new writers?

Find ways to be in community with other writers, which is so vital to learning and growing as a writer. If you have something to say and feel the urge to write, you have to listen to that—listen to your intuition, keep going, no matter how many rejections come your way.

What’s the most important thing you always keep near your computer or wherever you work?

I keep a pile of poetry collections at hand so I can read poems outside of myself whenever I feel stuck with my own work.

What’s your vision for Yellow Arrow in 2024?

Having laid such a steady and nourishing foundation, I envision Yellow Arrow increasing our reach. A wider reach in the creative world means amplifying more voices and consequently increasing our impact!

*****

Kapua Iao 5/7/24 Kapua Iao 5/7/24

Life’s extraordinary moments: Yellow Arrow Journal (Vol. IX, No. 1) ELEVATE

But isn’t that how life is? Full of moments when we are so high that we are enjoying a different type of air, and others where we feel like we’re falling fast and furiously toward a diverted destination.

Jennifer N. Shannon, guest editor of just released Yellow Arrow Journal Vol. IX, No. 1 ELEVATE, is so thankful to the women-identifying writers who submitted to the issue and to those who joined the Yellow Arrow community by letting us include their pieces on our pages. She writes in the introduction to ELEVATE:

“From the poignant cover of ELEVATE to the brilliant words that adorn each page, this issue is like flying above the clouds, in a never-ending sky, over terrain that’s both foreign and familiar. Work that’s about overcoming and accepting where we are. Stories about loss and love. There are poems that allow us to be in the sky while we march here on the ground. And creative nonfiction that gives us permission to cry and proclaim that we are not afraid.”

We are excited to release the latest issue of Yellow Arrow Journal and happy to share the voices included within our ELEVATE issue. Paperback and PDF versions are now available from the Yellow Arrow bookstore. Discounts are also available (here) if you would like to purchase copies for friends and family (minimum purchase of five). You can also search for Yellow Arrow Journal on any e-book device or anywhere you purchase print and electronic books, including Amazon and most other distribution channels.

Jennifer N. Shannon has published three books: Silent Teardrops; for the LOVE, short stories and poems, vol. 1; and for the LOVE, short stories and poems, vol. 2. Her poetry, short stories, photographs, and essays have been in an anthology and literary magazines, including North Dakota Quarterly, Yellow Arrow Journal, Deep South Magazine, Auburn Avenue, and others. Jennifer was a 2022 Baker Artist Awards finalist, a poetry fellow at the Watering Hole, and in 2023, she was selected as a Maryland State Arts Council Triennial Artist for Literary Arts. Jennifer is a proud South Carolinian and Gamecock who lives in Maryland with her son and fiance. You can connect with Jennifer by visiting her website at jennifernshannon.com or follow her @writerjns on Instagram and Facebook.

The artwork on the cover (cover design by Alexa Laharty), “As I Am” by Lizzie Brown, was created of acrylic on canvas. According to Lizzie, her painting “depicts a woman embracing her flaws and scars, represented by a gold-filled crack down her back,” inspired by the Japanese art of kintsugi. “As I Am” is an incredible “reminder that our imperfections make us beautiful, and our scars tell a story of what we’ve overcome.” Don’t forget to check out a conversation between Jennifer and Lizzie on the Yellow Arrow YouTube channel at https://youtu.be/AOSpTHqvs7k.

We hope you enjoy reading ELEVATE as much as we enjoyed creating it. Thank you for your continued encouragement of Yellow Arrow Publishing and the women involved in ELEVATE. On June 26 at 8:00 p.m., please join Jennifer, Yellow Arrow, and some of our contributors for the live, virtual reading of ELEVATE. More information is forthcoming.

*****

Kapua Iao 4/30/24 Kapua Iao 4/30/24

Stitching Stories: A Conversation with Sara Lefsyk, Editor of Ethel Zine & Micro-press

By Melissa Nunez, written November 2023

I was the heart being held, holding the heart, all the other hearts. I didn’t know if I could do it. - “The Doll,” Wild Apples: A Flash Memoir Collection with Writing Prompts by Joanna Penn Cooper

For many people, publication means a printing by one of the “Big 5,” a place on the shelves of a brick-and-mortar store like Barnes & Noble, or an appearance in digital libraries of Amazon’s Kindle readers. They think fast and mass produce. But for people like Sara Lefsyk, publishing means something more: The art of handcrafting the cover of a collection with the same painstaking precision as picking the perfect words to create the world held within the pages. Each stitch designed and carried out with diligence. Sara started Ethel Zine & Micro-press in 2018. She puts out twice yearly zines and publishes collections of writing in many genres (poetry, flash fiction, flash memoir, and more). Melissa Nunez, Yellow Arrow Publishing interviewer, and Sara recently discussed the creative inspiration behind this press and the motivation to maintain a space that promotes a more personal publication experience.

What inspired you to start Ethel Zine & Micro-press?

Since I was young, I have always had to be making something, keeping my hands (and mind) busy. After I received my MFA, I’d often ask my poet friends for poems that I would then sew into little books, for the fun of it, and give out copies to each author. My friend Joanna Penn Cooper had the idea in 2018, when I was very unhappy and unstimulated, working 50 hours a week as a prep cook, that I start a small press and handmake the books. So, I did.

What is the inspiration behind the name?

When we were in grad school together, Joanna, my classmate, and I became friends. She would have me come visit her in New York City often, where she would make me eat and perform fake rituals that really worked to help pull my spirit halfway back into my body—I was dealing with a lot back then. During one of those trips, she just started calling me Ethel for no particular reason. When Joanna suggested I start the press, she also suggested I name it Ethel.

What is your mission as an indie press?

My main mission is to bring book publishing away from being mass produced by machines in some warehouse . . . back to each one being almost completely handmade [though] I do get the book innards printed by a local print shop. [With Ethel,] I also want to publish as wide a range of styles and voices as possible.

Maybe I haven’t written these stories yet, because it feels more sustainable to write about something else, anything else. – “Stories I’m not writing,” Predator/Prey by Frances Cannon

Why handmade journals and books? What sparked your desire to go this route?

First, as I said above, it was a hobby before I started the press. I love finding various objects, papers, and images and sewing them together. I didn’t really know or think much about the publishing world before I started Ethel, but as I began to understand it more and more, I realized that barely anyone is hand making books anymore. I like being able to offer a different way of being published to those interested.

I’ve read several collections from your press and there are so many styles of writing from lyric poetry to CNF snapshots set alongside writing prompts to magical memoir. What do you look for in a submission?

I honestly am not looking to publish anything in particular but want to represent as wide an array of authors and writing styles as possible. I suppose every person has their particular likes so really in reading [submissions] it’s just whether I like it and it excites me or not. Personally, I like strangeness and the unexpected in writing, I like the grotesque, I like things I haven’t seen or thought about before. That isn’t to say that is all that I publish, but that is just what excites me.

What is your favorite part of publishing?

A few things, I love the process of working with the authors to come up with a cover design and the process of making it. I also like publishing people who otherwise may not have been published. I have heard from authors that if you’re not part of the writing community—and especially the community or those who have an MFA—it can be hard to be noticed or published widely, but there are so many amazing voices that aren’t part of that world and that deserve to be read. I think this is why the micropublishing world is so important. That and the fact that micropublishers are the ones who are saving the art of bookmaking.

What is the hardest part of publishing?

Money. Sometimes I am afraid I can’t keep Ethel going financially. I personally don’t make any money off the press, all the money that comes in goes back into making more books, but when I have a couple months of low sales, it can be really hard to keep running. There are a lot of costs involved in running a small press, from printing to supplies to postage to website costs.

What female identified writers does your press admire?

Outside of books that Ethel has published, lately I have really been getting into the work of Kim Hyesoon, translated by Don Mee Choi. I have also been reading the short stories of Leonora Carrington. Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza by Gloria E. Anzaldúa is another book that I love and continue to read. I also love and admire Inès Pujos’ book of poetry Something Dark to Shine In.

tell me: that i don’t sleep to white noise, learn to whisper lies to myself. that i don’t pretend, that i am not the daughter of an alien. – “burning haibun in white lies,” Moongazing, ephemerally. by Kayleigh Sim

What other female or BIPOC-led presses do you admire?

Bloof Books, Gutslut Press, Porkbelly Press.

Are there any especially cool collections forthcoming from Ethel that readers should look out for?

The next in line to be released are Juliet Cook’s Your Mouth is Moving Backwards, Hal Sansone’s Wild Garlic, healing poems for my root system, Ariel Moniz’s Nostos Algos, and Anne Whitehouse’s Being Ruth Asawa.

What advice would you share with other editors/artists?

Ooooh, I guess I would say do what makes you happy but don’t get in over your head like I did. Leave yourself space to also be able to focus on your own work.

You can find the latest issues and collections coming out from Ethel Zine & Micro-press on their website at ethelzine.com. You can also get glimpses into their publishing process and news on their submission cycles on Twitter @the_ethelzine.

Sara Lefsyk is Editor-in-Chief of Ethel Zine & Micro-press, through which she hand makes/sews/binds chapbooks and an annual journal of art and writing. Sara has one book of poetry available from Black Lawrence Press—We Are Hopelessly Small and Modern Birds—and chapbooks with Dancing Girl Press and the Little Red Leaves Textile Series. She hopes to be able to delve more into the art of bookmaking and artist’s books in the future, starting (and ending) with an unending accordion book called The Doll Tome.

Melissa Nunez makes her home in the Rio Grande Valley region of South Texas, where she enjoys exploring and photographing the local wild with her homeschooling family. She writes an anime column at The Daily Drunk Mag and is a prose reader for Moss Puppy Mag. She is also a staff writer for Alebrijes Review and interviewer for Yellow Arrow Publishing. You can find her work on her website melissaknunez.com/publications and follow her on Twitter @MelissaKNunez.

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Yellow Arrow Journal (IX/02) Kitalo Submissions are Now Open!

Weathering Rejection

Her View Friday

“Claybody” by Samantha J. Pomerantz from Germantown, Maryland

“Quiescence” by Kellie Brown from Kingsport, Tennessee

Gratitude is a Divine Emotion: Yellow Arrow Interns

Caroline Kunz

Publications Intern

From Rochester, New York

Where do you go to school? I am a rising senior at Loyola University Maryland studying English with a minor in writing. I will graduate in May of 2025.

Sophia Lama

Program Management Intern

From Scotch Plains, New Jersey

Where do you go to school? In the fall I will begin my senior year at the University of Maryland in College Park, and will be graduating in May of 2025. I have been pursuing a degree in English.

On the Fullness of Grief

Meet a Staff Member: Natalie Wollenzien

Meet a Staff Member: Jillian Tremblay

Meet a Staff Member: Anna Leonard

You will see so much beauty: Iridescent Pigeons by Candace Walsh

Meet a Staff Member: Claire Taylor

Her View Friday

“Fractions Are Numbers that Are Not Whole” by Nancy Huggett from Ottawa, Canada

Creative Connections: A conversation with Melissa Martini, Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Moss Puppy Magazine

Writing Truth: Finding the Nonfiction in Fiction

The Humble & the Glorious: A Conversation with Iridescent Pigeons author Candace Walsh

Meet a Staff Member: Kyra McDonnell

A Song and Dream: My Writing Process by Amaya Lambert

The Thing I Needed but Didn’t Know Why I Needed It: Reflecting on the ELEVATE Issue

Meet a Staff Member: Leticia Priebe Rocha

Life’s extraordinary moments: Yellow Arrow Journal (Vol. IX, No. 1) ELEVATE

Stitching Stories: A Conversation with Sara Lefsyk, Editor of Ethel Zine & Micro-press

“Claybody” by Samantha J. Pomerantz from Germantown, Maryland

“Quiescence” by Kellie Brown from Kingsport, Tennessee

Caroline Kunz

Publications Intern

From Rochester, New York

Where do you go to school? I am a rising senior at Loyola University Maryland studying English with a minor in writing. I will graduate in May of 2025.

Sophia Lama

Program Management Intern

From Scotch Plains, New Jersey

Where do you go to school? In the fall I will begin my senior year at the University of Maryland in College Park, and will be graduating in May of 2025. I have been pursuing a degree in English.

“Fractions Are Numbers that Are Not Whole” by Nancy Huggett from Ottawa, Canada

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