Current Issue
Fall 2025 Issue 27.2

Featuring essays by Emily Collins, Carrie Messenger, Wendy S. Palmer, Elizabeth Logan Harris, Sibbie O’Sullivan, Stephanie Anderson, Marianne Janack, Suzanne Roberts, Andrew Bertaina, Jeanne Kay, Lindsey Pharr, Debra Dean, Sarah Olson, Beth Alvarado, Jerry Mathes, Brad Aaron Modlin, Claire Hansen, Jeanine Eyre Bee,. Review Essays by Susan Ito and Amy Lee Scott.

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ARCHIVES

A Bind

A Bind

If you travel with a fear of flying, mental health experts recommend that you hold fast to the facts. Remind yourself of statistics that show that the most dangerous part of your travel day is the car ride to or from the airport.

MULTIMEDIA

Smell Map of Kyoto in October

Smell Map of Kyoto in October

Smell Map of Kyoto in October Winner of the 2025 Multimedia Essay ContestHaving trouble viewing this essay? Click here to open in new window.

CRAFT ESSAYS

Microcharacterization in Nonfiction

Microcharacterization in Nonfiction

I’m not sure when microcharacterization becomes fully fledged characterization, and I’ve been debating whether it’s a matter of scale, if it looks different in flash than it does in longform. I don’t have a specific answer, whether it’s a phrase, a line, or a...

INTERVIEWS

Essaying as Empowerment

Essaying as Empowerment

“Essays that dwell in uncertainty are in many ways closest to the truth of the human experience. They don’t offer tidy solutions because life rarely operates that way. Instead, they offer ruminations, reflection, a powerful vulnerability, and tender insight.”

REVIEWS

NEWS

2025 Steinberg Memorial Essay Contest

2025 Steinberg Memorial Essay Contest

2025 Michael Steinberg Memorial Essay Contest Winner!Thank you to everyone who entered this year’s Michael Steinberg Memorial Essay Contest. Though we received many phenomenal essays, we hope you will join us in congratulating this year's winner, as selected by our...

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Our regular submission window is from September 1st to November 30 every fall.  Our contests run from January 1 to March 15.  Send us your work!

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