Reckon Review

Tag: Creative Nonfiction

  • MAYBE PARALLEL UNIVERSE ME WAS BORN WITHOUT A CLEFT PALATE | Creative Nonfiction by Sage Tyrtle

    Maybe her philtrum is intact. The skin between her nose and lip a gentle slope, leading to a rosebud smile. She could have nursed from her mother’s plump breast with a strong suck, no whistling holes in her cat’s mouth. At school, perhaps Dawn held hands with her at recess instead of luring her into…

  • CONTENT WARNING: Triggers in Creative Nonfiction | By Olga Katsovskiy

    A large sign at the entrance of an ancient Egyptian gallery at the museum warns viewers of mummified human remains enclosed in a sarcophagus in the next room and suggests an alternate route to bypass the “triggering” mummy. It reminds me of trigger warnings; how quick they are to label a story before the reader…

  • WANDA, BRIEFLY | Creative Nonfiction by Amanda Ashworth

    Editor’s note: This story reads more like a folk tale than creative nonfiction, even with the beginning sentence stating that it’s a true story. However, one section of Amanda’s cover letter brought everything together in a way that we felt was important. We also didn’t want to interrupt the flow of Amanda’s writing and ask…

  • FEBRUARY, 44 | Creative Nonfiction by Melissa Flores Anderson

    The week you died, before I knew you were dying, a black blur crossed my path in the cold, still morning. The creature paused to look back at me, a dog with no owner in sight. As  I jogged closer, a narrow snout and a lack of collar signaled it might not be domesticated. The…

  • PARENTAL RECKONINGS: Lassie, there’s a writer in a well!

    By Amy Barnes I have NOT been writing. I have managed to dig myself a well in my sleep. There’s dirt under my dream fingernails. I’m tired. I’m thirsty. My thoughts feel dry. My nightly goal is to find a well of creativity I’ve been told exists somewhere, but I’ve only managed to locate a…

  • FAMILY RITUALS | Creative Nonfiction by Mary Ann McGuigan

    The guests at my brother Sean’s wedding have formed a huge circle on the dance floor, ready to watch Uncle Johnny and Aunt Peggy do their Peabody. They’ll have the floor to themselves. It’s a tradition in Mama’s family, a kind of initiation performed for each of the many cousins at their receptions. My aunt…

  • THE FRACTURED MIRROR: Craft it Loud

    By Edward Karshner When someone asks me what I do, I fight the urge to say “cowboy.” I usually say, “I teach.” I never lead with “I’m a writer.” I never feel comfortable with that particular job. It’s my favorite. Not my favorite to talk about. Eventually, I confess, and the next question is, “what…

  • ARS POETICA | Creative Nonfiction by Grace Ann Elinski

    I believe any activity done with love and presence is a spiritual practice. I believe Love and Connectedness is the God of my world. I believe in hand-rolled cigarettes for espresso shot emergencies. I believe in the Body remembering, immersed in the funk ridden Ross Barnett, suicidal pull of The Atlantic, The Gulf and its…

  • HEALTHY HABITS: What I Need

    By Valerie Peralta April marked one year in my position as the coordinator of a college writing center. In the past 12 months I’ve become adept at using Microsoft Teams, developed an attitude of tolerance toward AI as a tool, and gained the trust of my team of tutors as well as several students and…

  • BURNING AND DROWNING | Creative Nonfiction by Megan Hanlon

    The house was so dark during those long winter evenings without electricity. You and I did our homework by the light of a hurricane lamp and the weak beams of setting sun that managed to crawl through the dining room window. The kitchen, with no windows except one over the sink that inexplicably opened into…