Jennifer Acker's Blog, page 73
September 2, 2021
Sock Drawer
JOANN BALINGIT
That would not have changed it, I said, guarding my son, keeping him, though I did not know how, though I never said safe. As if the word suicide, its syllables released, could enter his body like a virus.
That would not have changed it, I said, guarding my son, keeping him, though I did not know how, though I never said safe. As if the word suicide, its syllables released, could enter his body like a virus.
August 31, 2021
The Tech Giant
EMILY NEUBERGER
So many empty hours in the empty apartment, checking my email and calling it a purpose, that the allure of him grows with each moment. My heartbeats say Alex Alex Alex. This anxiety manifests in a need to check the relationship, to call, to ask if he’s mad.
So many empty hours in the empty apartment, checking my email and calling it a purpose, that the allure of him grows with each moment. My heartbeats say Alex Alex Alex. This anxiety manifests in a need to check the relationship, to call, to ask if he’s mad.
August 30, 2021
Asexual Liberation: An Interview with Angela Chen
ANGELA CHEN
With this book, Chen creates a platform to discuss how compulsory sexuality harms not only the ace community, but anyone wanting to engage seriously with the idea of sexual liberation.
With this book, Chen creates a platform to discuss how compulsory sexuality harms not only the ace community, but anyone wanting to engage seriously with the idea of sexual liberation.
August 27, 2021
Podcast: Jose Hernandez Diaz on “Ode to a California Neck Tattoo”
JOSE HERNANDEZ DIAZ
Jose Hernandez Diaz speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his poem “Ode to a California Neck Tattoo,” which appears in The Common’s spring issue. In this conversation, Jose talks about finding his way to prose poetry, initially drawn in by its casual language and style.
Jose Hernandez Diaz speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his poem “Ode to a California Neck Tattoo,” which appears in The Common’s spring issue. In this conversation, Jose talks about finding his way to prose poetry, initially drawn in by its casual language and style.
August 26, 2021
August 2021 Poetry Feature
BENJAMIN S. GROSSBERG
You have set up the altar there / on a mirror tray, one which once held / perfume bottles: the overlapping purple angles / of Liz Taylor’s Passion, the clear blocks / of Chanel Number Five / like a little robot, square head on square body.
You have set up the altar there / on a mirror tray, one which once held / perfume bottles: the overlapping purple angles / of Liz Taylor’s Passion, the clear blocks / of Chanel Number Five / like a little robot, square head on square body.
August 25, 2021
Open Season
LAURA LAING
The rifle is heavy and hard in my arms, the butt jammed up into my right shoulder, just like Lee showed me. Peering down the nose of the gun, I can see the line of targets—coffee cans, plastic milk jugs, and Coke cans—lined up like birds on a fence.
The rifle is heavy and hard in my arms, the butt jammed up into my right shoulder, just like Lee showed me. Peering down the nose of the gun, I can see the line of targets—coffee cans, plastic milk jugs, and Coke cans—lined up like birds on a fence.
August 17, 2021
The Poet’s Languages: A Conversation between Ilan Stavans and Haoran Tong
ILAN STAVANS
Life as I understood it at an early age would have been simpler had everyone communicated in the same tongue. I only understood the advantages of multilingualism when I left home and became an immigrant to the United States.
Life as I understood it at an early age would have been simpler had everyone communicated in the same tongue. I only understood the advantages of multilingualism when I left home and became an immigrant to the United States.
August 13, 2021
Podcast: Emma Sloley on “The Cassandras”
EMMA SLOLEY
Emma Sloley speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her story “The Cassandras,” which appears in The Common’s spring issue. In this conversation, Sloley talks about writing a story based on the fear of men women are taught to have from a young age.
Emma Sloley speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about her story “The Cassandras,” which appears in The Common’s spring issue. In this conversation, Sloley talks about writing a story based on the fear of men women are taught to have from a young age.
August 11, 2021
Traffic on the FDR
OLIVE AMDUR
Parking the car in one of the smoky garages on 80th street, I find myself wishing the drive had taken longer—that I had more time to prepare—and then feel guilty for that wish.
Parking the car in one of the smoky garages on 80th street, I find myself wishing the drive had taken longer—that I had more time to prepare—and then feel guilty for that wish.
August 10, 2021
Another Mother
POLINA BELIMOVA
I considered looking for her. Maybe, I could search through an old address book in my grandparents’ apartment for her number. I hesitated. What would I say? “Hello, I am your daughter. I am just checking on you after thirty years.” What if she had erased me from her memory?
I considered looking for her. Maybe, I could search through an old address book in my grandparents’ apartment for her number. I hesitated. What would I say? “Hello, I am your daughter. I am just checking on you after thirty years.” What if she had erased me from her memory?
