Living on COVID Time: Sharing Stories, Sharing Lives in Prose and Poetry

by Story Circle Network, Brooke Warner (Foreword), Susan Schoch (Editor)

Real Women Living on COVID Time is Volume 19 of this annual anthology of prose and poetry by members of Story Circle Network, an organization supporting women writers and asserting the importance of women’s stories. But it is a volume unlike any other. The 52 authors of the 80 pieces in this collection were writing in response to an unprecedented global pandemic. The virus spread through a year filled with many other profound challenges and changes, while these women were writing about their lives, engaging with experiences and emotions that were uniquely their own. These selections capture moments as COVID-19 moved from rumor to life-altering reality, and together they form a small chapter in a humanity-sized story.Brooke Warner, publisher of She Writes Press, says in her “To remember 2020 will be to look back on a year marked by complexity—so much loss swirled together with surprising gains.” Indeed, that swirl is evident in the responses of these contributors. “Their stories showcase a range of reactions to living on COVID time, which include grappling with illness and fear and death, with heartbreak and isolation, with the coexistence of ugliness and beauty. In these pages, you may see yourself. You will surely be moved by the many perspectives and considerations and experiences in this collection.” Real Women Living on COVID Time is a strong addition to the literature and herstory of 21st century women enduring and evolving through a remarkable time.

Kindle Edition

Published January 5, 2021

Reviews

[Marian Beaman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Real Women Write: Living on COVID Time is a collection of selected poetry and prose from the Story Circle Network. Organized into twelve themes including love, loss, distance, masks, comfort, and nature, this landmark volume documents events in the lives of women writers as the pandemic pervades American culture. Among the personal essays, readers will find the story of a wife who records a COVID-fueled argument early in the pandemic, a woman who finds nourishment twisting challah dough into braids, and the rituals of others whose lives have become restricted because of a world-wide epidemic. This work of non-fiction, edited by Susan Schoch with a foreword by Brooke Warner, deserves a 5-star rating because of the quality of the writing and its relevance to the lives of many in 2020.