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CREATIVE NONFICTION

Image shows a yellow walking sign on a green guard rail in New York City; title card for the Character Sketch Challenge winner, "Gordon Bishop," by Naomi Bishop.

Gordon Bishop by Naomi Melati Bishop

August 2, 2023

  Gordon Bishop, fifty-six, is a one-eyed, one-legged, one-breasted single father. He is a native New Yorker who shares an antique-filled one-bedroom apartment in Hell’s Kitchen with his teenage daughter. Every night, Gordon sits at his desk wearing tighty-whities and…

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Image shows two pairs of open scissors taped to a white background; title card for Hybrid Writing Contest first-place winner, "Split Ends," by Rowan McCandless.

Split Ends by Rowan McCandless

July 28, 2023

  When my mother died, I inherited a sizeable goldenrod-coloured envelope; inside, I discovered birthday cards given to me from family members throughout my childhood, handmade get-well cards crafted by classmates upon the occasion of having one of several surgeries…

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Image shows the corner of a mid-70s-style living room with an old CRTV on a table in the center of the frame; title card for the second-place Hybrid Writing Contest winner, "The Babysitter," by Andrew Borneman.

The Babysitter by Andrew Borneman

July 21, 2023

“My memory serves me far too well.” —George Michael   1979 I’ve heard the story a hundred times. Fourteen phone call attempts before my mother snagged my brother’s first babysitter, Sarah, a quick-witted high school sophomore. She showed up from…

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Image shows a top-down view of blue-green water pooling on white sand in Latvia; title card for the Hybrid Writing Contest third-place winner, "Four Words Whispered on a Smoky Field," by Baņuta Rubess.

Four Words Whispered on a Smoky Field by Baņuta Rubess

July 14, 2023

      BAŅUTA RUBESS pioneered feminist theatre and contemporary opera to national renown in Canada and Latvia. She has lived in four countries and writes in two languages. She has written plays, libretti, radio drama, television biopics, stories, and…

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Image shows an open drawer filled with tattoo ink, photographed in black and white; title card for 2022 Creative Nonfiction Award winner, "On Possessing a Body," by Lotte Mitchell Reford.

On Possessing a Body by Lotte Mitchell Reford

June 28, 2023

  Content Warning—disordered eating   I At night, I find myself lying in bed near bursting with memory, as if something gone could still rip through me and flower. And yes I let myself get hungrier. It feels impossible to…

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Image shows a vintage car parked alongside an empty parking space fronting a red brick wall; title card for 2022 Creative Nonfiction Award winner, "What I Do and Don't Remember from the Days and Nights of Endlessly Smoking Crack and Shooting Heroin," by Christian Bodney.

What I Do and Don’t Remember from the Days and Nights of Endlessly Smoking Crack and Shooting Heroin by Christian Bodney

June 21, 2023

  It’s all a blur. It can be separated into two five-year periods: using alone and using with Haley. Haley had piercings everywhere: the bridge of her nose, her septum, her nipples, her belly button. She had stretched lobes—one had…

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Image shows a red building crisscrossed with lines of red lanterns; title card for 2022 Creative Nonfiction Award winner "Where Am I From?" by Amber Wong.

Where Am I From? by Amber Wong

June 14, 2023

  “I can only answer the question ‘What am I to do?’ if I can answer the prior question ‘Of what story or stories do I find myself a part?’” —Alasdair MacIntyre   No one would talk. It was as…

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Image shows the interior of the Bobst Library in New York City, a series of gold stairwells and library stories; title card for the 2022 CNFA editors' choice selection, "All the Pretty Little Lies," by Amy V. Borg.

All the Pretty Little Lies by Amy V. Borg

June 9, 2023

  Content Warning—suicidal ideation   The story I tell goes something like this: Did you know I once helped a boy escape from a mental hospital? When I tell it that way, people start imagining things: guns blazing, alarms blaring,…

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Image shows a white door on a green garage slashed with sunlight; title card for the 2022 CNFA editors' choice selection, "Tatuajes," by Rubén Degollado.

Tatuajes by Rubén Degollado

June 7, 2023

  Indiana, in our cold one-car garage, motes of dust falling sideways, the sunlight diffused by the snow covering the ground outside, and we watched Apá working the punching bag, his untaped fists flashing with each swing. Behind my brother…

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Image shows a red film reel coming unspooled on a white background; title card for the new creative nonfiction essay, "My Anesthesiologist," by Cynthia Adam Prochaska.

My Anesthesiologist by Cynthia Adam Prochaska

May 17, 2023

  Content Warning—miscarriage   I see my anesthesiologist at the movies and it surprises me in the way that seeing someone outside the setting you know them does. There is a prick of recognition and then my mind scrambles to…

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