12 minute read
crawling my way out of my life
Daydreaming
Brizzy Blue
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Adventuring on the seas Bright waves caressing our faces the salty smell of seawater lingering
Suddenly gasping for air Looking frantically around Fleets from enemy ships Sending cannon shots, surrounding Shock waves sloshing water— Brackish to the face—directly Into our unsuspecting flank
In an instant, Our vessel capsized Our defenses shattered Our responses delayed Our morale truncated Yet one voice slicing through clouds of disdain reaching dregs and droplets left from willpower and energy long since spent—
blinding rays of daybreak break my concentration construction of characters ' futures blocked from creation bringing me back to frigid air and siren blare just outside my window
The Wayne Literary Review: Escapism
crawling my way out of my life
BEELB
i once dreamed of a life so big it spilled from my hands, seeped into the floorboards, leaked all the way down to the basement. a life so big it resisted any kind of holding
this is the way a child dreams when they can still fit beneath the box spring and the floor.
i once came so close to freedom i could taste it: salt in the air and blue stained lips. as always, fear drove me out. that was half a decade ago and what do i have to show for it?
a knot of tangled curls. a longing refusing to stretch thin. a few nearly faded scars. and often,
the absence of hope. i paint a sun into my home in an effort to chase happiness. i pull life from water and my own two hands. i find myself sinking into the past and attempt to pull myself out of it.
i look up at the trees i once thought towering and placate my desire with the absence of memory.
there are things i am meant to be doing, i’ m sure. coaxing beauty from the tongues of strangers, for one. instead, i sit staring at the face of my past. instead, i am always crawling my way out of my life.
The Wayne Literary Review: Escapism
self portrait as voyeur
BEELB
the life / the touch / the small, strange connection the shared breath / the wind, the water / the joy scene from a distance, the fear
the climb / the hold / how touch comes so easy the lift / the closeness / the parting ways the fear, seen from a distance
the water welling / the salt flooding oh, to spread / to fall / to look / to jump the dance / the departure
each missed moment / the descent / separation the long trail / momentous coming together / apart / together again
the sway / the push / the running toward the blanket / the body clutched tight the kneeling / the pulling
this could continue on forever / still it won ’t / the separation made private / the ending unwitnessed
The Wayne Literary Review: Escapism
A POEM BY DR. RIEUX (Or Dr. Seuss Meets the Apocalypse)
MichaelSalcman
In quarantine it seemed the obvious thing to do All of us read The Plague by Albert Camus
But for a critical cow outside the gates going moo And silent birds flying above our city ’ s zoo
Not many felt disappointed or filled with rue Spending our days with The Plague by Albert Camus
When the bill for arrogance and greed came due We paid more in pride than vouchers it’ s true
What a poor exchange we had made for social glue Blindness and spite from The Plague by Albert Camus
No more trips to the gym or standing in queues No unmasked meetings beyond casual ones and twos
No enlightenment came on slow walks to the loo— All of it foreseen in The Plague by Albert Camus.
(the poem first appeared in Innisfree Poetry Journal: Number 34, 2022)
The Wayne Literary Review: Escapism
Woods and Back
KiahBecker
I went to the woods and came back with words. worry drowned out by rain fear of inadequacy taken astray in birdsong discontent flooded away with sprouted green moss and ferns that fill the air like the fluttering in my chest when our eyes lock with love the same when I dream of the mountains ocean and forest I’ m away from the earth and my lungs scream “ run as fast as you can. ” I’ m home in the trees and I’ m patient with the freedom to manifest words I come back with when I go to the woods.
The Wayne Literary Review: Escapism
Rocky Mountain National Park
KiahBecker
I’ m learning to live again as the mountains tower above me and the spring frost bites my fingers the pencil rushes to the paper like air to my lungs and when I thought I’d hold my breath forever I’ m singing again.
A song that tells of the strength the mighty earth has shared with me of the love I’ll share with the children after me So it seems that the winter held the forests silent the lakes still and the joy buried beneath the ground but alas We are alive.
The Wayne Literary Review: Escapism
Tent Rocks
KiahBecker
New Mexico sky turquoise like the eye of the storm I thought I’d never survive but the fire of the rock was also within my soul keeping me alive and when I doubted how far out the end would be I looked beyond the horizon and saw that it was me. The eye of the storm.
The Wayne Literary Review: Escapism
Contributors
JeffAmato is a California-born fiction and creative non-fiction writer specializing in horror and fantasy fiction. He is a first-generation college student who studies English and creative writing at Wayne State University (expecting to graduate in May of 2022). Currently working for InsideOut Literary Arts, Jeff teaches poetry in Detroit public schools. He received the CC Warrior Merit Scholarship, WSU 2-year promise grant, and the Joseph J. and Mary E. Yelda Endowed merit scholarship in English.
Tracy Ross is a poet and writer. Her first collection of short stories Binary Logic will be released in late 2022 (Between the Lines Publishing) and her third collection of poetry Relics & Rituals will be coming out in spring of 2022 (Shanti Arts Books). You may learn more about her and her work at https://www.rosspoet.org/
DanielWebre
' s short fiction has appeared or is forthcoming in Paterson Literary Review, Pinyon, The MacGuffin, Watershed Review, Willow Review, and elsewhere.
Zary Fekete has worked as a teacher in Moldova, Romania, China, and Cambodia. They currently live and work as a writer in Minnesota. They have previously been published in Goats Milk Mag, Shady Grove Literary, Journal of Expressive Writing, Ginosko Literary Journal, SIC Journal, Reflex Fiction, Potato Soup Journal, Cholla Needles, Rabid Oak, Every Day Fiction, and WINK. They enjoy reading, podcasts, and long, slow films.
Nilay Gingade is a student at Wayne State University who is unsure whether he should be writing this in first or third person. Regardless, Nilay is a passionate writer and poet who is interested in speculative fiction genres. In his free time, he rides motorcycles and volunteers with the Red Cross.
Reema Rao-Patelis a writer from Chicago, published in "The Lipstick
Politico, " with forthcoming short stories in "The Avalon Literary Review "
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and "Kitchen Sink Magazine. " She is honored to be chosen for the inaugural juried workshop by American Short Fiction. Her micro pieces and other musings can be found on Instagram @reema.rp.
Nathan Bishop is an undergraduate student at Wayne State University who is studying English. Currently in his first year, he resides on campus and hopes that the summer will bring him more opportunities to write.
A storyteller at heart, semia-imanihamlin is a filmmaker and writer based in Detroit. She received her bachelor ’ s degree in film production from Howard University and is pursuing her master ’ s degree in creative writing at Wayne State University. When she isn ’t reading or writing, she spends most of her time caring for, and obsessing over, her dog Lola. More of her work is shared on her Instagram @semiaimaniwrites.
Brie Garbin is a queer author from the Metro Detroit area. She is graduating in the spring of 2022 with a degree in English and Creative writing. Her writing stems deep from her heart and past experiences. She finds inspiration in the feelings no one likes to talk about, music, and nature.
Christopher Clauss (he/him) is an introvert, Ravenclaw, father, poet, and middle school science teacher in rural New Hampshire. His mother believes his poetry is "just wonderful. " His daughters declare that he is the "best daddy they have, " and his pre-teen science students rave that he ’ s "Fine, I guess. Whatever. "
Stephen Benz has published four books of creative nonfiction, including Topographies and Reading the Signs (both from Etruscan Press). He has also published a book of poetry, Americana Motel (Main Street Rag Publishing Co.), along with essays in New England Review, Creative Nonfiction, River Teeth, and Best American Travel Writing. He lives in Albuquerque, where he teaches at the University of New Mexico. Website: http://stephenconnelybenz.com
Mary Anna Scenga Kruchis an educator and writer inspired by her Italian family, social justice, and the natural world. She has led a monthly writing group for 10 years and supervises student teachers for Northern
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Michigan University. Mary Anna published a textbook for teachers called Nurturing Motivation in Young Adolescent Writers (2012), a poetry chapbook, We Draw Breath from the Same Sky (2019), and most recently a full-length collection of poetry and prose, Grace Notes: A Memoir in Poetry & Prose (2021). Recent poetry appears in Ovunque Siamo, Humana Obscura, and Red Wolf Press and is forthcoming in The Wild Word and Blue Heron Review.
Valerie A. Smithwrites poetry to speak on behalf of the voiceless. She is a student of the Ph.D. in English, Creative Writing, and Poetry at Georgia State University. She earned the MA in Professional Writing at Kennesaw State University where she is currently a Lecturer of English. Above all, she values spending quality time with her family.
Kara Crankis a beautiful spirit who has been writing since she was 12. Poetry was her first love. It has carried her through her grief and tribulations. She ’ s a mother of three little people, a full-time student, and works full time. For more, follow her on social media: - instagram: @Karebyk - Facebook: Kara Alexis
Marianne Samano is currently studying English and Graphic Design. Her work explores the intricate intersections of Mexican-American and queer identities.
Dana Stamps, II. is a poet and essayist who has a bachelor ’ s degree in psychology from Cal State University of San Bernardino and has worked as a fast-food server, a postal clerk, a security guard, and a group home worker with troubled boys. A Pushcart nominee, poetry chapbooks “For Those Who Will Burn ” and “Drape This Chapbook in Blue ” were published by Partisan Press, and “Sandbox Blues ” by Evening Street Press.
Lenny DellaRocca is the founder and co-publisher of South Florida Poetry Journal. A Pushcart nominee, DellaRocca has published two full-length collections of poetry and two chapbooks. His work has appeared widely since 1980.
Shoopy Reedis a poet and noise-maker who writes so that she doesn ’t forget who she was yesterday.
The Wayne Literary Review: Escapism
ScottT. Hutchison
' s work has appeared in The Georgia Review and The Southern Review. New work is forthcoming in Evening Street Review, Appalachian Heritage, Naugatuck River Review, Pine Mountain Sand and Gravel, and in Fiction Southeast.
JeffSchiffis the author of That hum to go by (Mammoth books), Mixed Diction, Burro Heart, The Rats of Patzcuaro, The Homily of Infinitude, and Anywhere in this Country. His poems, essays, and photographs have appeared in more than a hundred and thirty publications worldwide. He has been a member of the English/Creative Writing faculty at Columbia College Chicago since 1987.
George Bishop is a poet living in Florida. He attended Rutgers University and his work has been featured in Main Street Rag, The Meadow, Cold Mountain Review & New Plains Review. His chapbook Following Myself Home won the third annual Peter Menke Prize in Poetry at YellowJacket Press. He also has several chapbooks and a full-length collection.
Ian SethLevine holds a B.S. in English and an M.S. in Professional Writing from Towson University, Maryland’ s preeminent teacher preparation college. He has taught English composition for Miami-Dade College, York Technical College, and Piedmont Technical College. Ian ’ s poetry has been featured by The Free Library of the Internet Void, SORTES, and Wayne Literary Review. When Ian isn ’t teaching his students or clients how to improve their writing, he volunteers as a blogger with the American Red Cross. Learn more by visiting iansethlevine.com
ErikMoyer is from Hillsborough, New Jersey. He holds a BS from the University of Virginia and an MFA from the University of California, Irvine. His work has been featured in Apricity, Bluestem, Constellations, Hawaii Pacific Review, Little Patuxent Review, and Lullwater Review, and has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. He works as a data scientist and lives in San Diego.
Emersyn Listudies English and Creative Writing at Wayne State University. They work as a writing tutor and a teaching assistant at the university. In their spare time, they binge horror movies and dabble in
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various modes of visual art such as photography, digital art, and charcoal drawing. To see more of their writing, find them on Instagram: @temperanc3 _
Grey Snyder is an undergraduate Public Health student with a minor in Gender, Sexuality, and Women ’ s Studies, at Wayne State University. They have been writing fiction and poetry for more than seven years. In 2021, Grey won the John Clare Poetry Prize and was recognized by the Academy of American Poets. Grey ’ s work currently explores queer sexuality, gender, trauma, and intimacy. They live and work in Detroit, Michigan, with their many houseplants.
Bradley R. Strahan taught poetry at Georgetown Univ. and at UT, Austin. He has 7 books of poetry & over 700 poems published worldwide. His two latest books, This Art of Losing and A Parting Glass (his book of poems written in Ireland) have been translated into French.
BEELBis an array of letters bound to impulse, a writer creating delicate connections. They have called any number of places home; currently, a single yellow wall in Michigan. They have been published in Revolute Lit, Roanoke Review, and After the Pause, among others. They are the 2022 winner of the Bea Gonzalez Prize for Poetry.
MICHAELSALCMAN: poet, physician and art historian, was chairman of neurosurgery at the University of Maryland and president of the Contemporary Museum. Poems appear in Arts & Letters, Barrow Street Review, The Café Review, The Hudson Review, New Letters, and Poet Lore. Books include The Clock Made of Confetti, The Enemy of Good is Better, Poetry in Medicine, a popular anthology of classic and contemporary poems on doctors, patients, illness & healing, and A Prague Spring, Before & After, winner of the 2015 Sinclair Poetry Prize. Both Shades & Graces, inaugural winner of The Daniel Hoffman Legacy Book Prize (2020), and Necessary Speech: New & Selected Poems (2022) were recently published by Spuyten Duyvil.
The Wayne Literary Review: Escapism
