Smog Mother by John Wall Barger, Reviewed by Robyn Earhart
Smog Mother John Wall Barger Palimpsest Press 2022 ISBN: 9781990293214 91 pagesSmog Mother, John Wall Barger’s sixth collection of poetry, begins with an epigraph from the 1959 French New Wave film Hiroshima Mon Amour, written by Marguerite Duras: SHE: The...
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In The Field: Conversations With Our Contributors—J.G. Jesman
In “Mr Chilombo’s Wife”, your short story published in Volume 25, the narrator describes the goings-on of her day as we begin to see that something is off in the relationship between her and her husband. How did the idea for this story originate? Over the phone, a...
In The Field: Conversations With Our Contributors—Ernestine Saankaláxt Hayes
Congratulations on your Pushcart nomination for your fictional story “Drowning in shallow water is our only escape” in Volume 25! What was the process like for you while writing this unique piece? Thank you! My writing had been thin and sporadic for a few years due...
In The Field: Conversations With Our Contributors—Ty Chapman
Congratulations on being nominated for the Pushcart Award for your poem “Pantheon” in volume 25. This poem speaks not only to the multifaceted layers of oppression Black people face, but also to their divinity. What do you hope readers will take away from this...
A Conversation with Libby Flores—WSR Contributing Fiction Editor
What do you hope to achieve while working as the Fiction Contributing Editor with Water~Stone Review (WSR) for v. 26? My hope is to discover new voices and communities and to encounter writing that surprises me. I remember what it was like to open my first acceptance...
A Conversation with Juliet Patterson—WSR Contributing Creative Nonfiction Editor
Water~Stone Review is a collaborative project of students, faculty, and staff at Hamline University Creative Writing Programs. In addition to working with our faculty, and to fulfill a larger initiative of providing a place for new/emerging and underrepresented voices...
A Conversation with January Gill O’Neil—WSR Contributing Poetry Editor
Water~Stone Review is a collaborative project of students, faculty, and staff at Hamline University Creative Writing Programs. In addition to working with our faculty, and to fulfill a larger initiative of providing a place for new/emerging and underrepresented voices...
In The Field: Conversations With Our Contributors—Melissa Crowe
Your poem “Lessons” in Volume 24, lists a series of shocking events that a young person witnessed from extended family members. How has your childhood shaped your poetry? This is a big question! I want to start by addressing that word, shocking because, believe it or...
In The Field: Conversations With Our Contributors—Zibiquah Denny
I really enjoyed your creative nonfiction piece “The Buckskin Dress” in Volume 24 which tells the history of your family through the usage and the making of a dress sewn by your grandmother. Why did you choose to tell this story through the history of the dress? How...
In The Field: Conversations With Our Contributors—Ramsey Mathews
Your poem in Volume 24, “Cold Sweet Tea on a Slow Afternoon at the Waffle House” is visceral and poignant due to the terrifying situation you describe. It is written in direct, clear language. What was your reasoning in telling this poem with concise language? Did the...
In The Field: Conversations With Our Contributors—Mona Susan Power
Your fictional short story in Volume 24, “Iktomi Spins a Web” is a fresh take on Iktómi, a trickster spider from Dakota and Lakota traditions. What was your intention behind creating a new story with a traditional character? Are there certain things a writer should...