Yellow Arrow Publishing Blog

Kapua Iao 10/11/22 Kapua Iao 10/11/22

Unexpected Moments: What is Another Word for Intimacy? by Amanda Baker

Yellow Arrow Publishing announces the release of our latest chapbook, What is Another Word for Intimacy? by Amanda Baker. Since its establishment in 2016, Yellow Arrow has devoted its efforts to advocate for all women writers through inclusion in the biannual Yellow Arrow Journal as well as single-author publications, and by providing strong author support, writing workshops, and volunteering opportunities. We at Yellow Arrow are excited to continue our mission by supporting Amanda in all her writing and publishing endeavors.

What is Another Word for Intimacy? came to fruition after years of not writing. As a child and teenager, Amanda had a passion for writing that got lost amidst the illusion of glamor in straight As and the molding of oneself to be apologetically pleasing. Who has time for vulnerability, fascination, imagination, and daydreaming when you’re told they get in the way of productivity and accomplishment? How can you access inner deepness if your heart closes? What leads to a closed heart? Without these answers, Amanda was rarely intimate, unless you count psychology books and social parties, where intimacy is diluted by the appetizers, side wall conversations, and free drinks. Amanda’s passion and deep-seated writing did not fully return until her 30s. Now, she writes to fill the void. She writes to create connections. She writes to find true intimacy, believing it is about the vulnerability that comes with being open and honest when connecting to someone else, whether in friendship, companionship, or love.

In What is Another Word for Intimacy? Amanda travels through unexpected moments of intimacy—a pack of fruit mint gum, the inside of a pocket, an old green dress that still fits—only to realize that all exists within oneself. Relationships are a vessel for growth. Relationships are a mirror, reflecting back in us what we believe about ourselves.

Amanda is a mental health therapist, 200-hour yoga instructor, and poet from Baltimore, Maryland. She attended the University of Maryland School of Social Work and James Madison University. She is a mother of her four-year-old son, Dylan, and enjoys time in nature. Amanda has self-published a poetry collection that includes written work from her early teens into her 30s. You may find her book ASK: A Collection of Poetry, Lyrics, and Words on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

The incredible cover was created in-house by Creative Director Alexa Laharty after a few conversations with Amanda. “Intimacy does not need to be defined in words,” Amanda conveyed in a recent chat, “this cover represents all that we are not able to fully say, understand, or see. It still creates a shared authentic experience. It creates a resonance, a vitality, a life force. Touching palm lines, interlaced fingers, a hug of hands is my favorite! The way energy can be felt from miles and miles away and in a touch, in hand holding.”

Paperback and PDF versions of What is Another Word for Intimacy? are now available from the Yellow Arrow bookstore. If interested in purchasing more than one paperback copy for friends and family, check out our discounted wholesale prices here. You can also search for What is Another Word for Intimacy? wherever you purchase your books including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Kobo. To learn more about Amanda and What is Another Word for Intimacy?, check out our recent interview with her.

You can find Amanda on Instagram @amandabakerwrites and connect with Yellow Arrow on Facebook and Instagram, to share some love for this chapbook. We’d love to hear from you.

*****

Yellow Arrow Publishing is a nonprofit supporting women writers through publication and access to the literary arts. Yellow Arrow recently revamped and restructured its Yellow Arrow Journal subscription plan to include two levels. Do you think you are an Avid Reader or a Literary Lover? Find out more about the discounts and goodies involved at yellowarrowpublishing.com/store/yellow-arrow-journal-subscription.

You can support us as we AWAKEN in a variety of ways: purchase one of our publications from the Yellow Arrow bookstore, join our newsletter, follow us on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter or subscribe to our YouTube channel. Donations are appreciated via PayPal (staff@yellowarrowpublishing.com), Venmo (@yellowarrowpublishing), or US mail (PO Box 102, Glen Arm, MD 21057). More than anything, messages of support through any one of our channels are greatly appreciated.

Kapua Iao 10/4/22 Kapua Iao 10/4/22

Review of The Indomitable Florence Finch: The Untold Story of a War Widow Turned Resistance Fighter and Savior of American POWs by Robert J. Mrazek

Read Charity R. Bartley Howard review of *The Indomitable Florence Finch: The Untold Story of a War Widow Turned Resistance Fighter and Savior of American POWs* by Robert J. Mrazek, published in Yellow Arrow Journal’s Vol. V, No. 3 **(Re)Formation** issue (fall 2020). Information about where to find *The Indomitable Florence Finch* and **(Re)Formation** is below.

By Charity R. Bartley Howard

Florence Ebersole Finch (1915–2016) lived a fascinating and important life. The Indomitable Florence Finch: The Untold Story of a War Widow Turned Resistance Fighter and Savior of American POWs by Robert J. Mrazek is the true telling of the life of a hero many may not have heard of before. Florence Finch saved many American lives (prisoners of war or POWs) in the Philippines during World War II. The Americans were in the country starting in early 1942 to mid to late 1945. Their goal was to help the Filipino campaign against Japanese forces, to stop Japan from occupying the area. Now, with this engaging book, her story is finally being told. Florence was humble during and after the war, and her efforts were not for the sake of glory, but rather what she felt was necessary and right.

This is an exceptionally written biography about an exceptional person. Mrazek worked from personal journals, taped interviews, and other original sources. The information was compiled from the past experiences of an elderly woman who finally explained everything to her family only a few years before she died in 2016 at age 101. Born to a Filipina woman and an American serviceman in 1915, Florence was raised in the Philippines and married an American sailor, Charles Smith. She had worked for the U.S. Army in Manila in 1941 prior to the Japanese invasion of the Philippines; it is there she met her husband. Unfortunately, he would be killed in action in the Philippines in 1942, and she soon found herself a widow within the Japanese-occupied Philippines.

At the start of occupation, Florence had taken a job at the Philippine Liquid Fuel Distribution Union (controlled by the Japanese). For two years, this led her to slyly helping the Philippine resistance against the Japanese in many ways: diverting fuel shipments, falsifying documents, and obtaining supplies for POWs. In 1944, her actions were discovered; Florence was arrested, tortured, tried, and sentenced to three years of imprisonment. She remained in captivity until American troops liberated the Philippines in 1945.

Mrazek’s book does her justice. While at the beginning it might take readers some time to get into the story and stay with it, learning the background is important to knowing the full scope of Florence’s remarkable life and achievements. Readers are given vivid details as well as facts from her time during and before the war, creating a delightful read for those who appreciate history and learning about an unsung hero. Ultimately, this is a story of a remarkable woman all readers can admire. Florence was awarded the American Medal of Freedom in 1947 and was the first woman given the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Ribbon. In 1995, the Coast Guard (who she worked for after the war) named a building on Sand Island in Hawai'i in her honor. Without her efforts, many family members would have lost their loved ones, making her sacrifices important.

Not all war heroes are on the frontlines or are known to us today. In The Indomitable Florence Finch, readers hear the account of one of these unknown heroes. Mrazek’s account is real without being overly violent, but accurately explains what happened. Readers journey in triumph and sadness, both through her war efforts and through her personal tragedies. It helps us understand what happened before us and the sacrifices people made that allow us to live the way we do today. Knowing about her and how she was selfless sets a good example of how we should care about as well as help others. Pertinent information given our current worldwide situation.

Florence lived an interesting and heart-breaking life, full of incredible bravery. Mrazek does a superb job of interweaving the historical narrative of World War II with Florence Finch’s personal life, into an engaging as well as emotional book. The Indomitable Florence Finch also relates an element of World War II many may not have much knowledge of, but will have a better understanding of, following this dramatic telling of Florence’s experiences. There are many other stories yet to tell of brave women, and men, throughout history. If you are interested in learning more about an unsung woman hero in history, this is a well-told story of Florence Finch’s brave efforts and strengths. It is an emotional story that was needed and done in a wonderful way. This is a must read for everyone.

A PDF of (Re)Formation is available in the Yellow Arrow bookstore or as a paperback or ebook through most online distributors. The Indomitable Florence Finch was published by Hachette Books (2020; 368 pages).

Charity R. Bartley Howard lives in central Indiana with her sons and husband. She enjoys time with them outside, camping and hiking. Her degrees are in English and journalism. There is always a book open in her house as she enjoys reading, and family reading time is important as well. Spare time also means editing as well as writing articles, stories, and poems.

*****

Yellow Arrow Publishing is a nonprofit supporting women writers through publication and access to the literary arts. We recently revamped and restructured its Yellow Arrow Journal subscription plan to include two levels. Do you think you are an Avid Reader or a Literary Lover? Find out more about the discounts and goodies involved at yellowarrowpublishing.com/store/yellow-arrow-journal-subscription.

Yellow Arrow 9/30/22 Yellow Arrow 9/30/22

Her View Friday

Yellow Arrow Publishing supports women-identifying writers from a wide variety of backgrounds, not just because it’s the right thing to do, but because it makes us stronger. Women’s voices have historically been underrepresented in literature, and we aim to elevate those voices and stories through our programs, publications, and support.

Part of our mission in supporting and uplifting women writers is to promote the Yellow Arrow community’s individual accomplishments. We’d like to further expand that support and promotion outside of our Yellow Arrow publications. Twice a month, we’d like to give a shout out to those within the Yellow Arrow community who recently published:

single-author publications
single pieces in journals, anthologies, etc.

You can support our authors by reading this blog and their work, sharing their news, and commenting below or on the blog. Congratulations to all the included authors. We are so proud of you!

Every writer has a story to tell and every story is worth telling.

“Betrayal” by Ute Carson from Austin, Texas

Genre: fiction

Name of publisher: Pithead Chapel

Date published: September 2022

Type of publication: online

pitheadchapel.com/betrayal/

“Where Azaleas Grow” by Sara Palmer from Baltimore, Maryland

Genre: poetry

Name of publisher: Pen in Hand Literary Journal

Date published: July 2022

Type of publication: print and online

marylandwriters.org/Pen_in_Hand

Want to learn more about Sara? You can find her on Facebook @sara.palmer.5455 and @sara.p5455.

“The Certain Old Man” by Heather Brown Barrett from Southeastern Virginia

Genre: poetry

Name of publisher: Virtual Verse

Date published: August 31, 2022

Type of publication: online

visualverse.org/submissions/the-certain-old-man/

“Ars Bestia Domitor” and “Trees of Life” also by Heather Brown Barrett from Southeastern Virginia

Genre: poetry

Name of publisher: The Ekphrastic Review

Date published: September 9, 2022 and September 23, 2022

Type of publication: online

ekphrastic.net/the-ekphrastic-challenges/luristan-bronze-ekphrastic-responses

ekphrastic.net/the-ekphrastic-challenges/jo-zider-ekphrastic-challenge-responses

You can find Heather on Instagram @heatherbrownbarrett.

Yellow Arrow (past and present) board, staff, interns, authors, residents, and instructors alike! Got a publication coming out? Let us help celebrate for you in Her View Friday.

Single-author publications: here.

Single pieces: here.

Please read the instructions on each form carefully; we look forward to congratulating you!

*****

Yellow Arrow recently revamped and restructured its Yellow Arrow Journal subscription plan to include two levels. Do you think you are an Avid Reader or a Literary Lover? Find out more about the discounts and goodies involved at yellowarrowpublishing.com/store/yellow-arrow-journal-subscription. Yellow Arrow Publishing is a nonprofit supporting women writers through publication and access to the literary arts.

Kapua Iao 9/27/22 Kapua Iao 9/27/22

Books, Baltimore, Community: How the Ivy Bookshop Connects with its Community

By Sydney Alexander, August 2022

In early August, I had the pleasure of interviewing Emily Rosen, the Operations Manager at the Ivy Bookshop in Baltimore, Maryland on Falls Road. Our conversation centered around how the Ivy connects with its local community and with Baltimore as a whole. At the Ivy, a lot more goes into the community than just the people buying and selling books. The idea of community is made special by how this bookshop connects readers with other readers in addition to how it connects readers with a variety of worlds through the books it sells.

On a base level, staff are crucial in fostering the sense of community. The Ivy draws upon locals when hiring staff members, with an internship program that often leads to jobs. The Ivy has many partnerships with local schools and youth organizations, drawing kids “from all corners of Baltimore City” who are excited about working with books and about reading. Of course, Ivy staff members bring more than just a pair of willing hands to the table. These workers also have niche interests that they can share with Baltimore’s readers: everything from gardening and nature to speculative fiction and thrillers. These special interests make for personal connections that tie bookstore workers and bookstore patrons together, adding a personal touch that makes the Ivy its own special place.

What is more, the Ivy has made a dedicated effort to bring in younger folks. Whereas this bookshop once primarily catered to families and older folks, newer partnerships have connected this bookshop with younger readers and students, which has led to an evolution of the store itself. It is important, Emily emphasized, to have younger staff who can connect with a younger demographic of readers. Younger staff on board at the Ivy has led to a greater diversity in what the Ivy stocks on its shelves, as these staff members can best draw upon and cater to the interests of young people. The mystery and Sci-Fi sections of the store have swelled. There is also a large interest in poetry; not only does the Ivy strive to connect with local poets, but staff members are poets themselves, which has led to an overflowing poetry section to match.

The Ivy’s shelves not only reflect community interests, but also the Ivy’s location. In 2020, the Ivy moved to a new home within city borders—a multistory building situated on a large property overflowing with foliage, with more space inside and out. The Ivy has made good use of its large backyard and its outdoor patio. At the height of the COVID pandemic, all programming was held outside, from author events to art camps and to yoga classes. Last March, Yellow Arrow even collaborated with the Ivy to hold a reading from poet Patti Ross’ new chapbook St. Paul Street Provocations. A story walk set up in the backyard allows younger readers to follow a winding path of words and stories intertwined with nature. What is more, the gardening and nature section of the store has grown, which reflects the Ivy’s mission to “bring the outside in,” as Emily put it.

When I asked Emily to describe the Ivy’s space, she described it as “light, airy, clean,” a space that felt like welcoming open arms. Lots of natural light illuminates floor-to-ceiling cream-colored shelves and walkways that loop through the shop. Little cards with book recommendations, “shelf talkers,” highlight staff picks and favorites. No longer stymied by the small space of their old location, the Ivy now has an open space for Baltimoreans, from children to adults, to explore, browse, and get lost in.

The Ivy also strives to amplify and share the voices of local authors and writers. Many of its events are community-based, and the Ivy prioritizes bringing together local authors with the people in their community. Most often, these are Baltimore writers and Baltimore readers, a combination that contributes to the Ivy’s identity as a uniquely Baltimore bookshop.

In all, the Ivy is a place where “everyone is on the same page” and where “lots of people meld [and] are united by a general love for books and community.” It only makes sense that this bookshop has become such a beloved and important place in Baltimore’s literary scene. It was delightful getting to know Emily and learning more about how the Ivy operates. When exploring new cities, I always love to check out the bookstore scene, and this interview offered me the opportunity to not only learn more about bookstores, but it also offered me a deeper look into the Charm City community.

On September 30, join Yellow Arrow and Bird in Hand Cafe, the Ivy’s sister store, for the book launch of when the daffodils die, the debut chapbook of Darah Schillinger. Let us know that you plan to attend here. Thank you for supporting independent publishing.

Sydney Alexander is a rising sophomore at Middlebury College in Vermont studying English and Geography. She grew up in Ellicott City, Maryland, but enjoys the fact that she has lived all over the country, including North Carolina, California, and Wisconsin. Her work has been published online in Hunger Mountain Review.

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Kapua Iao 9/20/22 Kapua Iao 9/20/22

Poetry is Not Just for Stuffy Old White Men

By Veronica Salib, written June 2022

Growing up, I spent a lot of time with my nose in a book. I was an awkward sort of kid who didn’t quite fit into my own body and books were a great way to escape that. They were a way to live all the lives I couldn’t quite get my hands on. As I grew into my own body in high school, I let go of that love of reading. I was busier with makeup, school dances, cheer practice, and unrequited love.

In my freshman year of high school, one of my teachers had us all celebrate Poem in Your Pocket Day (April 29). We were meant to each bring in our favorite—or just a poem—and share it with the class. Frankly, I dreaded this. Not only did I have anxiety around public speaking, but what was I going to bring. I didn’t have a favorite poem. I didn’t even have an OK-it-doesn’t-suck-that-bad poem.

I ended up picking a poem that I found posted anonymously online. It was cheesy, rhymed, and all of six lines long but that’s beside the point. That day I heard kinds of poetry that I had never heard before. Lines that perfectly described how I was feeling. People had put words to the emotions I could never quite explain.

Up until that point, I was never a fan of poetry. Poetry to me was written by stuffy old white guys who had no idea what it was like living as a 15-year-old Egyptian girl in a school of mostly white kids.

Now I won’t lie to you; it wasn’t until a year later that I fell in love with poetry. That same teacher introduced me to a spoken word poet named Sarah Kay, who absolutely captivated me. I watched every single one of her videos and every Ted Talk. I bought every poetry book she had written. I spent hours on end going through the recommended videos on her YouTube page.

What I learned was poetry isn’t just for old stuffy white guys.

Who would’ve thought?

Poetry is for women who didn’t quite feel comfortable in their skin. Poetry is for men who are struggling with their sexuality. Poetry is for people of color who had to come to terms with the microaggressions they would face daily. Poetry is for people falling in love and healing from the scars that love tends to leave behind.

Poetry is for mothers struggling to raise their sons to be good men and fathers who are amazed at their daughters’ minds. Poetry is for the angry loved ones left behind when someone passes, and that same loved one 10 years down the line when the wounds have scabbed over. And, believe it or not, poetry is for 15 (now 23) year-old Egyptian girls living in a world dominated by old white men.

Late in college, I began to write consistently for the first time. I was always one to scribble thoughts, but as soon as things got difficult, I shut down, put the notebook away, and hid. When my life got hard, and there was no hiding from the ugly, I decided to lean into it. To journal all the terrible feelings and work through them instead of working around them.

The newfound appreciation for writing returned my love of reading. This time it was slightly different. Instead of reading to escape my life, I ended up reading books about my life. I found authors who wrote about similar experiences to mine and how they grew in the direction of the sun rather than towards the roots from which they came. The comfort I found in the words of a stranger just fueled my own writing more.

When I started to go to therapy and unpack all the issues I had stuffed into a neat little gift-wrapped box, writing became my safe space. The things it was hard to say aloud went down on the paper. It was easy to look at these journal entries, poems, and notes in the margin and identify my feelings. It was like writing them out took me out of the situation and let me acknowledge the hurt I felt and the progress I had made.

Writing is what helped me quit my job. And I know that doesn’t sound like a great thing, but I promise you it is. I worked a job that I thought was an excellent fit for me, it had its downsides like every job did, but if it weren’t for my writing, I would have never realized how exhausting it was to pretend to love something that was sucking the life out of me. It helped me acknowledge my greatest loves to date, reading and writing.

It wasn’t until I skimmed through all my journal entries that I decided to make my major career switch from medicine to publishing. Don’t get me wrong; it was not an overnight decision. I’m nothing if not an anxiety-ridden, pro-con list writing, research-doing neurotic freak. But it was the spark that lit the fire.

And when I did leave my job, made the major career switch, and was met with rejection after rejection, disappointment after disappointment, it was writing that kept me sane. I acknowledged the struggles that I faced, the anger, the fatigue, the outright depression. And still, it was the writing that always made me come back; it was realizing how much I enjoyed my little short stories, how excited I got when a friend asked me to edit their paper, and how I could write pages and pages about lines in a book or poem that resonated with me.

If you asked me today, I wouldn’t say I’m a fantastic writer or poet by any means, but it is a massive part of my life. If you asked me, I would say I write for the girl who was too awkward to go out and live her own adventures. I write for the girl who used to hate poetry. I write for the girl too caught up in the boy who didn’t love her back. I write for the girl who thought poetry was for stuffy old white men. I write for the 15-year-old Egyptian girl in a school of mostly white kids.

I write for the girl who hid from the difficult things. I write for the girl who was brave enough to admit she needed help. I write for the girl unpacking her neat little gift box. I write for the girl who was too clouded by the plan she laid out for herself to realize it was killing her. I write for the girl who quit her job and dealt with all the discomfort of being in limbo. But most of all, I write for the girl I am now. The girl who has finally gotten her foot in the door, has finally begun to let go of the father who hurt her, finally started to listen to her internal dialogue, and the girl who has finally begun to embrace all the things that bring her joy.

Veronica Salib was the summer publications intern at Yellow Arrow Publishing and is currently an editorial associate. She works as an assistant editor for a healthcare media company. Veronica graduated from the University of Maryland in 2021 and hopes to return to school and obtain a master’s in publishing.

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Kapua Iao 9/13/22 Kapua Iao 9/13/22

Let Intimacy Bloom: A Conversation with Amanda Baker

I want transformation,

But not transformed.

Blooming

But not bloomed.

[ . . . ]

Because done is an ending

And I’m never finished.

“Let Me Bloom”

Imagine a young girl about seven years of age, locks hanging loose over her keyboard, as she creates lyrics for the electronic beats pulsing from her palms to her pen to the page. This is the start, the heart, of Yellow Arrow Publishing’s final chapbook author, Amanda Baker’s, poetry. This proclivity towards melodic expression gave breath to her writing from an early age and ultimately resulted in the formation of her forthcoming chapbook What is Another Word for Intimacy?

What is Another Word for Intimacy? is now available for PRERELEASE (click here for wholesale prices) and will be released October 11, 2022. Follow Yellow Arrow on Facebook and Instagram for Friday sneak peeks into What is Another Word for Intimacy? The incredible cover was created in-house by Creative Director Alexa Laharty after a few conversations with Amanda. “Intimacy does not need to be defined in words,” Amanda conveyed in a recent chat, “though it is helpful. Connection does not need to be explained in metaphors, though it is helpful. An emotion does not need to be seen or read on a page, though it is helpful. This cover represents all that we are not able to fully say, understand, or see. It still creates a shared authentic experience. It creates a resonance, a vitality, a life force. Touching palm lines, interlaced fingers, a hug of hands is my favorite! The way energy can be felt from miles and miles away and in a touch, in hand holding.”

After a day of work as a mental health therapist and time spent with her son before his bedtime, Amanda met with Melissa Nunez, Yellow Arrow author and interviewer extraordinaire, over Zoom to discuss the evolution of her poetic voice and the intimacy of writing and personal connection that ties her newest collection together.

A question that is commonly asked of writers is when they started writing. I find it very compelling that you were very open to and about your poetry from a young age (Amanda’s first collection ASK: A Collection of Poetry, Lyrics, and Words spans more than a decade of writing beginning from age 14). What did you gain from the experience of publishing work from when you were young?

It was so fascinating to go back and read through my old journals. I have always recalled that kind of writing coming naturally to me. I never learned to play the piano or read music as a child, but I would pretend with the programmed beats on my keyboard, and words started to come naturally with the melody. I used to say I write lyrics, not necessarily poetry, because there tends to be that cadence or melody in my head accompanying the words. I don’t always do that now as it has kind of transformed into other ways of writing my poetry. Going back through my journals as an adult and reading what I had written and saved (mostly from ages 13 and on) allowed me to see that core self that never really changed and still exists within me. It also revealed ways that I had changed and maybe had gotten a little disconnected from myself. It is so valuable to go back and see things that are still so true to me—values I’m so passionate about, that vision and creativity still flowing. It inspired and motivated me to get back into writing more regularly.

What would you say is the biggest difference between the creation of your two collections, ASK and Intimacy?

Maturity and growth. I have come into my own regarding relationships, whether that is partnership, a marriage, or friendship, and navigating things that block that desired level of intimacy. From a young age I thought intimacy was or meant only one thing, and this new collection is about finding the truth of intimacy. These poems, for me, are that desire to understand it, know it, feel it, and be in it, and have others really be open to that same curiosity. My first collection was more about seeing changes over time, not necessarily with a specific theme, but what I think links them together is asking questions. The deeper we go, the more that we ask, the more we can expand our minds and hold other perspectives.

What is your personal definition of intimacy?

The vulnerability that comes with being open and honest within a connection with someone. I teach yoga, and within yoga comes union of the mind, the body, and the spirit. I feel like taking that union and alignment and having that with another person is the goal of intimacy. It doesn’t necessarily mean that you are an exact match within those three elements within each other, but there needs to be that same openness and acceptance. When you really get to know someone on a close level and let go of the defenses that can come out naturally in a relationship, an openness and consciousness can be built between two people when you truly see each other for who you are.

Why do you think intimacy is so important in writing?

Writing can essentially be the vessel for intimacy. I recently watched a TED Talk by Ethan Hawke called Give Yourself Permission to be Creative and he shared something that really resonated with me. He said that in order to express yourself you need to know yourself, and in order to know yourself you need to know what you love. Love and intimacy are interconnected in so many ways. If we really want to express our truth through writing, then we need to be curious and go inwards to know ourselves and to love ourselves as well. Intimacy exists in writing and reading someone’s work. You develop a relationship through the words that are shared, through that connection.

I would love you in all ways / in all languages / in glances

[ . . . ]

L O V E in a shared space / does not need language at all.

“My Love Language Must Be.”

There are many creative expressions and descriptions of love in your work. What would you want your audience to learn about love?

Two things come to mind. The first is that love is universal. I love that about love. Wherever you are, whatever country you come from, at our core—we all want love. We want to feel love and to be loved. It doesn’t need a language because it exists in all languages, it is shared everywhere if you are willing to be open to it and feel it. The second is that love exists inside you. In order to be intimate with someone else, you have to first be intimate with yourself. That opens up that level of intimacy or the multiple forms of love that can manifest in different ways with different people.

There is a strong message of healing in your poetry. How is writing healing for you?

It is so healing. I write almost every day now and it is energizing. When I’m writing, I am learning something about myself. Sometimes I start writing and don’t even know where it is going to end up. I’ll have an idea and it flows into something different, something unexpected. I think that can be a signal of healing and growth. Self-expression also helps us release things that can be debilitating or defeating, feelings that when held inside create more stress and tension. Those doubts or insecurities that naturally exist in all of us. I hope that people can see that healing over time through my writing. In my first collection, and even these poems that might not be chronologically ordered, you can see how my beliefs about things have changed, how I am now more flexible (as opposed to rigid), more open to other opinions (as opposed to being opinionated). Writing is such a big part of my coming to that place.

I love the message that writing can be healing for anyone at any age or stage. What advice would you have for those who have never tried or have felt intimidated by writing?

I think the biggest takeaway is to not stop even when there is perceived criticism. There may be those who think their way is the only way, others who categorize good writers and better writers, but it is important to realize that if you choose to share your writing it will find the people it resonates with. Your voice matters and taking the time to experiment with how you want your voice to come out is vital. Someone may start writing and find that it is not for them, and then they may start singing. [That’s] beautiful. [I encourage anyone to] continue to pursue some level of expression that aligns with you. If you find that it is writing, keep writing. One word can be a poem. Who is to say that it’s not? That’s the magic and the beauty of it. There is no right or wrong way.

How did you connect with Yellow Arrow Publishing?

I have felt a divine timing in my writing journey with so many things lining up in just the right way to get me where I am. In opening my old journals and feeling that inspired impulse to share them. Connecting with Yellow Arrow was another one. I am a therapist full time, and a colleague of mind has a friend who led me to Yellow Arrow. She mentioned I should chat with them as an opportunity to find new information for my writing. I met up with her friend and she directed me to [Yellow Arrow’s] Instagram. Literally two days later they posted their open call for submissions. It felt like a sign that I had to do this. Baltimore is my home city and their mission to empower female writers and poets drew me in. I have since attended some of their writing workshops and connected with some of the other writers within their community, and it has all seemed to just fall into place.

Do you think your profession as therapist plays into the development of your writer voice?

Absolutely. I bring a lot of mental health themes into my writing (a third collection inspired by these themes is in the works). The more that I write, the more I have embraced using that as a tool or intervention with my clients. I encourage them to express themselves in various ways, one of them being writing. I am very open about my own struggles with anxiety, depressive symptoms, and the impact of trauma (a professional label for this is a therapist with lived experiences). I include this in my writing because it is authentic to me and a way to heal, but it is also a model for other people who may be coming to see someone like myself. It shows them they are not alone, and that this is not a fix-all. This is a process I am guiding you through to be closer to and better know yourself. Writing is one path that has worked for me. Let’s find what works for you.

Now everywhere I go . . . I leave a little bit of your residue.

It fades as a broken record memory

where I can’t remember if the flavor was peppermint or sugar sweet.

“The Fruit Mint Gum Variety Pack.”

Do you have a favorite poem from the collection, one that encapsulates the core of your work?

“The Fruit Mint Gum Variety Pack” stands out for me. It is so metaphorical and relatable to other people. That thinking that something—whether a person or some connection or event—is going to dissolve and you’re not going to remember it, but the taste is just there. I also think of, “I say you can love more than one person.” Those two are my favorites.

I was intrigued by the dialogue about our memory selves or perceived selves that plays out in some of your poems. How do you approach the writing of memory while embracing the inherent perspective bias and inconsistencies?

What we remember is based on our beliefs, our history, and our views of the world. I write what is true to my memory while remaining aware others may not remember or recall things in the same way. It’s about bringing that awareness to other people while recognizing our recollections of events are not static. When it comes to intimacy, our way of seeing self tends to be more negative. That can interfere with the connections we make. When somebody sees us in a way we don’t, it can be hard to believe. That creates potential for repelling or pulling away from the intimacy as opposed to opening up to it. We [may] accept that there are other—at times more positive—ways of seeing ourselves and be open to those outside points of view. We [may] be open to integrating them with our own perspectives.

The hunger

The craving

The style

The smile. Always a smile.

I’d be always a

S M I L E.

“If they see the way they say they see me . . . then I’d be . . .”

You can read more of Amanda’s words on love and connection in her second poetry collection What is Another Word for Intimacy? Please show your support of Amanda by preordering your copy today.

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Thank you, Amanda and Melissa, for sharing your conversation. Yellow Arrow Publishing is a nonprofit supporting women writers through publication and access to the literary arts. Yellow Arrow recently revamped and restructured its Yellow Arrow Journal subscription plan to include two levels. Do you think you are an Avid Reader or a Literary Lover? Find out more about the discounts and goodies involved at yellowarrowpublishing.com/store/yellow-arrow-journal-subscription.

Kapua Iao 9/6/22 Kapua Iao 9/6/22

The Fact of Living in a Place: I (want to) love you, Baltimore publication release

Yellow Arrow Publishing announces the release of our latest publication, I (want to) love you, Baltimore, by the Yellow Arrow 2022 Writers-in-Residence: Arao Ameny, Amy L. Bernstein, Catrice Greer, and Matilda Young. Since its establishment in 2016, Yellow Arrow has devoted its efforts to advocate for all women writers through inclusion in the biannual Yellow Arrow Journal as well as single- and multi-author publications, and by providing strong author support, writing workshops, and volunteering opportunities. We at Yellow Arrow are excited to continue our mission by supporting the residents in all their writing and publishing endeavors.

I (want to) love you, Baltimore is now available from the Yellow Arrow bookstore as a paperback and a PDF. A heartfelt thanks to Arao, Amy, Catrice, and Matilda for going on this journey with us. Visit yellowarrowpublishing.com/writerinresidence-program to learn more about the 2022 writers-in-residence.

Below, Yellow Arrow Executive Director Annie Marhefka, who accompanied the residents on their journey, dives deeper into what it means to be a Yellow Arrow resident and what it means to create and compile a publication as a group.

By Annie Marhefka

As writers, we like to seek out opportunities to explore our craft in a way that grounds us in place. Writing retreats are places you escape to in order to write, writing fellowships award you funds to write wherever you want, and writing residencies offer you a place to go to dedicate time to the pursuit of writing. A residency by definition is “the fact of living in a place.” Residency programs are meant to foster community among its participants. This year at Yellow Arrow Publishing, we decided to have a virtual writing residency for Baltimore residents, a thing that is at odds with itself, a thing that should not even exist.

Founder Gwen Van Velsor initially designed yellow Arrow’s residency program to accommodate emerging writers who could not spend weeks or months in a location far removed from where their obligations resided. The original residency was flexible—a place, the Yellow Arrow House, you could go to at hours of your own choosing, a space to call your own, for the sole purpose of writing. But in 2020 as we all know, our shared physical spaces became places where disease could spread rather than places where we could find community. In fact, my introduction to Yellow Arrow was through its residency program during this time; mine began in March of 2020. As a new mother who had quickly found it impossible to write, even with childcare, in my own noisy home, I was ecstatic to have been awarded a residency with Yellow Arrow. I hired a nanny to watch my child a few afternoons each week and headed off to my new writing space in Highlandtown.

The writing space was intimate—a small wooden desk in a corner by two windows that looked out over the intersection of South Conkling and Bank streets. Despite its plainness, it was apparent that someone [Gwen] had taken care to make the space feel cozy, safe, inspiring. One window was adorned with a large paper cutout of a woman writing. The silhouette cast a feminine shadow across the room when the sun peeked over the brick building across the street. An empty notebook whose cover was decorated with a picture of the Baltimore skyline laid upon the desk, along with a basket of pens, a vase of yellow flowers, and a yellow coffee mug.

While I had sought out the writing residency to escape others, to find solace in a place where I was isolated, it struck me once I arrived that the thing about the space that made it conducive to writing was the presence of other writers in the room. The only other piece of furniture in the room was a classic green chalkboard easel. On it, Gwen had drawn a swirly yellow arrow and written this quote by Emily Kamminga, a contributor to Yellow Arrow Journal, COURAGE (Vol. III):

On that first day, I wrote 3,000 words—almost an entire chapter for my work-in-progress, a memoir about my relationship with my late mother. I was elated. Then, several days later, I penned an article about the world shutting down for I Heart Highlandtown’s website. It is stunning to read that back to myself now—how I thought of it as temporary, how I thought of the pandemic story having an ending. Fast forward to 2021, when I took on the role of executive director of Yellow Arrow and had to re-envision how we would (how we could) host programs, like the writing residency, without a physical space. When our mission was centered around building community space for emerging writers and creatives, how could I create a community virtual space that was as sacred and nurturing to the soul as the space Gwen had created for me?

I knew immediately that the residency program could not be done in isolation in this way. We were all already isolating, physically; I could not then expect writers to pursue their creative endeavors alone in their rooms. They needed a safe zone. They needed a sanctuary. They needed a place—even if it was not a real, tangible location. We decided to create a virtual cohort of writers and the writers had to be in Baltimore. Even though they may never meet in person, they needed to have place in common. Places can amplify our differences and our commonalities; they can separate us, unite us, bond us. And Baltimore is where Yellow Arrow’s roots are, and where my roots are, so Charm City would be a requirement.

The four writers we selected, Arao, Amy, Catrice, and Matilda, submitted stunning portfolios of work, and would represent different facets of Baltimore—different neighborhoods, different experiences, different perspectives. My intention was to meet monthly with the four writers and check on their progress, as I did not want to overburden them in an already over-burdensome online landscape with more Zoom calls, but I also intended to let the writers guide me in how I facilitated the program. In our first meeting, they all agreed they preferred to meet weekly, and so that became the new plan. For several months, we met on Zoom and most days, we started our conversations with how everyone was doing personally. Sometimes, we let those check-ins drive our entire meeting space. Sometimes they needed to. We talked about our losses, our writing inspirations, and sometimes our inability to feel inspired at that moment.

But mostly, the writers shared their words. Arao, Amy, Catrice, and Matilda put their full selves forward throughout their residency program. The irony of having a virtual residency grounded in Baltimore was that it was not grounded in any place at all. For each Zoom call, we clicked on a web link, adjusted our lighting, and muted ourselves when we weren’t talking. Some of us even had faux backgrounds that blurred when we shifted too quickly to the left, and here we were talking about the city that surrounded us, and our relationship to it without really being in it together.

The only rule I had given them was that the writing had to incorporate Baltimore in some way—as setting, as background, as character. They drafted poems and read them aloud with a vulnerability that only a writer with a half-finished first draft fully understands. We sent clapping emojis and typed out lines that stood out to us in the chat with exclamation marks to convey how much the words impacted us, and we went off mute to cheer and cry and say, “Thank you for sharing that with us.”

Most importantly, we created a beautiful publication out of the residency program, now available from the Yellow Arrow bookstore as a paperback and a PDF. You can also search for I (want to) love you, Baltimore wherever you purchase your books including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Kobo. To learn more about the residents, check out our residents’ blog posts here.

I know that you, as a reader, will feel rooted in the place that inspired these beautiful poems: our Baltimore. And I know that you, as a reader, will be as thankful as I am that these writers shared their stories with us. They created for each other what I had only hoped to replicate from that tiny little writing studio in Highlandtown: the fact of living in a place, together.

Annie Marhefka is a writer and publishing professional in Baltimore. Her creative nonfiction and poetry have been published by Hobart, Literary Mama, Pithead Chapel, Anti-Heroin Chic, Sledgehammer, and others. Annie is the Executive Director at Yellow Arrow Publishing and is working on a memoir about mother/daughter relationships. Annie spent the majority of her career as an executive in human resources in the ed-tech industry before switching paths to focus on motherhood and creative writing. When she’s not writing or wrangling her children, she likes to spend her time on the Chesapeake Bay and other bodies of water. You can find Annie’s writing on Instagram @anniemarhefka, Twitter @charmcityannie, and at anniemarhefka.com.

*****

Kapua Iao 9/1/22 Kapua Iao 9/1/22

Yellow Arrow Journal (VII/02) Submissions are Now Open!

Yellow Arrow Publishing is excited to announce that submissions for our next issue of Yellow Arrow Journal, Vol. VII, No. 2 (fall 2022) is open September 1–30 addressing the overarching concept of illuminating language. Guest editor, Raychelle Heath states,

“From the moment we begin to speak we are also taught how to do it ‘correctly.’ We are given rules and protocols for how to present ourselves when we open our mouths. Without even realizing it, we are thrown into the task of code switching. One tongue for the playground, one tongue for the classroom, one tongue for speaking with our beloved abuelita Mexicana. One tongue to stay safe, one tongue to be daring, brave, to dismantle. For many of us, this code switching, this constant wrangling of words to fit into whatever space we find ourselves is our only way of knowing language. My proposition is we strip away those societal trappings that may, indeed, be holding our tongues hostage.”

This issue’s theme will be PEREGRINE

: engaged in or traveling on a pilgrimage

: having a tendency to wander

: most well-known for attachment to the peregrine or pilgrim falcon

And here are some guiding questions to help you consider what to write and what to submit:

1) What are the constituent parts of the words/language you love? Where did those parts come from? What do the sounds of those parts mean/evoke?

2) What words don’t exist in your language? What silences does that create? How does that effect how you connect with others? How does those words exist in other languages?

3) What does your language look like when it is untethered? When you allow it to wander? To dance with abandon on the page?

4) How does language illuminate our feelings? Our thoughts? Our beliefs? Is it possible to share these through different languages?

Yellow Arrow Journal is looking for creative nonfiction, poetry, and cover art submissions by writers/artists that identify as women, on the theme of PEREGRINE. Submissions can be in any language as long as an English translation accompanies it. For more information regarding journal submission guidelines, please visit yellowarrowpublishing.com/submissions. Please read our guidelines carefully before submitting. To learn more about our editorial views and how important your voice is in your story, read About the Journal. This issue will be released in November 2022.

PEREGRINE’s guest editor, Raychelle Heath, an ANFRACTUOUS and UpSpring poet with her incredible poems “lineage” and “Before the War?” and our December 2021 .W.o.W. author, holds a BA in languages from Winthrop University and an MFA in poetry from the University of South Carolina. She uses her poetry and her podcast to tell the multifaceted stories of black women in the world. Raychelle also explores her experiences with the culturally rich communities that she has encountered in her travels. Her work has been published by Travel Noire, Fourth Wave, Yellow Arrow Journal, The Brazen Collective, and Community Building Art Works. She currently works as curriculum director, sanctuary coach, and facilitator for the Unicorn Authors Club. She also regularly facilitates for The World We Want workshop. We are excited to work with Raychelle over the next few months.

The journal is just one of many ways that Yellow Arrow Publishing works to support and inspire women through publication and access to the literary arts. Since its founding in 2016, Yellow Arrow has worked tirelessly to make an impact on the local and global community by advocating for writers that identify as women. Yellow Arrow proudly represents the voices of women from around the globe. Creating diversity in the literary world and providing a safe space is deeply important. Every writer has a story to tell, every story is worth telling.

*****

Kapua Iao 8/30/22 Kapua Iao 8/30/22

Worlds of Wonder: On Art and Community

By Marylou Fusco, written July 2022

For a long time, the image of a solitary writer striving alone was stuck in my head. Being by myself, cut off from all others was how I believed I’d get my best writing done. I tested this theory at a writer’s residency in the Finger Lakes region of New York State. I can’t say that I got a lot of writing done. Instead, I spent most of my time picking through produce at the farm stand down the road from my cabin or hiking trials that overlooked lakes and waterfalls. The words came after I left my cabin and returned to family and friends. And I was only able to share those words after I found a writing community that supported and encouraged me to truly grow.

Every writer is different. For some, finding inspiration or time to write is the hardest thing. For others, the editing and feedback process is the most challenging part. As Yellow Arrow Publishing’s author support coordinator, I’m excited to be a resource to accompany writers through the final steps of the publishing process: publication release and the promotion of their work in a way that feels true to them. Helping promote their work is not only an opportunity to celebrate a single writer, but a way to emphasize Yellow Arrow’s larger commitment to showcasing underrepresented voices.

These past few years, COVID has forced us all to reconsider what community can and should be. We’ve had to get creative in order to find and create support. At Yellow Arrow, we continue to be creative to allow our work to take different shapes and forms. Promotion can be an author sharing their work in a traditional setting like bookstores or cafes or it can be sharing their work in nontraditional public setting like parks and festivals. Public readings are crucial ways to build community and create a way for people to easily access the arts. We had a fantastic time at this year’s Arts & Drafts Festival with chapbook authors Nikita Rimal Sharma (The most beautiful garden) and Darah Schillinger (when the daffodils die) and the 2022 Writers-in-Residence, Arao Ameny, Amy L. Bernstein, Catrice Greer, and Matilda Young. And look forward to Darah’s book launch at Bird in Hand Café on September 30 as well as the Write Women Book Fest on October 8.

Moreover, to honor our community near and far, we have created two new writing and reading opportunities, both which start in September. Write Here Write Now is a virtual monthly write-in session lead by a guest host, exploring a specific theme. And I’m Speaking is an open mic night where readers are invited to share their prose, poetry, or spoken word.

Such events are a visible reminder that the arts are not reserved for a chosen few but available to all. Promotion can also flow into new collaborations or partnerships as we connect with other literary nonprofits that share our vision of a diverse and thriving literary community.

Maybe, most importantly, publication and promotions are about celebrating a publication that took so long to be birthed or the prose/poems that have been growing inside of us for even longer. Every piece of art brought forth on the page or spoken is a radical and affirming act. Especially now.

While it’s true that there are parts of writing we must enter into alone, there are other parts that can be eased through community. Throughout my own journey of writing, publication, and community-building, I’ve come to deeply appreciate what it means to receive and offer support as a writer. This is something I hope to share with other writers.

Unearthing the story or poem is only the start. Every writer has a story to tell and every story is worth telling.

Marylou Fusco grew up in the wilds of New Jersey and knew she was a writer forever. She holds a BA in Journalism from St. Bonaventure University and an MA in Creative Writing from Temple University. She has worked as a newspaper reporter, GED instructor, and ghost tour guide. She is a big believer in the transformative power of art and community. Marylou’s writing has appeared in PopMatters, Carve, the Philadelphia Inquirer, Mutha magazine and various literary journals. She makes her home in Baltimore, Maryland with her husband and daughter.

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Guest User 8/26/22 Guest User 8/26/22

Her View Friday

single-author publications
single pieces in journals, anthologies, etc.

You can support our authors by reading this blog and their work, sharing their news, and commenting below or on the blog. Congratulations to all the included authors. We are so proud of you!

Every writer has a story to tell and every story is worth telling.

“The Woodpecker” by Annie Marhefka from Baltimore, Maryland

Genre: creative nonfiction

Name of publisher: Literary Mama

Date published: July 20, 2022

Type of publication: online

literarymama.com/articles/departments/2022/07/the-woodpecker

Want to learn more about Annie? Visit her Instagram @anniemarhefka.

“Lines” by Kay Smith-Blum from Seattle, Washington

Genre: fiction

Name of publisher: Grande Dame Literary

Date published: August 4, 2022

Type of publication: online

grandedameliterary.com/post/lines

Want to learn more about Kay? You can find her on Instagram @discerningKSB, Twitter @kaysmithblum, and Facebook @kay.smithblum.

“Becoming Velvet” and “Beneath Your Surface” by Chris Biles from Washington, D.C.

Genre: poetry

Name of publisher: Raven’s Quoth Press - Cherish (Anthology)

Date published: August 14, 2022

Type of publication: print

theravensquoth.press/cherish/

You can find Chris on Instagram @marks.in.the.sand.

Yellow Arrow (past and present) board, staff, interns, authors, residents, and instructors alike! Got a publication coming out? Let us help celebrate for you in Her View Friday.

Single-author publications: here.

Single pieces: here.

Please read the instructions on each form carefully; we look forward to congratulating you!

*****

Kapua Iao 8/23/22 Kapua Iao 8/23/22

Review of Landing on Your Feet and Putting Down Roots by Sherry Burton Ways

Reread Kara Panowitz’s review of *Landing on Your Feet and Putting Down Roots: 21 Rituals to Transform Your Life and Interior Space* by Sherry Burton Ways, published in Yellow Arrow Journal’s Vol. V, No. 2 **HOME** issue (summer 2020). Information about where to find *Landing on Your Feet and Putting Down Roots* and **HOME** is below.

By Kara Panowitz

When my friend, Holly, read the opening to Yellow Arrow Publishing’s first Reading Club book selection, Landing on Your Feet and Putting Down Roots: 21 Rituals to Transform Your Life and Interior Space, she started crying. “This is me,” she said. “I could have written this.” The book opens with author Sherry Burton Ways sharing her personal experience with a relationship ending in divorce. This sets the stage for the book itself: how to transform your physical space, and yourself, after major life transitions. Burton Ways’ honesty and openness create a space of trust and relatability. Her recognition that it can feel daunting or too expensive to make transformations during significant life changes brings comfort, and her story demonstrates that no space is too small to create a refuge or a home. In her own words, Burton Ways’ goal for writing this book is to show readers “how their interior design can assist them with additional support.”

Burton Ways’ explanation that “interior design is not decorating” is a theme that carries throughout the rituals she presents. The biggest lesson I took away was that home is not just a physical space and group of objects, but the rituals and aspects of your life you bring to it and how they all connect together. The 21 rituals presented include some that might be expected, like rearranging furniture, selecting interior colors, and creating vision boards. Others I found less expected, such as the ritual of bathing and loving yourself through environment and crystal energy. Finally, there were rituals completely new to me, like Wabi-sabi.

One of the most useful and most accessible things about the book is that it presents actions you can take immediately or in the near future, which you can continue daily or just once in a while. You make it work for you. Burton Ways’ 21 rituals also come with tips and ideas, taking the abstract to the specific. There is something for everyone in this book and it may make you look at something you hadn’t really considered, or perhaps thought wasn’t for you, in a new way.

The rituals explored in Landing on Your Feet and Putting Down Roots also give new ideas for, and new meaning to, rituals you may already perform. The ritual of music and dance spoke to me the most. Why don’t I listen to music and dance more? I love both, and I can influence the mood and energy in my home through what I choose to listen to, and how I groove to it. Burton Ways’ descriptions made me think of music and dance affecting and permeating my space, spreading through the air and seeping into the walls (I danced that night!). She addresses the physical space by suggesting that readers create open space for dance and carry music into that physical space by displaying artwork that depicts music or even instruments.

Additionally, I enjoy the ritual of cooking but don’t always want to do it or give much thought to the process. When I read about it in the book, it brought new mindfulness and value to meal preparation and my place in it. Burton Ways writes,

“Cooking is an interior abundance ritual that can relieve stress and give your life a sense of purpose during major life transitions. Meal preparation allows you to have control over your life and express yourself . . . [and] is an anti-stress exercise because the process of cooking activates the senses that have been numbed.”

I thought about cooking in a new way, in terms of how it influences and spreads throughout my space, similar to music.

Burton Ways includes personal experiences by other women, intended for readers “to see [themselves] in this process.” These candid and insightful stories illuminate how rituals can be used in transitions, including divorce, death, a new career, and even constant change due to housing insecurity. It reaffirms that you can choose and adjust your rituals for any situation, and that something as small as a handheld rock can bring comfort and consistency during transitions. Burton Ways also shares examples from clients she has worked with that demonstrate the implementation of her rituals in an array of spaces. The stories are inspirational and a highlight of the book.

As I read Landing on Your Feet and Putting Down Roots, I felt like Burton Ways was a friend, mentor, and coach, and that we were blessed to have a visit from her for Yellow Arrow’s Reading Club. This author has many talents and a diverse array of expertise: she is an award-winning author, trainer, and speaker, and holds several certifications such as Certified Design Psychology Coach, Certified Graceful Lifestyles Consultant, and Certified Interior Environment Coach. Her passion for her work is evident in the guidance she shares on her pages.

This was a perfect book for Yellow Arrow's first Reading Club session because Yellow Arrow House in Baltimore, Maryland had just opened, and one of the primary missions of Yellow Arrow is to create a safe, welcoming refuge that feels like home, within the House and within workshops and events. The timing was also serendipitous for me because I was living alone in a new apartment and was ready to embrace transition. I immediately made changes to my space and life after reading the book and continue to revisit her words for reminders and ideas on how to implement her 21 rituals.

Finally, as I wrote this review, the COVID-19 pandemic forced everyone to spend a lot more time at home, and I began to use the rituals to ease anxiety and keep creativity flowing. That’s one of the greatest gifts of Sherry Burton Ways’ book. You can always revisit it to change your space and your life in small or big ways. Like life, changes are not always permanent. No matter what your reason for transforming your space and life, Landing on Your Feet and Putting Down Roots will speak to you and encourage you to find rituals to comfort and support yourself during times of transition.

PDF copies of HOME are available in the Yellow Arrow bookstore, and paperback and electronic versions are available through most online distributors. Landing on Your Feet and Putting Down Roots was published by FriesenPress (2017; 112 pages).

Kara Panowitz thrives on creating through writing, theatre, photography, and filmmaking, among other arts. She received both her BA in Theatre and her MA in Social Work from the University of Maryland. Kara works for an anti-hunger nonprofit and is the acting Executive Director of Megaphone Project. Previously, she has been a Peace Corps Volunteer in Madagascar, a Special Ed and ESL teacher in Baltimore, Maryland, and a bartender in Australia.

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Kapua Iao 8/16/22 Kapua Iao 8/16/22

Illuminating the Layers of Language and Shining a Light into Our Words

Yellow Arrow Publishing would like to announce the next guest editor for Yellow Arrow Journal, Raychelle Heath. Raychelle will oversee the creation of our Vol. VII, No. 2 issue. Mark your calendar! Submissions open September 1 and the issue will be released in November.

This next issue of Yellow Arrow Journal will be on the overarching concept of illuminating language. To learn more about this idea, read Raychelle’s words below. Yellow Arrow staff just finished voting on the issue’s theme, which will be released next week!

Raychelle was an ANFRACTUOUS and UpSpring poet with her incredible poems “lineage” and “Before the War?” and was our December 2021 .W.o.W. author. She holds a BA in languages from Winthrop University and an MFA in poetry from the University of South Carolina. She uses her poetry and her podcast to tell the multifaceted stories of black women in the world. Raychelle also explores her experiences with the culturally rich communities that she has encountered in her travels. Her work has been published by Travel Noire, Fourth Wave, Yellow Arrow Journal, The Brazen Collective, and Community Building Art Works. She currently works as curriculum director, sanctuary coach, and facilitator for the Unicorn Authors Club. She also regularly facilitates for The World We Want workshop.

Find out more about Raychelle at https://sites.google.com/view/theraychelleheath/.

Please follow Yellow Arrow on Facebook and Instagram for the theme announcement. Below, you can read more about Raychelle’s perspectives on illuminating languages. We look forward to working with Raychelle over the next few months.

By Raychelle Heath

In her essay “Language is Migrant,” Cecilia Vicuña writes, “Language is migrant. Words move from language to language, from culture to culture, from mouth to mouth. Our bodies are migrants, cells and bacteria are migrants too. Even galaxies migrate.”

From the moment we begin to speak we are also taught how to do it “correctly.” We are given rules and protocols for how to present ourselves when we open our mouths. As a little black girl growing up in the south, I knew there was a way to speak when I was home and when I was out in public. Without even realizing it, I was thrown into the task of codeswitching as a means of survival. There was one tongue I could use on the playground and when I was running wild with my cousins; we could use “ain’t,” “y’all,” and shorten words to “comin’” and “goin’” without fear of consequence. We could try on language we heard in music and on TV. But when we were back in school or in mixed company, our tongues got buttoned up. And as I moved into adulthood, I realized that even my southern accent was a marker for some people. I felt the double-edge of so-called compliments like “well-spoken.”

But language was also a place of freedom and exploration for me. A place where I could create new connections and understandings of the world. At the age of 13, I began learning Spanish and German. I poured myself into cultural study and deep listening. I wanted to fall into the way different people curled their tongues around words like “pan” and “vielleicht.” I wanted to understand how sounds reflected place, reflected time, reflected how we love and how we hold space for each other. And somewhere along the way, my tongue, my words, got free.

Then in 2007, I made a decision that would change my life forever. I left the United States to go live in the Marshall Islands. It was my first time living outside of the only country I had ever called home. And for the next two years, I would live and work in the city of Majuro, the capital of a remote string of atolls in the Pacific Ocean. I would learn the meaning of “aelin” and “enno.” I would fall in love with words like “emman” and “enana.” Their sounds, as much as their meanings, allowed me a way in to understand my new home, and the people who had welcomed me in with “yokwe.”

“Yokwe” means hello, but it can also mean care, and its direct translation is “I love you; you are a rainbow.” It is still one of my favorite words because of all that it does. And learning it allowed me to recognize sayings from my own southern roots that hold multitudes. Sayings like “you hungry” or “bless your heart” that hold so much care, but also call a person in. Or “sweet summer child” that feels so warm but also gives you a little tap on the head. These touchstone words and phrases lay a path for how I connect to the world and others around me. They lay a path for how I see the world and my place in it.

I currently call Costa Rica home, and their version of this is “pura vida.” Pura vida directly translates to pure life. However, it is used to say hello, goodbye, and even “oh well,” depending on the day. And I think that there couldn’t be a more fitting touchstone for a place where it is not an uncommon occurrence to see a toucan or a monkey, and there are cloud forests to explore. Where there is a constant reminder of the pure life that we can have by honoring the Earth that provides for us.

Language’s primary aim is to communicate, but the ways that words do so are layered. There is a richness that lives inside of each word and each phrase that we use. Toward the end of Cecilia’s essay she says, “Language is the translator. It could translate us to a place where we cease to tolerate injustice, abuse and the destruction of life. Life is language.” She then quotes the Kaushitaki Upanishad saying, “When we speak, life speaks.”

Language has the power to illuminate life. It has the power to speak the things that we love the most into existence, even when they aren’t physically there. I can speak the name of my grandmother and call her into the room. I can speak my freedom, even when the world feels oppressive. And when I let my language be completely free, I can illuminate the best and most authentic parts of myself and my culture. And language itself can be illuminated, looking at the constituent parts of words to layer meaning. Cecilia does this beautifully when she says, “I imagined ‘migrant’ was probably composed of mei, (Latin), to change or move, and gra, ‘heart’ from the Germanic kerd. Thus, ‘migrant’ became: ‘changed heart,’ a heart in pain, changing the heart of the earth. The word ‘immigrant’ really says: ‘grant me life.’”

Each day I get to meet the page and explore what my words really want to say is a gift. It is a gift to be able to let our unique sounds speak for us, to explore the fullness of their layers. It is a gift to illuminate our words and play in their depths. It is a gift to let our language dance and be free. I am grateful for all the languages that hold me, for all of the languages that have received me. And I invite us all to dig a little deeper, to strip away any societal trappings that may be holding our tongues hostage, and to notice what language flows from the heart.

*****

Kapua Iao 8/9/22 Kapua Iao 8/9/22

Meet a Staff Member: Nichola Ruddell

Yellow Arrow Publishing would like to introduce one of our readers, Nichola Ruddell. Nichola was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, and raised on Salt Spring Island. She attended university at the University of Victoria, receiving a degree in Child and Youth Care. She is also a Phoenix Rising Yoga Therapist. She enjoys writing poetry and is previously published in the online magazine Literary Mama. Her poem “Movement in the Cinnabar Valley” is published in Yellow Arrow Journal, Home Vol. V, No. 2 (and was our .W.o.W. #22 author) and Nichola recently became an associate member of the League of Canadian Poets. After living in several places with her family, she has made a home in Nanaimo, British Columbia, with her husband and two young children.

Nichola states, “I look forward to learning from other women at Yellow Arrow, creating new workshops, contributing ideas, continuing to write, and creating community from afar.” Nichola recently took some time to answer some questions for us. Show her some love in the comments or on Yellow Arrow’s Facebook/Instagram!

Tell us a little something about yourself.

As a young child I was always reading and writing. As I grew older my interests shifted, however, I always found time to write and develop ideas. After the birth of my first child, I decided to really work on my poetry and published my first piece. Since then, I have been writing and continue to develop my work. It has been such a joy working with Yellow Arrow, and I look forward to future writing projects.

What do you love most about where you live?

I love living on the west coast of Canada being surrounded by trees while also close to the ocean.

How did you get involved with Yellow Arrow and what do you do?

I had a poem published by Yellow Arrow in 2020 and then have written other pieces through their blog series. I also cocreated a workshop called “Poetry of the Body” with LaWanda Stone for the Yellow Arrow workshop series. I am currently reading the new chapbook submissions (for 2023 publications), poetry, and short stories that are submitted.

What are you working on currently?

I am currently training for a few 10-km trail runs coming up in the fall.

What genre do you write and why?

I have always been drawn to writing poetry. I write to make sense of the world and to deepen my connection to myself and others.

Who is your favorite writer and why?

I am deeply inspired by the writings of Denise Riley, Jane Hirshfield, and William Stafford. These writers are incredibly thoughtful and illuminate the human experience in a profound way.

Who has inspired and/or supported you most in your writing journey?

My father Bruce Ruddell, playwright and composer, he has always inspired me to continue to write and has been a great support in my writing journey.

What do you love most about writing?

I love the freedom and the movement of writing. Writing flushes out the mind and demands us to pay attention; it creates new ways of seeing things.

What advice do you have for new writers?

Keep reading and writing. Connect with other writers and put your work out into the world!

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Welcome to the team Nichola! Yellow Arrow Publishing is a nonprofit supporting women writers through publication and access to the literary arts. We recently revamped and restructured its Yellow Arrow Journal subscription plan to include two levels. Do you think you are an Avid Reader or a Literary Lover? Find out more about the discounts and goodies involved at yellowarrowpublishing.com/store/yellow-arrow-journal-subscription.

Kapua Iao 8/2/22 Kapua Iao 8/2/22

Courtney LeBlanc: A Riot on the Poetry Scene

By Melissa Nunez, written May 2022

I think of everything I’ve put/ into my mouth, all I’ve swallowed/…my voice, grew smaller, shrank/…I keep swallowing/ till there’s nothing left, till I disappear into the dirt,/ the earth finally swallowing me. – “A Girl Becomes a Woman”

Courtney LeBlanc is the author of two poetry chapbooks and four full-length collections, the most recent of which, Exquisite Bloody, Beating Heart, is a must-read for fans of powerful poetic voices that deftly encompass a wide range of female experience: rage, resilience, romance, regret. She is also the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Riot in Your Throat (RIYT), a press with a promise to deliver “poetry that punches you in the gut and refuses to be quiet.” While conversing with Courtney, the resemblance between this independent press editor and the design of the RIYT logo is striking. She embodies the essence of the image and its message through her fierce writing, her commitment to elevating the voices of feminist writers, and her overall verve evident even through the computer screen. I was eager to hear her thoughts on writing and publishing.

Who are some women writers who have inspired you?

I’m so glad you asked this question and love that you specified women writers. Almost all my favorite writers are women because I identify with them and the issues they write about. Some poets I love are Megan Falley, Jeanann Verlee, Shaindel Beers, Melissa Fite Johnson, Laura Passin, and Kelly Grace Thomas.

Some of your poetry touches on body image and the negative effects of trying to fit a societal or patriarchal standard. Do you find writing your experiences helpful for processing these events and the emotions involved?

Yes. Writing provides an outlet, a way to talk about the things that I (or women in general) still deal with in a way that feels cathartic. It is a place to put the emotions, so they don’t stay inside. I also hope it is helpful for other women who identify with the experiences, that it gives them an outlet as well. I feel like writing saves me sometimes in that sense.

There is a powerful feminist thread woven through your poetry collection and an encouraging rebelliousness in your body of work. What message do you hope to convey to your readers through your words?

Don’t stop fighting. Unfortunately, right now in the United States, we are in this situation where women’s rights are being threatened. To be honest, I’m tired of being scared and I’m tired of being angry. I’m tired of fighting the same fight. It has been 50 years and yet here we are again. But I hope that other women who feel like me use these feelings to keep fighting. I hope that’s the message that comes through in the collection.

There is a vulnerability present on the pages (even in those poems most powerful) that was very compelling and impactful for me as a reader. Do you ever have any qualms about personal visibility and subject matter in your poems?

Absolutely. There have been poems that I’ve written and then decided I’m never going to do anything with them. They are just going to stay in my journal, or maybe I’ll share them with a couple of friends. It is scary and hard to be vulnerable. But then, being vulnerable is very human. It is another way that we connect with other people and other writers. If I can be brave and put those words out there, it might give someone else the courage to do the same. To see themselves in that vulnerability. It is scary, but I also think it’s empowering. It’s a fine line sometimes.

Do you have any words of wisdom for writers who experience reservation as a barrier to sharing their writing?

Writers shouldn’t feel that they must share their work. If they are writing from a place of raw emotion and deep vulnerability, then it is OK to not share that. If you have someone you trust, someone you feel safe with, you can just share with that one person. Sometimes it can be helpful to wait until there is some distance between those emotions, but it might remain something that you don’t ever share with anyone. Ultimately, it comes down to that decision on each piece of writing (whether poem or story or essay). If you are uncomfortable, then don’t share. I believe it is more important to write some things than it is to share them. We want everyone to read our words, but you also have to protect yourself and your heart.

We carry the crystals/ to ward off evil, to bring luck, to add heft and make our bag/ a weapon…We carry our hearts/ when they got too muddied on our sleeves…We/ carry it all, the heavy world digging into our shoulders/ and slumping our backs. – “We Carry”

Do you have a method for deciding on the form your work will take? I love coming across new or unexpected forms and there are many in your body of work (i.e., Self-Portrait as a Form Rejection Letter, Postcards Never Written, Pantoum for Amy Winehouse).

The forms tend to develop organically. Some specific forms, like the pantoums, I will set out to write but might not know the topic. I actually wrote a series of poems about Amy Winehouse. It started with the first as a form poem and then I ended up writing close to 20 poems about her because she is so wonderful and tragic. With the other poems, they just sort of come to me. Sometimes the first draft will be in almost a paragraph format on the page and then I will play with the form after I transfer it into a word document on my computer. Do I want to use slashes in this poem or do I want to have more standard line breaks? I kind of just figure out what works for the topic. Some poems lend themselves to certain forms, like a love poem being in couplets because that is traditional. But sometimes you want to subvert that in different ways.

Was there a form you found most exciting or challenging for you?

I’ve written a couple of abecedarian poems, and I find them very hard to write well. I have written several and there’s only one or two I really like. It seems like it would be easy because there is no other restriction (at least not any I follow), but even finding the right word to start the line on was a lot harder than I expected. It is such a fun form to play with and is one I will turn to if I am stuck. Even if you are just rambling, you get those creative juices flowing. I have found form poems to be good for writing about topics that are hard or scary because it gives you parameters to stay in which makes it feel less overwhelming. Pantoums can be fun, but also difficult. A lot of poems that have repetition are so impressive when done well because repetition can become so obvious. It feels successful in its form when that isn’t the case.

I enjoyed reading the history of Riot in Your Throat and was curious if you could pinpoint one event, emotion, or moment that was the final push to move forward with the press?

I think it was a couple of things. When I started formulating the idea, I sat down and talked with a couple of friends who happen to work for other local presses. I picked their brains a little bit and realized that the idea was becoming more and more appealing. It was something I really wanted to do. I wanted to be able to publish these voices that I like to read and feel others need and want to read, too. My friend and I have a tradition of hitting the trails with our dogs every Sunday. I had been talking to her about it, and after a couple of weeks of discussions and sketching out plans she asked me, “So, are you going to do it?” And I said yes. I’m going to do it. I want to do it. Then it came down to figuring out exactly how I was going to do it. And it’s been fantastic.

What inspired the name?

There were four or five ideas I was playing with in a list on my phone, but I just kept coming back to Riot in Your Throat. I felt it fit with what I wanted to do and the poems I wanted to see—how as women we are forced in so many situations to not say what we are thinking or feeling or desire. At some point, it is just going to come out like a riot, an explosion. I also had a vision for what I wanted the logo to look like. I am not an artist by any means, so I literally just sketched out a human head with some hair and then wrote across the throat. Then, I found this amazing artist from Canada who worked with me and got it to be perfect. It reflects everything I wanted it to be. I love the name and I think it fits so well with what we’ve published so far.

Is there a specific achievement or progress made with the press you’d want to share?

We’ve had three open submission calls so far, and having people mention poets we’ve published that they love in their cover letter or comment that a poet recommended our press is really such a high level of praise and flattery. It is a huge win that the poets I’m publishing are saying good things about me and about the press. It lets me know I’m doing something right. I want to keep growing, see what keeps coming, and hopefully it keeps getting bigger and bigger.

Now that sticky juice/ of knowledge ran freely down my chin/ I wanted to hold her hand and discover/ all I didn’t yet know. – “Autobiography of Eve”

What advice do you have for potential submitters and women writers in general?

1. Keep writing and keep submitting! Rejection is part of the process. Stephen King, a famous author outspoken about rejection, is known to have said, “Until you have 100 rejections, you haven’t started submitting.” I think it is so important to just keep submitting.

2. When I read manuscripts for the press, I have found work that is close but not quite there, that maybe needs another round of editing. In my response I will tell that writer that I’d love to see another version of their work. So many women don’t submit again because they question whether that is real or authentic, and it is 100% real. When an editor says that to you, they mean it. When they say these poems don’t quite fit this theme or this month, but we’d like to see more of your work, they mean it. They mean submit again. When I send these responses, I truly hope to see an updated version of that manuscript, because it is so close. I want it out in the world. I want women to keep writing and keep submitting because our voices are especially valuable right now.

3. Keep reading and request books from your local library. I think some people feel like if they can’t buy the book, they can’t be helpful or supportive of the writing community. But requesting books or leaving a review for them on Amazon or Goodreads are some helpful and cost-free ways to support poets and presses, particularly small independent presses. We get lost in the noise sometimes.

Earlier this year, Courtney was awarded the Jack McCarthy Book Prize. Her third full length poetry collection will be available through Write Bloody next March. She is hopeful for a book tour next spring to celebrate this forthcoming collection along with the previous two that debuted during the pandemic. You can follow her on Twitter @wordperv or at courtneyleblanc.com for updates on her writing. You can keep up with new collections, reading events, and submission calls from her press at riotinyourthroat.com and on Twitter @riotthroat.

Melissa Nunez is a Latin@ writer and homeschooling mother of three from the Rio Grande Valley. Her essays have appeared in magazines like Variant Lit and the winnow. She has work forthcoming in The Nasiona, Scrawl Place, and Honey Literary. She is also a staff writer for Alebrijes Review. You can follow her on Twitter and Facebook @MelissaKNunez.

*****

Guest User 7/29/22 Guest User 7/29/22

Her View Friday

single-author publications
single pieces in journals, anthologies, etc.

You can support our authors by reading this blog and their work, sharing their news, and commenting below or on the blog. Congratulations to all the included authors. We are so proud of you!

Every writer has a story to tell and every story is worth telling.

“On Being Watched by Birds” by Chris Biles

Genre: poetry

Name of publisher: The Closed Eye Open

Date published: June 20, 2022

Type of publication: online

https://theclosedeyeopen.com/issue-vii/

"No Say," "Bleeding Hearts," and "Chaos in the Cosmos" also by Chris Biles

Genre: poetry

Name of publisher: The Red Penguin Collection

Date published: June 30, 2022

Type of publication: print

https://redpenguinbooks.com/proud-to-be-a-pride-poetry-collection-from-the-red-penguin-collection/

"On Being Watched by Birds" and "Dead End” also by Chris Biles

Genre: poetry

Name of publisher: The Ravens Quoth Press

Date published: July 5, 2022

Type of publication: online and print

https://www.theravensquoth.press/balm-second-edition/

You can find Chris on Instagram @marks.in.the.sand.

"A House, Restored" by Heather Brown Barrett

Genre: poetry

Name of publisher: The Ekphrastic Review

Date published: July 15, 2022

Type of publication: online

https://www.ekphrastic.net/ekphrastic-writing-challenges/ekphrastic-writing-responses-adolf-wolfli

You can find Heather on Instagram @heatherbrownbarrett.

Yellow Arrow (past and present) board, staff, interns, authors, residents, and instructors alike! Got a publication coming out? Let us help celebrate for you in Her View Friday.

Single-author publications: here.

Single pieces: here.

Please read the instructions on each form carefully; we look forward to congratulating you!

*****

Kapua Iao 7/26/22 Kapua Iao 7/26/22

Gratitude is a Divine Emotion: Yellow Arrow Interns

By Kapua Iao

“Gratitude is a divine emotion: it fills the heart, but not to bursting; it warms it, but not to fever.”

from Shirley by Charlotte Brontë

One of the many ways Yellow Arrow Publishing encourages women writers and women in publishing is through inclusion within the organization itself. We welcome (and thrive with) our volunteers and interns, not only for our own benefit but to also (hopefully) provide a prospective future publisher with some necessary tools and knowledge about the publishing world. And even if a volunteer/intern does not plan to continue within the publishing world, the tools and knowledge of working in a women-led, collaborative organization. One that champions the different and the unique. One that looks for partners and allies rather than simple connections (see our growing list of partners here).

As Editor-in-Chief, it would be impossible to organize, create, and publish without the incredible help of our volunteer staff and interns. They provide the thought process behind each journal by picking each issue’s theme and reading/voting on each submitted piece. They then read through the chosen submissions and edit them carefully and thoughtfully, not to change the voice of the author but to ensure that the voice flourishes. They provide continuous feedback and proofread the final product before release. And the same goes for our published chapbooks; the process of forming something for publication is thoughtfully long but fulfilling, nonetheless.

We try to find each volunteer, each intern, space in our organization to grow and flourish in the area they are most interested in (and of course where we need the most help!). Past staff members have worked at our live events and at Yellow Arrow House. They hand bound our publications and put as much love and tenderness into each copy as we could hope. Now that we are a mostly virtual publishing company, they focus on editing as well as writing blogs and press releases. They create promotional material and images for our authors and explore or research for future marketing campaigns, events, and collaborations. And above all else, they support. Not only me but our authors as well. I am so thankful to have had them with me on this journey.

So let’s introduce the interns from the first half of 2022. Each has my appreciation.

Sydney Alexander

Currently dividing time between Ellicott City and Baltimore, both in Maryland
*YA position*: event planning & community engagement intern, May-Aug 2022
*What do you do*? I’m primarily responsible for Yellow Arrow’s community-engagement and outreach. This summer, I’m helping with social media to publicize events and opportunities. I will also be attending various virtual and in-person events to help represent and grow Yellow Arrow. Right now, I’m in the process of connecting with local libraries to promote Yellow Arrow’s writing workshops. I’m also working on setting up an interview for a blog post with owners of a local bookstore to ask them about how they engage with their communities. In all, I hope that all this will help Yellow Arrow grow its connections with the Baltimore community, and help with its mission of sharing women’s voices and stories.
*Where do you go to school?* I am a rising sophomore at Middlebury College and am scheduled to graduate in May 2025. I graduated from River Hill High School in Howard County, Maryland, in June 2021.
*What are you currently working on*? During the year, I’m a student at Middlebury College. However, this summer, I am taking Geography and GIS classes at University of Maryland, Baltimore County. I intend to double major in English and Geography, so I think that these classes in combination with my internship at Yellow Arrow are a perfect blend of my two interests. Aside from this, I am working on my own creative writing.

Sydney is a rising sophomore at Middlebury College in Vermont studying English and Geography. She grew up in Ellicott City, Maryland, but enjoys the fact that she has lived all over the United States, including states such as North Carolina, California, and Wisconsin. Her favorite genres to read and write are fantasy and literary fiction, and she has a soft spot for short stories. Sydney hopes to pursue a career that combines her dual interests in writing and publications with Geography. Her work has been published in Hunger Mountain Review. She is still unsure of what she want to do after she graduate. Sydney is considering graduate school, but it is hard to know so far out. All she knows is that she hope to find some way to combine her interests in english and geography.

Why did you choose an internship with Yellow Arrow?

Reading and creative writing have always been hobbies I did on my own. However, after joining several English and writing clubs in high school, I realized how rewarding it was to become involved with my surrounding literary community. I greatly enjoyed working on my high school’s literary magazine, bringing in other students as editors and contributors, as well as sharing and attending events through my school’s chapter of the National English Honor Society. In college, I wanted to find a way to continue doing similar work, and Yellow Arrow seemed like the perfect fit. Not only would I be able to work on a publication, I would have the opportunity to attend various local events and meet many new writers. As a new resident of the Baltimore area, my goal coming into the summer was to find a way to get to know the city. In particular, I really wanted to learn more about Baltimore’s literary scene. Yellow Arrow has been a great way to get involved.

You can find Sydney on Facebook and Instagram @rerururun.

Isabelle Anderson

Lives in Baltimore, Maryland
*YA position*: publications intern, January-May 2022
*What did you do*? As publications intern, I copyedited and proofread manuscripts of upcoming chapbooks, and created promotional material for many Yellow Arrow publications.
*Where did you go to school?* Washington College; I graduated in May.
*What are you currently working on*? This summer, I’m hoping to do a lot more reading and writing for fun as I look for jobs in publishing.

Isabelle is a poet and fiction writer from Baltimore, Maryland. Isabelle is a May 2022 graduate of Washington College, a former editor on the student publications Collegian and the Pegasus, and recipient of the 2022 Pfister Poetry Prize. She hopes to gain some publishing experience in the next two to three years after graduation, then pursue an MFA.

Why did you choose an internship with Yellow Arrow?

The press’ mission statement resonated with me. The opportunity to gain editorial experience while working toward the goal of uplifting women-identifying writers and editors was one I could not pass up.

You can find her on Twitter @ibaspel.

Veronica Salib

Lives in Rockville, Maryland
*YA position*: publishing intern, May-August 2022
*What do you do*? I am the publishing intern so I have a few different responsibilities. I create Canva graphics to promote journals and chapbooks. I also proofread different poems and assist in the creation of Her View Friday posts.
*Where did you go to school*? I went to undergrad at the University of Maryland in College Park and graduated in 2021. I also hope to return to school and receive a masters in publishing.
*What are you currently working on*? I currently also copyedit for an organization called Balance Now. I just began an editorial positon at Xtilligent Media and I am in the process of starting my graduate school applications.

Veronica is a recent graduate of the University of Maryland in College Park. She holds a bachelor of sciences in biology. Veronica is hoping to pursue a career in publishing and a masters of publishing over the next two years. She is an avid reader and writer who loves fiction, poetry, and essay style writing. Besides her publishing related hobbies, Veronica loves to paint, travel, and spend time with friends and family. Her current plans are to continue working and applying for master’s programs. She hopes to eventually work in trade publishing as an editor!

Why did you choose an internship with Yellow Arrow?

I chose Yellow Arrow because poetry has always been an important outlet for me. I used it to clear my head and sort my thoughts. Additionally, I loved how empowering the environment at Yellow Arrow is. There is no shortage of smart, inspirational women at this organization. From the very first phone call I had it was obvious that Yellow Arrow was an inclusive and welcoming environment.

Find her on Instagram @veronicaa_salib.

Piper Sartison

Lives in Chestertown, Maryland
*YA position*: marketing intern, February-May 2022
*What did you do*? I was a marketing intern for Yellow Arrow. I created promotional images with Canva, scheduled and created social media posts, worked with Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, and proofread writing submissions.
*Where do you go to school*? I go to Washington College. I am a rising junior and I will graduate in the spring of 2024.
*What are you currently working on*? I write for the community and college newspaper of Chestertown (*The Elm*). I also do some writing on the side and hope to work with more organizations this summer.

Piper is a rising junior at Washington College. She is a competing member of the school’s tennis team, writes for The Elm, and is a major in English and a minor in journalism. Piper is from Calgary, Alberta, Canada, and will be residing there for the summer, where she hopes to do some freelance writing. She would like to be a journalist and write books.

Why did you choose an internship with Yellow Arrow?

My professor recommended this internship for me. I was interested in the organization, as I found the motivations of Yellow Arrow to be captivating. I wanted to help give women writers a voice in this community.

*****

Thank you to everyone who supports these women and all writers who toil away day after day. Please show them some love in the comments below or on Yellow Arrow’s Facebook or Instagram. If interested in joining us as an editorial associate or intern, fill out an application at yellowarrowpublishing.com/internships.

Kapua Iao 7/19/22 Kapua Iao 7/19/22

Ida B. Wells: The Civil Rights Activist Who Used Writing to Fight Racism

By Piper Sartison, written May 2022

To honor Ida B. Wells, whose birthday just passed, Piper Sartison, Yellow Arrow’s winter marketing intern, wrote a short blog about her incredible accomplishments.

“The reason why I wanted to focus on this blog was that I wanted to tell the story and journey behind a monumental and historical journalist. Ida B. Wells used her skills in writing to become an advocate for the voiceless, as she sacrificed everything to fight against oppression. In relation to the current events that surround us today, I hope that this piece will reinforce the significance of journalism, as it has the potential to give a voice to people who are marginalized and need our support.”

Ida B. Wells was a teacher, civil rights activist, journalist, and feminist. Born on July 16, 1862, in Holly Springs, Mississippi, her parents passed away when she was young and so she spent her youth taking care of her siblings. Once she turned 16 (from most general sources), Ida started a career in teaching to provide for her siblings and spent her free time writing for newspapers. In 1882, she moved to Memphis, Tennessee, where she bought a first-class ticket on a train. The crew, however, attempted to force her into a cart that was reserved for African Americans only. Ida refused, and as a result, she bit one of the crew members, who was aggressively removing her from the train. Ida sued the railroad, but her claims were rejected by the Tennessee Supreme Court. This situation influenced her passion for free speech, as she later started her career with the Memphis Free Speech newspaper.

Once Ida gained enough experience in writing, she became the co-owner of the Memphis Free Speech when she was in her 20s. Using this job as a form of advocacy for African Americans, she expressed her opinion on the oppression and racism in society for the public to read. During her time as a journalist, three of her friends got lynched in her community. Ida was outraged and published pieces that outlined the racist truth behind why her friends got lynched. In her piece, she told the people of Memphis to stop shopping at white-owned businesses and encouraged them to move to Oklahoma.

In 1892, Ida moved to New York, as she wanted to write for The New York Age. It was there that she published pieces on the cruelty of lynching, encouraging others to revolt against violence and racism. In 1895, Ida married Ferdinand L. Barnett and had four children with him while they resided in Chicago, Illinois. While also tackling the challenges of motherhood, Ida found time to support the suffrage movement and help found the first kindergarten class for black children.

In 1909, she gave her support to the National Association of Colored Women, based in Washington, D.C., which worked to promote equality and was one of the biggest organizations of black woman clubs in America. In her work with the Alpha Suffrage Club in Chicago in 1913, she encouraged women in the community to elect politicians that best represented the African American population. Her efforts with this organization ultimately contributed to women’s suffrage in Illinois.

She died of kidney complications in 1931 at the age of 69. Ida was posthumously given a Pulitzer Prize in 2020 for her bravery and advocacy against racism, violence, and sexism. The Ida B. Wells Barnett house, where Ida and her husband once resided in Chicago, is a National Historic Landmark.

Ida sacrificed her life to contribute to the civil rights movement, organizing rallies, creating an antilynching campaign, advocating for African Americans in newspapers, and willingly standing up against the system that deemed anyone inferior. Today, Ida B. Wells is remembered for her courage, strength, and immense intelligence. In her life, she stood up to injustices, and spoke up about systemic racism, invoking significant change within her community.

Piper Sartison is a rising junior at Washington College. She is a competing member of the school’s tennis team, writes for The Elm, and is a major in English and a minor in journalism. Piper is from Calgary, Alberta, Canada, and will be residing there for the summer, where she hopes to do some freelance writing.

*****

Kapua Iao 7/12/22 Kapua Iao 7/12/22

Everything is cyclical: when the daffodils die, a chapbook by Darah Schillinger

Yellow Arrow Publishing announces the release of our latest chapbook, when the daffodils die, by Darah Schillinger. Since its establishment in 2016, Yellow Arrow has devoted its efforts to advocate for all women writers through inclusion in the biannual Yellow Arrow Journal as well as single-author publications, and by providing strong author support, writing workshops, and volunteering opportunities. We at Yellow Arrow are excited to continue our mission by supporting Darah in all her writing and publishing endeavors.

when the daffodils die includes an assortment of poems exploring love, loss, and the self. Within the pages are various references to the wonders of nature, providing her readers with the tangible to describe intangible feelings. From wintery landscapes to cloudy skies and yellow summer days, Darah wields her poetry within when the daffodils die to bring her readers on a journey through their (and her) relationship with themselves and with those they choose to surround themselves with. Young love, a mother’s love, self-love, spiritual love, all encompassing love. Her willingness to write about the many facets of love and the way she challenges both herself and the long-standing truths within society about women and their place within the world makes this collection of poetry one of courage, defiance, and an appreciation for the overlooked things in life.

Darah previously interned for the literary magazine EcoTheo Review in summer 2020 and has had poetry published in her school literary journal, AVATAR, on the Spillwords Press website, in issue one of the Solstice Literary Magazine, and in the Maryland Bard’s Poetry Review 2022. Darah currently lives in Perry Hall, Maryland, with her parents, and in her free time, she likes to write poetry and paint. She plans to pursue an MS in professional writing and hopes to establish a career in publishing after its completion.

The stunning, simplistic cover art and interior daffodils were created by Creative Director Alexa Laharty.

Paperback and PDF versions of when the daffodils die are now available from the Yellow Arrow bookstore. If interested in purchasing more than one paperback copy for friends and family, check out our discounted wholesale prices here. You can also search for when the daffodils die wherever you purchase your books including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Kobo. To learn more about Darah and when the daffodils die, check out our recent interview with her.

You can find Darah on Instagram @darahschillinger or @brokewritersociety and on Facebook @darah.schillinger, and connect with Yellow Arrow on Facebook and Instagram, to share some love for this chapbook. We’d love to hear from you.

*****

Kapua Iao 7/5/22 Kapua Iao 7/5/22

Craft Thoughts: Honoring the Poem’s First Draft

By Joanne Durham, written April 2022

I enjoy participating in groups with other women who come together to write and then share our first drafts. But too often we expect those drafts, from 30 or 40 minutes of writing (sometimes even less), to sound like finished poems. If not, we feel like we’ve failed and aren’t good writers. We can spend more time apologizing for what we’ve drafted than noticing what is working!

When I first started writing poetry, I thought that the first draft was supposed to be the final. I thought because I wrote poetry to get emotional truth on paper, I would spoil it if I revised it. I might fix grammar or a word here or there, but if the poem didn’t resonate, I just put it aside and forgot about it.

All that changed when I taught children in a writing workshop. I learned that by conferring with them about their intentions and teaching them some simple elements of craft, they could transform their first drafts into rich and meaningful poems for themselves and other readers.

In a marvelous section of her Living Room Craft Series on Revision, Ellen Bass shared the first draft of James Wright’s poem, “Hook,” from an interview released by his wife. I had loved this poem for a long time. I was so amazed that almost the entire final poem didn’t show up until the sixth verse in his first draft! It was by stripping away everything from the original that didn’t support the dramatic center of the poem that he gave the poem its intense substance and power.

So, I’ve come to think of my first draft as just scattering seeds. It’s the nurturing I give my poems over time that shapes them into something that might blossom. The crocuses in my yard will lift up through the dirt with no help at all from me. But lots of poems, like flowers, need the support we call revision. Often, it’s pruning, so what is lovely has room to flourish, and fertilizing to add richness to the language.

Pruning, as in Wright’s wonderful example, helps me let go of expectations and just let my writing flow. I know I can go back later and get rid of all the unnecessary verbiage. For example, in my poem, “BABY!” (RENASCENCE, Yellow Arrow Journal), I wrote about my joy and wonder at the sonogram of my first grandchild. My first draft of “BABY!” started:

Rachel texts the picture today

of what will become our grandchild.

Looks like a little island

in the midst of ocean whitecaps

and BABY! with a finger pointed

to the blob, so you know

where to look.

And a thumb

holding the picture

putting its size in perspective,

this is what 11.5 cm (what it says at the top)

is – the size of a few thumbs. Her name and birthdate

I recognize. The other numbers and letters

in language you just have to trust

to the midwives.

I wrote all that to get the details down on paper. But as the poem developed, I realized what I really wanted to explore was the connection between this unborn child and my Jewish ancestors, that this child would exist only because they had escaped the pogroms of Russia. The phrase “God willing” came up—a phrase my parents and grandparents would have used. Then I knew I didn’t need all those details before I got to the heart of the poem. So (over several drafts) I revised:

Rachel sends the sonogram today

of what will become (God willing)

our grandchild.

Looks like a bean

in a soup bowl. Someone

thoughtfully wrote BABY!

with an arrow pointing to it,

to tell us where to look.

God willing isn’t something

I’m known to say, but this child . . .

Pruning isn’t usually enough; fertilizing needs to happen as well. I often need to find a richer, more musical, more powerful, or more multi-faceted way of saying something I jotted down in the first draft.

“Sunrise Sonnet for My Son,” is the last poem in my poetry book, To Drink from a Wider Bowl (Evening Street Press April 2022). The poem was inspired by how my son and I both found our morning chore of unloading the dishwasher to be something meditative. My first draft ended,

I think of him each morning, this son I raised, who takes joy in putting away the dishes.

I got the idea on paper, but not the poetry of it (no blame, first draft!). It needed some fertilizer. I let it sit a while, let my imagination come up with specifics that would both sound musical and enhance the imagery of the poem, and days later wound up with

this man I raised, who hums as he sorts

the silverware, noticing how each spoon shines.

There are certainly some poets who can distill the poem on the first draft and dazzle us as they share in writing sessions. But I’m so glad I didn’t toss either of these poems because they didn’t fulfill my expectations on the first try. Realizing that I can nurture the poem over time—days, weeks, months, whatever—helps me enormously to believe that my first drafts can lead to something I’m happy with. In that sense, “BABY!” could refer to the embryo of the poem as well as the one in my daughter-in-law’s womb when I wrote:

. . . I’ll send something

resembling a prayer

that it thrives in that watery mix,

that it emerges, in its time,

whole and ready . . .

Joanne Durham is the author of To Drink from a Wider Bowl, winner of the 2021 Sinclair Poetry Prize (Evening Street Press 2022). Her chapbook, On Shifting Shoals, is forthcoming from Kelsay Press. Her poetry has or will appear in Yellow Arrow, Poetry South, Poetry East, Calyx, Rise-Up Review, Quartet, and many other journals and anthologies. She is a retired educator from Maryland, now living on the North Carolina coast with the ocean as her backyard and muse. Get your copy of To Drink from a Wider Bowl at eveningstreetpress.com/book-author/joanne-durham/. Learn more about Joanne at joannedurham.com or on Instagram @poetryjoanne.

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Kapua Iao 7/4/22 Kapua Iao 7/4/22

Find Your Awakening: The Yellow Arrow Vignette AWAKEN Online Series Begins

By Siobhan McKenna

Welcome to the release of Yellow Arrow Publishing’s online series, Yellow Arrow Vignette. For our first issue we chose the theme of AWAKEN, our 2022 yearly value. We will publish the chosen AWAKEN pieces on Mondays and Wednesdays from today through September 5, ending with a heartfelt reading from our 2022 Vignette authors on September 7 at 8pm EST.

The theme AWAKEN had been on my mind frequently over the last four weeks as I’ve literally awakened each week in a different bed: an airbed in a friend’s townhouse in West Seattle, the guest mattress of my sister’s house in Jacksonville, Florida, the king-sized bed of an Airbnb on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, and my childhood twin at my parent’s house in the suburbs of Philadelphia.

These various awakenings were necessary to attend several professional and family obligations between my partner and I, and although tiring at times, mainly I found myself exhilarated by the sensory experiences that accompanied waking up in a new place. I was awoken by the whimpering of my sister’s dog, a sweet Pitbull-Lab mix, as she pawed at the door and begged to snuggle in the early hours of the morning; the rumble of Lower East Side construction crews at work on the interminable projects of the city; and the rustle of deciduous leaves in a suburban Pennsylvania neighborhood as I left the sanctity of sleep and crossed the threshold into consciousness. These unconventional alarm clocks were a refreshing change to soothe my mind as often, I’ve felt a sense of dread when waking up in the morning. Sometimes when rousing for the day, the feeling of already being behind rushes in before the day has even started. Or simply, I am still tired, and sleep, precious sleep, is beckoning me back to the pillow.

As I moved from place to place, I realized that diversifying my surroundings helped me greet the day more energized as I was lured by the promise of experiencing for a few days how the “the other” lives, commutes, encounters nature, and is encapsulated by architecture. In Manhattan, I awoke and walked Second Avenue along city parks and graffiti-donned alleyways, with other millennials scrambling for coffee and free Wi-Fi. In Florida, my partner and I would ride beach cruisers after working from home to the sandy shores three blocks east to cool off in the Atlantic.

The constant movement stirred in me both the desire to create community and the hunger to continue jumping into the flow of another’s daily routine. For now, I need to keep channeling the traveler’s mindset as over the next six days I’ll be waking up in a different locale every day (because weekly changes weren’t enough of a challenge).

As this piece is published, I am in Canada driving to the northeast end of Vancouver Island. Once there, I’ll board a ferry to the border of British Columbia and Alaska and then hop on the Alaska-Canadian highway, the ALCAN, and start the 30+ hour drive to Anchorage, Alaska.

This journey to Alaska is one that I’ve been planning for a few years now. It started as a seed when I began travel nursing and realized the breadth of places I could explore. I was attracted to the land of the midnight sun for the unknown it possessed. The uninhabited lands, the frigid temperatures, and the native animals, but also the people. Through my travels, I have recognized that by living—not simply visiting—I can gain access to parts of another’s life that may go unnoticed when traveling as a tourist. I have appreciated that by simply being with others and understanding their histories, downfalls, and triumphs, we gain empathy. That for me meant experiencing, in flesh and blood, the 49th U.S. state.

I kept waiting for Alaska to work itself out for me. I applied to several jobs last year without hearing anything and then again, this year, I waited for the perfect travel nursing job to emerge. It didn’t happen. At first, I saw these rejections and “clung to that crag” of the known that Shikhandin, our first poet in the series whose work you will read today, writes about in “Epiphany.” I did not want to let go of the crag for fear of disappointment and for fear of not conforming to perceived social expectations. But, unlike last year, when I met a roadblock and decided fate wanted me elsewhere, this year, I chose to look beyond the standard contracts and assembled a hodgepodge of jobs that would keep me sustained when I lived in Anchorage. I began to release my “jam-jarred dream” that Shikhandin begs us to unleash.

While not all of us will have an awakening (or a desire, for that matter) to live in Alaska, awakenings arrive in countless forms. In this series, you will read about awakenings that come in the form of closure, death, the end of a marriage, the beginning of believing in yourself, acknowledging climate change, and so much more. Through these vignettes, our authors explore the thresholds where the unknown comes into light, an often vague and hazy transitional space that simultaneously intimidates and relieves our souls. As you travel alongside our authors, I hope that you can add these tender, joyous, and inspiring awakenings to the well of human experiences that each one of us holds in our core so that on days when we can’t recognize the other as ourselves, we may remember the universality of the human condition.

I am delighted with the themes that we explore in this series. Whether it’s spending a few months in unknown-to-you expanses or finding the courage to approach a new day with optimism, I hope this series awakens you to a “jam-jarred dream” that is desperate for you to release.

Thank you, Kapua Iao, our Editor-In-Chief, and Annie Marhefka, our Executive Director, for listening to my original pitch for an online publication and for helping me create this illuminating series. Thank you to the Yellow Arrow Publishing Board for their support on this endeavor. Thank you also to our wonderful editorial associate, Angela Firman, and the Yellow Arrow summer interns, Veronica Salib and Sydney Alexander, for diligently working on the edits and promotional material, and to our readers, Kapua, Annie, Angela, Veronica, and Sydney, along with board members Sara Palmer, Jessica Gregg, and Gina Strauss, and staff members Lisa Roscoe, Nicky Ruddell, and Andrea Stennett, who took the time to reflect on the over one hundred submissions we received. Thank you to everyone who submitted to the series and gave us the opportunity to read, commiserate, and empathize. We are also very grateful to Alex Marhefka for working on the website with us, helping us to explore a new boundary to share women’s voices. Finally, thank you to our writers who allowed us to find a home for their stories on our site. We are humbled.

Since January 2020, Siobhan McKenna has worked tirelessly for Yellow Arrow as an editorial associate and interviewer, among many other roles. She is now the Vignette Managing Editor. Siobhan earned her bachelor’s degree in creative writing and biology from Loyola University Maryland and a master’s degree in nursing from Johns Hopkins University. In addition to her work at Yellow Arrow, Siobhan is an ICU travel nurse and is currently located in Seattle, Washington. Her writing can be found throughout the Yellow Arrow blog, within our EMERGE zine, and with Next Level Nursing.

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“Betrayal” by Ute Carson from Austin, Texas

“Where Azaleas Grow” by Sara Palmer from Baltimore, Maryland

“The Certain Old Man” by Heather Brown Barrett from Southeastern Virginia

“Ars Bestia Domitor” and “Trees of Life” also by Heather Brown Barrett from Southeastern Virginia

“The Woodpecker” by Annie Marhefka from Baltimore, Maryland

“Lines” by Kay Smith-Blum from Seattle, Washington

“Becoming Velvet” and “Beneath Your Surface” by Chris Biles from Washington, D.C.

“On Being Watched by Birds” by Chris Biles

"No Say," "Bleeding Hearts," and "Chaos in the Cosmos" also by Chris Biles

"On Being Watched by Birds" and "Dead End” also by Chris Biles

"A House, Restored" by Heather Brown Barrett

Sydney Alexander

Currently dividing time between Ellicott City and Baltimore, both in Maryland

YA position: event planning & community engagement intern, May-Aug 2022

Where do you go to school? I am a rising sophomore at Middlebury College and am scheduled to graduate in May 2025. I graduated from River Hill High School in Howard County, Maryland, in June 2021.

Isabelle Anderson

Lives in Baltimore, Maryland

YA position: publications intern, January-May 2022

What did you do? As publications intern, I copyedited and proofread manuscripts of upcoming chapbooks, and created promotional material for many Yellow Arrow publications.

Where did you go to school? Washington College; I graduated in May.

What are you currently working on? This summer, I’m hoping to do a lot more reading and writing for fun as I look for jobs in publishing.

Veronica Salib

Lives in Rockville, Maryland

YA position: publishing intern, May-August 2022

What do you do? I am the publishing intern so I have a few different responsibilities. I create Canva graphics to promote journals and chapbooks. I also proofread different poems and assist in the creation of Her View Friday posts.

Where did you go to school? I went to undergrad at the University of Maryland in College Park and graduated in 2021. I also hope to return to school and receive a masters in publishing.

What are you currently working on? I currently also copyedit for an organization called Balance Now. I just began an editorial positon at Xtilligent Media and I am in the process of starting my graduate school applications.

Piper Sartison

Lives in Chestertown, Maryland

YA position: marketing intern, February-May 2022

What did you do? I was a marketing intern for Yellow Arrow. I created promotional images with Canva, scheduled and created social media posts, worked with Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, and proofread writing submissions.

Where do you go to school? I go to Washington College. I am a rising junior and I will graduate in the spring of 2024.

What are you currently working on? I write for the community and college newspaper of Chestertown (The Elm). I also do some writing on the side and hope to work with more organizations this summer.

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