In Conversation

From Womb to Word: The Spellwork of Briana Muñoz’s Matriarchy Briana Muñoz’s Matriarchy (El Martillo Press) is a collection that insists on the sacredness of creation—in every sense of the word. Her poems braid the biological and the political, the ancestral and the immediate, the sacred and the profane. The voice that emerges here is …

Citizens for Decent Literature Press Announces the Posthumous Release of Brian Fugett: Poems — Honoring a Defiant and Unforgettable Voice in Indie Lit Citizens for Decent Literature Press, a project of The Literary Underground, is honored to announce the posthumous release of Brian Fugett: Poems on November 5, 2025, timed with the Full Beaver Moon. …

Halloween 365, or Tom Atkins Always Be Trying to Sip on my Kool-Aid I can’t believe Halloween has already passed by.  The tail end of Autumn, my favorite time of year is racing away. Of course, I believe in celebrating the sixty-one days of Halloween, kicking off the season on September 1st with my annual viewing …

Underground Lit Fest Brings National Poets to Toledo – November 7 & 8, 2025 Toledo, OH – On November 7 and 8, Toledo will host the Underground Lit Fest, a two-day celebration of independent literature and poetry featuring writers from across the country alongside Toledo’s own literary voices. Events will take place at The Attic …

Shopping She looked at him with her best bedroom eyes Hung on his every word as he spoke too long and too loud about anything that came into his head Slid forward in her seat as he offered her a drink said, “Sure why not I’ll have another How else will I ever learn your …

Ozzy “ETA…55 minutes. I repeat, E-T-A…55 minutes!” My son’s teen rock band had started out on the Beatles, but then got into heavier and darker groups—Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Metallica, Black Sabbath, and some newer-era Hardcore and Screamo bands. So when we heard that Ozzy Osborne was doing a book signing in San Francisco, my son …

Dollar Store yesterday when I was walking across the dollar store parking lot I thought I saw a woman I knew and I was just about ready to shout something at her when I realized she wasn’t the woman I knew but just another attractive woman whom I wish I had known and so I …

Tallest Man I’ve Ever Known Daddy was a monster was a god was a tree was a mountain. I guess I was some kind of doll. Six feet seven inches. He stood over me his blue eyes shining rage his belt swinging his words reducing me to so much ash. This is common. He was …

Giving Water to a Drowning Man Lord, when will I feel less like drowning? I grew up listening to country music, savoring the pain songs about tragic romance. Words that pulled me toward a rawer truth, holding close the weight of life’s hard edges. I couldn’t wait until I grew up, got divorced, and wrote …

Meat Is Murder On a random radio station, driving through another state, the talkshow host throws out a spurious statistic, citing the high percentage of “young people” (she doesn’t give an age range) who believe that bacon is a vegetable. This may be a commentary on the stupidity of “young people.” (“They’re just so fuckin’ …