From the Editor, December 2015
Welcome to the December issue of Literary Mama! Between catching snowflakes, searching for that elusive parking spot at the mall, and sipping cocoa, we hope you find time to read all the gorgeous writing we have in store:
Creative Nonfiction features Sara Beck’s “Let the Building Begin,” which follows a woman contemplating a home birth, and who, with the help of a midwife nicknamed “The General,” learns to own her decision; and Nancy McCabe’s “Composing the Air” is a thoughtful essay on how one mother comes to terms with her teen daughter quitting gymnastics.
From Fiction, there’s “Dear Quiche, I’d Like an Apology” by Windy Lynn Harris, a sweet and funny story about one couple’s first night out without baby.
Literary Reflections offers two wonderful essays: “The Wolf Inside” by Maureen Langloss explores her hope to expose children to literary adventures as well as the inspiration of the natural world; and “Walking the Labyrinth on My Almost Birthday” by Misty Urban reveals how she decided to walk the path, without taking shortcuts, in order to achieve her writing goals. We also have Justine Uhlenbrock’s compilation of staff picks related to Family Cooking, a focus of discussion for many households this time of year.
December’s poems feature strong, liberated girls with: “This is Not a Pipe/Ceci n’est pas une Pipe” by Jennifer L. Freed; “River, River” and “Girls Running to Mommies” by Cheryl Anne Latuner; and “Amazons, at Eleven” by Laurie Kruk.
In Profiles, we have “A Conversation with Carol Smallwood” by Gina Consolino-Barsotti, in which the two discuss how Smallwood’s fascination with words birthed her career as an editor and poet.
“Mothering and Soldiering through Love and Loss: A Review of Losing Tim“ by Randon Billings Noble looks at how writer Janet Burroway turned to her craft to process her grief.
And keep an eye on our Blog for up-to-date information on Calls for Submissions; guest posts for our After Page One, Free Write, and Photo writing prompts; a Writerly Roundup of articles related to craft and the writing life; as well as Announcements.
We are always grateful for your comments, and hope you can share all this good writing with your friends via Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Goodreads.
One more note before I sign off: It’s been a fantastic year for us—so much beautiful writing and photography have graced our website, and we couldn’t have done it without our contributors, as well as all the hard working women behind the scenes here at Literary Mama. Thank you!
Best wishes for the holidays, and I look forward to sharing more great work with you in 2016,
Maria