by nicolebreit | creative writing, personal essays
Thirteen inches of agony, drops of blood painstakingly painted on side wound, wrists and ankles. I couldn’t keep that gory cross—my exact words to Rachelle, who laughed—but also couldn’t recall seeing a religious item donated to the local thrift shop. My mother...
by nicolebreit | creative writing, personal essays, writer interview
“Emergent writers need to keep asking themselves: what can I eliminate, what can I expand, what can I rework to get to the heartbeat of my story. Writing creative nonfiction is, after all, heart work.” Today I’ll be wrapping up my series of...
by nicolebreit | creative writing, personal essays, writer interview
“The world is not an easy place, and sometimes it is scary, and in order for stories to have staying power, they must be true enough to reflect that complexity and darkness, out there and in ourselves.” Isaac Yuen is a prolific writer of short stories and...
by nicolebreit | creative writing, personal essays, poetry, writer interview
“Go to that place that frightens you the most and hang out there for a bit. Get really uncomfortable and write from that place… Kill the vampire right at the beginning. Then keep writing.” Chelene Knight is the author of a book of poetry,...
by nicolebreit | creative writing, flash essay, personal essays
Recently one of my personal essays, Shame Shame, was published at Hippocampus, an online literary magazine devoted to memorable creative non-fiction. I was so excited when I received the acceptance email over Christmas, I leaped out of my chair, screamed and jumped up...
