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She walks with death hand in hand and her hand does not tremble.

— RACHIDA MADANI ⚜️ Tales of a Severed Head, transl. by Marilyn Hacker, (2012)

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Fantasy is philosophy’s more gorgeously painted cousin. You can’t just tell a child a blunt fact about the human heart and expect them to believe you. That’s not how it works. You can’t scribble on a Post-it note for a 12-year-old: your strangeness is worth keeping, or your love will matter. You need to show it. And fantasy, with its limitless scope, gives us a way of offering longhand proof for otherwise inarticulable ideas: endurance and hatred and regret, and power and passion and death.

-Katherine Rundell, "Why children's books?"

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June 8, 1897 Rilke and Andreas-Salomé: a love story in letters (1897-1926)

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Whispers of the Fjord: A Norwegian Lullaby

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Writer's Block

You’re staring at the page. The cursor blinks like it’s taunting you. You want to write—hell, you even know what you want to write about—but it’s like your brain’s frozen. That, my friend, is the all-too-familiar little bitch known as writer’s block.

So, how do you fight it?

Here’s what’s helped me, and maybe it'll help you too.

1. Write anything, even if it’s trash

Seriously. Open a doc and let yourself write the worst possible version of what you’re trying to say. No pressure. No editing. You can always clean it up later. A messy first draft is better than no draft.

2. Change your scenery

Sometimes your brain just needs a different view. Go outside. Sit at a café. Write on your phone instead of your laptop. A small change can trick your brain into feeling inspired again.

3. Idea dump

Forget structure. Forget plot. Just go full chaos mode. Rant about your characters, the scene, or how much writing sucks today. That little brain dump might lead you to a breakthrough.

4. Read something short and good

A poem. A Tumblr post. A flash fiction piece. Sometimes reading a spark of good writing reminds your brain how fun words can be.

5. Accept the block, but don’t leave it there

Writer’s block is normal. It doesn’t mean you’re broken. It just means your brain’s buffering. Rest, hydrate, and be gentle with yourself. Then try again.

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Writing is weird. Some days it flows like magic, and other days it’s like dragging your soul through the trenches. But if you’re stuck, don't give up on it— the words will come back.

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Alice Notley

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Late-arriving June prompts!

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Louise Glück, Averno; from ‘A Myth of Innocence'

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Kai Cheng Thom, from "to a lost sister", Falling Back in Love with Being Human: Letters to Lost Souls

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Sometimes I am so angry with God, I want to wrestle. That’s why there’s myth, right? A thousand years ago, someone felt the same as me and now I live in that story’s shadow. Time pulls our teeth apart. History climbs inside our mouth.

Sanna Wani, "spring" from My Grief, the Sun

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Maiden Carrying Armor by CHAI小八仙

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I am happy because everyone loves me

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Poems From The Book Of Hours, Rainer Maria Rilke.

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The Celestial Dance

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Kiko Mizuhara for Kiiks (2024)