fictionalsejal Dear Friends,I’m reminded after some time visiting my family in Rhode Island about what it’s like to live near water. Listening to the waves, Dar Williams’ “The Ocean” comes back to me. Here are some of her lyrics. I lived in New England for eleven years (plus in utero; my parents were living in Watertown, MA when … Read more
Linoleum cut print (a reduction print) and letterpress work in action. Photo and art by Stephen West at Flower City Press in Rochester, New York. Dear Friends, My friend Stephen West is a writer and visual artist. We’ve been part of a writing group (on pause since the pandemic) since 2014. That’s backstory, process, behind the scenes, … Read more
Dear Friends, Here are some pink roses from our backyard for you. I love tending to them. Where is your attention these days? How do you make your garden grow? This week, Juneteenth was signed into law, becoming the first new national holiday to be approved since Martin Luther King Jr Day. I attended my first Juneteenth … Read more
Dear Friends, Happy Weekend! It was a long week. Abbey and I are making this newsletter together this summer. And here are 10 things we wanted to share with you: 1. Naomi Osaka speaking out about depression, mental health, and the cost of performing wellness. 2. My friend Wendy Call’s interview of Roland Rugero in Guernica (“In Touch … Read more
Dear Friends, On the day of my first real birthday party at age six, my dad dropped my cake (or someone did) and someone else (who knew how to drive) had to run out to buy a new one. I cried and cried. The one that got dropped (the real cake) maybe my mom had … Read more
Dear Friends and Family, I hope this finds you well or at least okay! I wanted to let you know a few things going on over here related to writing, reading, and teaching. Upcoming Events: Dear Friend. This is my only class scheduled in 2021, so if you’ve been interested in taking a class with … Read more
As 2020 comes to a close, This Is One Way to Dance has been featured on several end-of-the-year lists, including NPR’s Best Books of 2020 list and Literary Hub’s Best Reviewed Essay Collections of 2020 alongside Cathy Park Hong‘s Minor Feelings, Aimee Nezhukumatathil‘s World of Wonders, Zadie Smith‘s Intimations, and Claudia Rankine‘s Just Us, among … Read more
Dear Friends and Family, Happy December! My virtual book ends this month with two final events I’m looking forward to and wanted to let you know about. And then I’m looking forward to not seeing myself on Zoom or anything til 2021. 🙂 Upcoming Events: Tuesday, December 1, 2020 at 7:00 PM EST: “Racing the … Read more
Dear Friends and Family, One of the things I’m happiest about this year has been co-hosting a Zoom writing meet-up with my friend, Wendy. We began ours in April after the pandemic shut-down under the auspices of the artist community where we met. I used to host Fridays 2:00 PM and Wendy hosted 3:00 PM … Read more
“Dancing together lifted the heaviness I’d been carrying. Somehow, in the percussive, rhythmic footwork and pounding steps, the vigorous movement in our creaky bodies, a weight shifted. ” Read the full essay on dance, celebration, and mourning, published in The Guardian on October 1, here.