Search

by Skylar Edwards We’ve all been there. You sit down to write with an idea that has been living in your head. It’s vibrant, full of potential, and then, suddenly, when you try to bring it to life on the page, it doesn’t feel right. The sentences come out flat. Your thoughts are disorganized. You begin to erase or delete more than you write. Before long, the momentum you started with is gone, and all that’s left is that frustrating, familiar thought: Why can’t I get this right the first time?  This is the myth that many writers fall for. We believe that the first draft should be clean, coherent, and devoid of any mistakes. In other words, the first draft should be perfect. We feel that the words should streamline from our minds to the page and that they should just work. Yet, good writing is not effortless. The truth is that the perfect first draft does not exist. The belief that it should is one of the biggest lies that holds writers back.  The idea that your writing must be right on the first go creates unnecessary pressure. Pressure, more often than not, leads to paralysis in writing. First, you begin to second-guess every sentence before it’s finished. You try to correct mistakes before they even happen. You start to hesitate when exploring new ideas because you are afraid that they won’t make sense. This paralysis leads the author in a loop of writing and deleting until the original energy disappears. It’s a one-way ticket to writer’s block.  We tend to forget that writing is meant to be messy. The first draft is supposed to be chaotic. It does not mean that you are a failure; it means that you are putting in the effort. The first draft is representative of the larger story inside your head. The ideas may appear in images or in singular words, unconnected and knotted. Yet, what is there from the beginning is the spark that drives the writer’s momentum.  That’s why the first draft should be treated as a private space. In order to begin writing freely, without the myth haunting us, we must understand that there are no rules when writing. This space is safe for us to make mistakes. There isn’t a need to sound smart or poetic, and there aren’t critics that will harp on your grammar. This is where you are allowed to sound unsure and contradict yourself and explore weird ideas.  But despite this understanding that the first draft shouldn’t be perfect, we still have that voice, the one tells you that your idea is dumb and that nobody will want to read your work. It’s our personal inner critic. They will have some valuable points, but they should not be speaking during your first draft. The first draft is about wrestling those ideas onto the page. It’s building the road as you go. The inner critic is after that perfect word, that perfect sentence, and if you keep waiting for it, you’ll never write anything at all. The best ideas show up when you let go of trying to achieve that perfect first draft and speak like yourself.  Revision is where we get to shape the messiness into something meaningful. Clarity emerges, structure forms, and purpose is recognized. That inner critic can finally step in to help guide the piece; they will move paragraphs, tighten up the language, and help the story grow. Yet, none of this can happen without a messy first draft. You needed something to work with before it could be shaped into something better. It is also good to remember that one size does not fit all. Approaching the first draft can look different for different writers; what works for one might be a total disaster for another. Some people feel comfortable outlining their work before writing, while others jump in with nothing but a single sentence. Some writers need complete silence, some need music, and others need background noise. Some revise as they go; others don’t even look back until the last word is out. Another part of dismantling the myth and becoming a better writer is figuring out what works best for you. This means exploring different processes without guilt. The author should not be a mold that you have to fit yourself into. So, the next time you find yourself chasing after the myth of the perfect first draft takes a step back. When you’re stuck, don’t get frustrated. Stop chasing perfection and go after progress. Take baby steps. Get those ideas out, no matter how rough they feel. Remember that bad writing could always be made better, but if there isn’t anything to begin with, there is nothing to improve.

by Shreya Bhanuka It is incredibly important for us to be mindful of the kind of media we consume and the kind we produce, especially as writers and artists. Media consumption affects us on multiple levels—cognitively, emotionally, socially, and physically. While it can be a source of entertainment, knowledge, and connection, it also has the potential to influence our mental health, behavior, and worldview, sometimes in harmful ways. Media can change how we perceive the world and shape our beliefs. Therefore, what we consume is what we become. Books, in particular, have a unique and profound impact on our cognitive, emotional, and social lives. Whether we read non-fiction, fiction, or poetry, literature has a long-term effect on us. Books can shape our thoughts, beliefs, and mindset, and they have the power to change us. It is important to remember this while writing and reading. Therefore, it is crucial to consume healthy, uplifting literature. When we write, we must remember that words have great power. They can create a ripple effect—they can inspire, educate, and empower people, or they can have the opposite reaction and harm people by spreading the wrong message. Articles, essays, and all forms of writing have been important for centuries. It is essential to communicate, share ideas, and raise awareness. Through words, we can revolutionize the world and bring about change. But with the great power of words comes even greater responsibility. Books like The Diary of Anne Frank and To Kill a Mockingbird carry important messages about justice, human rights, and our collective struggle for a better society. These books compel us to stop and re-examine our values, morals, and social structures. Words have historically sparked movements, raised awareness about injustice, and inspired people to take action. Whether it’s abolitionist writings during slavery, feminist manifestos, or climate change articles, writers have often been at the forefront of societal change. However, we must also remember that words can be manipulative and distort reality. This was addressed in 1984 by George Orwell, which remains crucial in discussions about government surveillance, censorship, and the loss of individual freedoms. It’s not just books; articles, essays, and reports by journalists and activists have also fought for change and truth with their pens as swords. They’ve battled corruption, supported LGBTQ+ rights, and broken barriers by opening new perspectives and changing mindsets. Essays like A Room of One’s Own by Virginia Woolf have explored femininity and the importance of financial and personal freedoms in the fight for gender equality. Books like The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood and articles like Why Women Still Can't Have It All by Anne-Marie Slaughter have sparked reflection on values and women’s place in society. Today, we live in a world rapidly changing due to advancements in AI and technology. The same media and writing that inspire and educate us can also limit our thinking, narrow our views, set social standards, and lead to censorship and bans. This creates an environment in which mental health issues, existential anxiety, and other health problems may rise. For the younger generation, this can be especially concerning, as it could completely alter our worldview, making us vulnerable, full of hatred for one another, and filled with distorted ideas. The trending Netflix show Adolescence beautifully portrays the consumption of media and its impact. It explores the effects of social media, online culture, and toxic masculinity. And our consumption of such media shapes our identities, and we must remember that the media we consume is created by us. Therefore, it’s our responsibility to produce media that is thoughtful, well-rounded, and free from negativity. In conclusion, it’s important to consume and create media that uplifts, informs, and empowers rather than reinforcing negative stereotypes or encouraging harmful behaviors. By promoting thoughtful, reflective consumption of media—whether books, articles, social media, or any form of art—adolescents can be better equipped to face the challenges of growing up and form their own healthy, well-rounded identities.

by Lily It is a truth universally acknowledged that literature has the power to sway opinions and impact lives. Whether someone reads one book a year or 100 books a year, it is more likely that a book has changed his or her perspective on the world at some point in time. Recently, in American politics, mainly within school districts and libraries, books have become a particular point of contention; book bans are occurring with increasing frequency. Book bans are a dangerous form of censorship because they limit access to ideas, stifling critical thinking and personal growth in young adults. When books are banned, especially those addressing complex or controversial topics, it deprives individuals of the opportunity to develop empathy, understand history, and form their own opinions, narrowing their perspectives and perpetuating ignorance. Over time, book bans undermine intellectual freedom, hinder progress, and weaken the foundation of democracy. Politically fueled restrictions on literature have existed for centuries; Jane Austen and Pride and Prejudice , a popular book and author these days, weren't always so well received. Throughout literary history, female authors might not have been entirely excluded, but they were often quickly dismissed. In the 1800s, American women had a strong position in the literary market; despite this it was not until recently that their work was acknowledged by scholars (Gillespie). In Austen’s case, her works were viewed as radical feminist writings until the early 1900s. During Austen’s time, female authors were often censored and poorly paid. Because women were confined to the domestic sphere, many of their writings portrayed stereotypical female themes and roles, and they often had to take on pen names to circumvent this censorship (Peterson). Despite this, these authors, like Austen, Wollstonecraft, Shelley, and the Brontë sisters, would cement themselves in the literary canon and pave the way for not only women in literature but also the science fiction and gothic genres. In modern times, literary censorship in the United States exists mainly in the form of book bans. In schools and libraries across the country, religious leaders, and parents alike have challenged and censored certain themes and books. These books typically include LGBTQ+ characters, themes of racism or oppression, and other “political” messages. One of these books, All Boys Aren't Blue, by George M. Johnson, was challenged in the state of Iowa for what Iowa Senate President Jake Chapman described as a “sinister agenda to normalize sexually deviant behavior, including pedophilia” (Coleman). This book, which was written as a supportive handbook for LGBT/trans youth in Iowa, is now illegal in classrooms and school libraries across the state. Another example of a commonly banned book is The Hunger Games  by Suzanne Collins. This book series contains heavy themes of political dissent, geopolitics, society, and gender. By presenting these things through a complex dystopian story, these books also give young adults a platform to question these themes (Kirby), maybe even before realizing how much they apply to their own lives and the real world. In The Hunger Games,  Katniss (the main character) isn't restricted by her gender and often actively resists our world’s gender roles; she is her family’s sole provider and takes on this role again within the arena as she provides for Peeta (the other main character). Beyond feminism, The Hunger Games is also extremely critical of the government and mass media, often in situations that clearly parallel the actions of our own government in the United States. Attempts to ban this book series show a clear attempt to prevent children from questioning the government. This is especially clear if you see the ways Americans have become desensitized to United States-funded violence in the Middle East and the way this parallels Capitol views of District cruelty in The Hunger Games (Rosenberg).   In a society that has benefitted so much from the profits of mass media and over-dramatized news sources, it is unsurprising that many would attempt to censor dissenters, even if those dissenters are young adult dystopian novels. These bans might seem like they have been contained on a relatively small scale in rural areas. However, they can have a butterfly effect that stretches all the way to politics on a national and international scale. And, even on a smaller scale, can have a profound impact on people’s lives, especially the lives of young people easily susceptible to hateful rhetoric. When the American Library Association conducted a three-month study on book bans across the United States, there were 155 unique censorship incidents found. In those three months there were more censorship attempts reported than in the entire year of 2020 (Rehn). Recently many of these book bans seem to target similar things: LGBTQ+ themes, and “critical race theory.”. Coupled with increased pushback against Trans and LGBT+ protection laws and violence against Americans of color, this points to a troubling shift in “American values.”. In Iowa, these once “isolated” book bans have now moved towards legislation that outright bans teaching about homophobia, systematic racism, and transphobia (Coleman). This points towards book bans as a clear first step towards widespread censorship. These steps towards censorship and hatred become even clearer when links between book bans and bans on gender-neutral bathrooms, gender-affirming care, and trans women in women's sports appear at a state level (Coleman). Media censorship is an obvious characteristic of any authoritarian regime, so dangerous because it not only makes it difficult to access certain information but also creates a culture where citizens do not find it necessary to ask for this information in the first place, which could lead to  the government’s complete control over a whole population's understanding of the world.  As we move through the next couple of years, it is likely we will see more and more cases of book bans in school districts around the United States. These are one of the earliest and most dangerous forms of censorship; what might seem like a few too many book bans can and will lead to widespread ignorance and hatred. To protect our children and their futures, we must all take a stand against censorship in any form. Simply attending school and library board meetings can be one of the most effective ways to prevent book bans in your area.  Works Cited Chen, Yuyu, and David Y. Yang. “The Impact of Media Censorship: 1984 or Brave New World?”  The American Economic Review, vol. 109, no. 6, 2019, pp. 2294–332. JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/26737888 . Accessed 8 Nov. 2024.. Clausen, Christopher. "Jane Austen Changes Her Mind." The American Scholar , vol. 68,  no. 2, spring 1999, p. 89. Gale OneFile: High School Edition , link.gale.com/apps/doc/A54756994/GPS?u=nysl_sc_campsav&sid=bookmark-GPS&xid=f02536a3 . Accessed 7 Nov. 2024. Coleman, James Joshua, and Petra Lange. "A Two-Year Timeline to Anti-LGBTQ+ Book Bans in America's Heartland: This article provides strategies for English teachers to resist book-banning education policies in their local contexts." English Journal , vol. 113, no. 6, July 2024, pp. 25+. Gale Academic OneFile , link.gale.com/apps/doc/A813057098/AONE?u=corningcc&sid=bookmark-AONE&xid=b41bf9f4 . Accessed 8 Nov. 2024. Gillespie, Nick. "Literature Lost: Social Agendas and the Corruption of the Humanities."  Reason, vol. 29, no. 11, Apr. 1998, pp. 69+. Gale OneFile: High School Edition,  link.gale.com/apps/doc/A20468736/GPS?u=nysl_sc_campsav&sid=bookmark-GPS&xid =7cacfd89. Accessed 7 Nov. 2024. Kirby, Philip. “The Girl on Fire: The Hunger Games , Feminist Geopolitics and the  Contemporary Female Action Hero.” Geopolitics , vol. 20, no. 2, Apr. 2015, pp. 460–78.  EBSCOhost ,  https://doi.org/10.1080/14650045.2014.984835 . Peterson, Linda H., editor. “Victorian Women Writers’ Careers.” The Cambridge Companion to Victorian Women’s Writing . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2015. 13–86. Print. Cambridge Companions to Literature. Rehn, Jensen. "BATTLEGROUNDS FOR BANNED BOOKS: THE FIRST AMENDMENT  AND PUBLIC SCHOOL LIBRARIES." Notre Dame Law Review, vol. 98, no. 3, Mar. 2023, pp. 1405+. Gale Academic OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A747379057/AONE?u=corningcc&sid=bookmark-AONE&xid=0cd22704 . Accessed 8 Nov. 2024. Rosenberg, Alyssa. "'The Hunger Games' warned us that reality TV would take over our  politics." Washington Post , 13 July 2016. Gale Academic OneFile , link.gale.com/apps/doc/A457904175/AONE?u=corningcc&sid=bookmark-AONE&xid=ba46b23b . Accessed 8 Nov. 2024.

Rewrite The Stars is a literary magazine for every teen writer or artist who dreams of publication! Submit Now! Do you have an idea for a blog post about the writing/reading/publishing industry that more people need to be talking about? Submissions for Issue IX: Welcome to Wonderland are closed Submit Now! Subscribe to receive the latest updates about our blog posts, call for submissions, and more! Thank you for subscribing! We'll see you in the stars <3 Read our latest issue: Issue IX: Welcome to Wonderland For this issue, we asked submitters to explore what Wonderland means to them, figuratively or literally. Our contributors evoke the thrill of the ride, help us feel the taste of cotton candy on our tongues, and transport us to a strange, surreal world where reality bends and twists all in its path. Read on to see in their own words what a carnival represents to them. Read Now Check out our blog: The Myth of the Perfect First Draft The idea that your writing must be right on the first go creates unnecessary pressure. Pressure, more often than not, leads to paralysis. Skylar Edwards Apr 23 3 min read Consumption to Creation : The Responsibility Media consumption affects us on multiple levels. Media can change how we perceive the world and shape our beliefs. Shreya Bhanuka Apr 9 3 min read Why Book Bans Matter It is a truth universally acknowledged that literature has the power to sway opinions and impact lives. Lily Mortensen Mar 26 5 min read Contact Us Email: rewritethestarsreview@gmail.com Blog: blog.rewritethestarsreview@gmail.com Events: events.rewritethestarsreview@gmail.com If someone contacts you claiming to be us from accounts that are not listed above, please report it to us immediately. Submit Thanks for submitting!

Submit to our magazine now! Submissions We are currently accepting submissions for: Blog Article Non fiction - All year round Click here to know more. We are looking for pieces that young readers can relate to, pieces that make you feel something. Stories and poems about the teenage experience, fantasy that readers can use as escapism, worl ds that will suck them in co mpletely, pieces that will strike the very core of human souls are highly encouraged! We also appreciate pieces that are silly, weird, and might be out of place anywhere else. We seek to promote any work that makes us feel any kind of emotion - whether that's amusement, dejection, or nostalgia. Please check our specific themes for what we seek for that theme though! We currently accept submissions for our issues four tim es a year. (March, June, September, December). We are currently closed for issue submissions. Submission Guidelines Submission Inquiries GENERAL All pieces should be in English. If you are including any words in another language, please include translations below Send all pieces as a Google Document/Word Document because this makes it easier to add comments and give feedback. If you are sending a Google Doc, make sure to give us commenting access All pieces should be written in Times New Roman/EB Garamond and font size should be 11 or 12 We have changed our policy of reading name-blind, and will be reviewing submissions with the submitter's context in mind. We highly encourage all creators to add a note to their work so it helps us evaluate the context in which the piece was written and provides more depth to the work. Add the releva nt trigger/content warnings Strictly no smut/anything sexual as this is a magazine for teens Plagiarism, offensive slurs and hate speech are strictly not allowed, If we find any submissions with the same, we will delete it and bar the author from sending to us in the future. ISSUE We allow four kinds of submissions: pr ose, poetry, visual artwork, and creative non-fiction. Per cycle, an author or artist may only submit to one category . Within that category, you can submit how many ever submissions are allowed for that particular category. Specific limits and instructions for each category are listed below. We will design an individual layout for each accepted piece, and reserve the right to design the layout as we believe best fits the piece. For pieces that are accepted, contributors will be emailed about details of publication, issue release parties, and features on our blog. Contributors have the right to accept/decline invitations as they please. Excerpts from accepted pieces will be promoted on our social media. The contributor reserves the right to choose whether they would like to be tagged or not. BLOG No fiction or poetry submissions are allowed for our blog. Any such submissions will be deleted and rejected immediately. Pieces must be engaging and interesting pieces related to the bookish and writing industry. Any unrelated pieces such as makeup or skincare articles will be deleted and rejected immediately. For any research-related article, authors are expected to cite their sources below. Heads of blog department reserve the right to make any edits to the piece as they see fit. We also reserve the right to later archive a blog post if we feel it does not resonate with the theme of our magazine on a later date. We expect blog posts to be written in a fairly formal tone. Conversationality is fine, but a complete disregard of proper spelling and grammar is not. Topics for blog posts are expected to be interesting and unusual, and entice readers. Word count for blog posts is 500-800 words. We may accept longer articles, however this is dependant on the subject of the article itself. Prose: Any forms of prose are accepted with a maximum limit of 1500 words. Format it accordingly with the required line and paragraph breaks and submit as a Word Document or a Google Docs. During a single cycle you can submit a maximum of 1 story of less than 1500 words, or 3 micro stories of less than 500 words each. Attach them in the same document, split it with page breaks and submit it. Poetry: Any forms of poetry are accepted with a maximum limit of 30 lines. We are not strict on line count, however the poem must not exceed 2 pages. Format it accordingly with the required line breaks and submit as a Word Document or a Google Docs. During a single cycle you can submit a maximum of 3 poems. [For issue viii, we are only accepting one poem per author.] Attach them in the same document, split it with page breaks and submit it. Art: We accept both digital and traditional art, however if it is traditional, we expect a good quality picture with no disturbances. We allow a maximum of 3 pieces per submission. [For issue viii, we are only accepting one piece per artist.] We ask that you merge all 3 of them into a single file and submit it. Creative Non-Fiction: Creative non-fiction includes essays on current world issues, book reviews, personal anecdotes, etc. We allow a maximum of 1 piece per submission, with a maximum word count of 1000 words. Photography: A maximum of three pieces can be submitted. The clarity must be high. Should be submitted in JPEG format. Submission Categories Prose Poetry Art Creative Non-fiction Photography Our New Policies If you submitted to a previous issue, you have to wait a whole cycle to submit to RTS again. For example, if you submitted to issue 8, you cannot submit to issue 9 and have to wait until issue 10 to submit to RTS again. This rule will go in place from today, i.e. if you submitted to issue 7 you can still submit to issue 8. This does not apply to features or mini issues, and you can submit to how many ever of those that you please. When we first started our magazine, we didn't have a lot of submitters so we wanted to encourage whoever wanted to to submit. However, now we believe we have a decent enough reach not to worry about reaching an adequate number of submissions, and thus we want to promote more writers instead of the same writers again. Don't get us wrong - we absolutely love recurring contributors! However, we'd like to give new people discovering us more of a chance too :) If you submit a piece that does not adhere to the submission guidelines, your piece will not be read, your submission will be automatically rejected, and you will be issued a warning. In the past we have been a bit more lenient with submissions that didn't meet the requirements, however it becomes extremely hard for our editors to keep track. Please read all the guidelines on our website thoroughly including the number of pieces you are allowed to submit and the instructions on how to title your document. Any piece that doesn't meet the guidelines will be put on a warning list, and if any single person gets three warnings they will be blacklisted from submitting to RTS. This also applies for people submitting our application form to closed positions (if a position is closed, it will be indicated on the application form itself). Note: The only exceptions to this rule we will accept are with respect to word/line counts, and that is only for marginal differences (<100 words). If your piece exceeds the maximum word count, please DM our Instagram or email to make sure it's okay. Only after receiving our confirmation that it's okay to submit can you submit this piece without receiving a warning. Anchor 1 Facts & Questions All Your Questions Answered In One Place Why should I submit? If you wrote a story that you're really proud of, or created an art piece you adore, and want more people to read and see it, we highly encourage you to submit. We understand how difficult it can be to put yourself and your work out there, but we're also young writers who started from humble beginnings, so we hope you trust us and take a chance. At RTS, we review all the pieces and provide individual feedback for all of them (only if requested for). We also take very good care of your piece (check this post for more motivation to submit!). No matter whether we decide to publish your piece or not, rest be assured that we will treat it with the respect it deserves, and make sure you're on the right track of your publishing journey <3 Who can submit? The aim of our magazine is to provide a platform for young and marginalized artists. We hope Rewrite The Stars Review serves as a platform for amateur artists where they can publish for the first time and use this magazine as a stepping stone into the formal literary world. Although we predominantly publish work by young artists in the age group 13-25, we do believe that there is no age for someone to begin writing. We will consider work from older creators, however we may prioritize publishing work by writers submitting for the first time, rather than authors with an extensive publication history. That being said, we encourage artists and writers from any part of the world to submit! What/When can I submit? We have submissions to our magazine which publishes quarterly. Check this page for more details. For our issues, we accept fiction, poetry, creative non-fiction, visual art and photography. We accept submissions to our blog year round! We are looking for articles about the reading and writing community, whether this be your hot take on a popular trope or a rant about literary magazine rejections. Check this page for more details. Apart from these, we also will occasionally be having special events and contests! More details on this are published on our socials, follow us on instagram for updates <3 Where do I submit? Check the Issues page to submit to our magazine, and the Blog page to submit to the blog. Please adhere to the submissions guidelines as this makes it easier for us to review them. Interested? Submit now! Blog submissions are open year-round. Submissions for Issue IX: Welcome To Wonderland are closed! Submit to blog Submissions closed

Rewrite The Stars Review's Ninth Magazine Issue! Issue IX: Welcome to Wonderland April 2025 Welcome to Wonderland. For this issue, we asked submitters to explore what Wonderland means to them, figuratively or literally. We asked for stories, poems, essays, artwork, and photography that captured the mayhem, madness, and magic of carnivals. Whether it's the bright lights of the Ferris wheel, the eerie silence of the funhouse, or the strange characters lurking amidst the shadows of the tents, we wanted to see your most imaginative and vivid interpretations. Our contributors evoke the thrill of the ride, help us feel the taste of cotton candy on our tongues, and transport us to a strange, surreal world where reality bends and twists all in its path. Read on to see in their own words what a carnival represents to them. Read Now CONTRIBUTORS POETRY Riddhi Iyer To be Human (Staff Contribution) Aurora Skye Vessel Ezra Mukami Untitled Jaiden Geolingo Here, Grief Angela Acosta Approximation of Latin American Diya Kapoor the big thing that lives in the sky Nirmit Mittal To Gaza Lydia Rae Bush Risk Ruth Towne Sweets to the Sweet Gabby Parkinson Lost in Translation Ray Shubert Purpose Mia Jevtic sentenced to your love Rah Royal the first twelve years of my life Liv Gamble How To Exist Nina Stadermann Reverie Muskan Gupta Poof and Gone Milan Singh Blur AC. Sandglass Just Talk Alexys K. Beautiful and Human Ruby Dyan My Day Wong Eu Kenn Michelangelo's Sculpture Sundos Hejazi art of life/life of art Kit Thurston-Mathews A Kitten's Offering Aunezti Burk What Day Is It? Rowan Through the artist's lens Nevaeh Phillips Life doesn’t end Chloe we were Urja Srivastava an understanding of the human experience Inaya Aly Khan Lunacy in a Fifteen Year Old Zoe Moon Xoxo Yuvika Gupta The Life Express Chloe Ho Chamber Music Maryam Majid I don't believe in atoms (I want to touch something) Jessamine Jin Infinities Cora McCullough Is Kindness Words Or Actions? Liv L. Ascend Bryan Duong Milstead faded gleam, renewed dream Halley Kunen Engine Flitting Malcolm Wernestrom it's a dog eat dog world Ivy J My Eurydice Friends W. E. Everhart Humanity weeps Asad R. Unexpected Transmission layla h. your best girl Rahil Najafabadi The Correspondence PROSE Isabel Loytty Highway Shannon Tran Grief & Bliss Elizabeth Butler Unnatural Selection E. Syson Seventeen Years (and an Extra Few Weeks) Alana Rodrigues Birch, Law of the Wild Aleeza Aneel who? me? Kiara Turner My Angst and Me Nusayba Bokhari Seeds alarminglytired (Nyx) As The Zephyr Wind Blows Claire M.M. A Ferryman's Fate Soraya Saros Crop of Prometheus Madison Cossaboom We Are The Fish Meagan Da capo sunny Our Paths Will Cross Again, I Promise Aki Rayne The Man by the Pond Arianna Kanji to be human is to wait Andrea Balingit The Exam Svara Carmel Narasiah Enough Alin Sengjaroen Tenderly Yours Phoenix Eddolls Death's favourite mortician Roukia Ali "The Old Brag" Ara Djati When Light Refracts Kaitlyn Fan Headed Towards Home FJGCSABA What are we defined as? How? Robert Aden Lonergan STRAWBERRY MILK CREATIVE NON-FICTION Kai Existential Espresso Kaitlyn Abrielle McCormick Eden Sydney Lynn A Letter From Ireland Zainab Ansari older and bigger Sophia Quintana The Numbers Game Clara Salo Meaning in Platonic Forms Elizabeth Maxwell What's next? Julia Vellucci Roses and Resilience ART Yasmin Kareem The depths within Desi Distel Northside gang:) Tehya Metzinger The Lake Sleeps Under the Willow Mitra Arianfar Lingering Touch PHOTOGRAPHY Sophia Liu Invisible China FEATURED INDIE AUTHORS Pavla Leitgebova The Deadliest Wish Sera Amoroso The Makria Cycle-Torsion