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by Sam McClelland Literature and immersivity have long run hand-in-hand. When we open a book we are not looking for the ink across the pages nor the caliper of the paper. We are looking for something deeper; to feel the heat of a fiery battle against an ancient dragon, or the smell of rain and blood as a detective stumbles upon the scene of the crime. We are looking to exist somewhere beyond ourselves.  Words and imagination can take you far, but what if you could go a step further? To not just follow a character, but to become a piece of them as you traverse their story. This level of immersivity can only be imagined through paper and realized through games. Sensory storytelling that pushes the bounds of our emotional, auditorial, and visual expectations; that isn't the image video games bring to many people's minds. Misconception will lead most to envision a grubby Pac-Man in the back of an arcade, or an online shooter with no meaning beyond competitive score-keeping. The idea that games are modes of entertainment void of substance, artistic intent, and credibility as an art form can be equated to many things. From their relative youth as a digital media in the modern world, to their limited audience. Games aren’t viewed through the same critical lens as painting, film, literature, etc. Yet, just beyond the hack-and-slash monotony and pixelated ping pong, there is a world of literature and storytelling that is truly remarkable.  Story-based video games have made their way into being one of the most creative and immersive forms of modern storytelling. Not only can they provide compelling narratives, they can jump the audio and visual borders of books by themselves. Through video games, characters, sounds, and scenes that were once left to imagination are transformed into events we can experience first-hand. With the addition of visuals, voice acting, music, and the ability to explore your environment rather than being subjected only to what may be described in a specific passage, we experience these tales in a brand new light. The sensory boundaries that games push aren't the only traits that make them such incredible modes of storytelling; games offer a level of emotional stakes that transcend those of books alone. Take games like Red Dead Redemption 2, Detroit Become Human, and Life is Strange  for example. Throughout these games, you not only follow the protagonist, you also alter their contextual fates. Choices made in these stories such as dialogue options, fights you pick and choose, and even things as simple as objects you interact with alter the story's outcome. Your choices directly impact the world you have immersed yourself in, creating a unique sense of responsibility and connection. I’ll use a pivotal scene from Detroit Become Human as an example. You have followed two sides of a war brewing on the sidelines of society throughout the game's story: Connor, an android designed to assist human law enforcement; programmed and taught to protect them since his first thought. As he's paired with his android-hating partner Hank, he discovers his own humanity, beliefs, and will for good.   Markus, an android cast into the junk heap after being framed for murder. The police did not care for his pleas of innocence, they did not see his humanity. Angry with the way his kind have been cast out and abused, he rises up. Using his voice to demand equality from those who created him, willing to fight for what he believes in.  You have spent countless hours behind their eyes. You have fought for their beliefs, created unbreakable bonds, and decided who their enemy truly is. Connor and Markus find each other at an impasse; a divisive fight about to ring out in the center of an android protest. A choice presents itself as you see them running for each other: X:Control Connor                                       O:Control Markus The hours you've spent, choices you've made, causes you've followed and fought for boil down to one moment–a choice. Do you stand with Markus, or Connor? I remember my first experience playing this game, and seeing that simple question pop up on the screen felt surreal. How was I supposed to choose?  That feeling is a level of immersivity that I truly believe is unique to games as a literature medium. Not the ability to make choices, not even the actions themselves, but the fact that they held consequences . The hero will live or die by the end of his adventure. No matter what you do, that fact is unchanging. The main characters of the rom-com will fall in love no matter how you watch. The pages of the book, the script, and the play are printed and will not change. Now put the fearless knight in the palm of your hand, his life now yours . The love interest asks you a question, and now you  must give a response. To be kind or merciless, say yes or  no, to save or abandon, questions that need your answers.  Ultimatums are no longer a spectator sport in the realm of video games. The security we often find in storytelling is gone. Now replaced with a new way to step inside the plot, making it unique to each and every player.  In recent years, appreciation for games as a literary art form has increased. Finally beginning to break the misconceptions that games are mindless fun, substanceless or simply a pass-time. Games have begun to shine alongside their storytelling counterparts. Their ability to not only use our minds, but also our senses to create a unique experience that challenges and utilizes our emotions, expectations, and morals makes them one of the most versatile and under-appreciated media forms in modern-day narratives.

by Lily If you’ve been involved with the more academic side of the internet in the past decade, you are likely to have encountered some mention of the elusive and controversial Oxford comma. However, there is also a good chance you haven’t encountered an actual explanation as to why teenagers on the internet will defend it until their dying days, nor why some think it is clunky, dogmatic, and allows for slopier writing. What it is Sometimes called the serial comma or the Harvard comma, the Oxford comma is an article of punctuation placed before a coordinating conjunction (usually ‘and’) in a list of three or more items. For example: “My favorite books are Percy Jackson, The Hunger Games, and Harry Potter.” In the AP style guide, it is only used to add clarity to an otherwise confusing sentence such as, “Harry went to visit his parents, Dumbledore and McGonagall”, without the Oxford comma this sentence seems to say that Dumbledore and McGonagall are Harry’s parents. Horace Hart, controller of the Oxford University Press from 1893-1915, has been credited with introducing the comma in his style guide for workers at the press, though it was without a name until the late 1970s when Peter Sutcliff referred to the Oxford Comma in his book, The Oxford University Press: An Informal History. In this book, Sutcliff credits another author, F. Howard Collins, with the introduction of the Oxford Comma. Why use it In all honesty, whether you choose to use the Oxford comma in your personal writing is entirely up to you and what style guide you follow. It isn’t really grammatically correct to use it nor is it wrong to. Despite this, there have been a few situations where a missing Oxford comma has caused a great deal of trouble. The most notable one being a real-life legal dispute that resulted in a 5-million-dollar lawsuit. In 2017, three delivery drivers for a Maine dairy company filed a lawsuit for missing overtime wages. Maine law at the time stated that overtime payment protections did not apply to: “The canning, processing, preserving, freezing, drying, marketing, storing, packing for shipment or distribution of: (1) Agricultural produce; (2) Meat and fish products; and (3) Perishable foods.”, the important phrase here being “packing for shipment or distribution.” Delivery drivers worked in “distribution” but not “packing.” It was unclear whether “packing for shipment” was listed separately from “distribution,” and if they were not intended to be read separately, then delivery drivers would be entitled to overtime pay. Had an Oxford comma been used, there would have been no room for confusion. This seemingly small oversight led the United States Court of Appeals to rule in favor of the drivers who would be awarded a $5,000,000 settlement! For both the drivers and all the Oxford comma enthusiasts around the world, this case was a major victory. The use of the serial, Oxford, or Harvard comma is still entirely up to you, and I can’t tell you whether to use it or not. But where clarity and accessibility are concerned, if you forget your Oxford comma, you may find yourself paying a $5,000,000 settlement.

by Alin Sengjaroen “There is a minor crisis . Yet the only thing you can do is write in deafening silence . Suddenly, you realize that your handwriting is pretty ugly . Still, it’s calming to write away about the living dead  or the dead living .” There they are, oxymorons, one of the literary devices that writers use subconsciously. Not to be confused with paradoxes or irony, oxymorons are created when two contradicting words are combined to create an interesting contrast. Sometimes they’re both nouns or one adjective and one noun, and so on. Oxymorons are special since they are not exclusive to just literary works. We regularly use them in conversations whether online or offline. You’ve probably heard of the term love-hate relationships  or bittersweet . But first, how does that make any sense, and second, how do they improve our writing? THE DIMENSIONS OF OXYMORONS As stated, outside of writing, oxymorons are also used in daily conversations. Oftentimes, politicians use oxymorons as a way to persuade their audience. Since oxymorons are usually two contradicting words paired with each other – sometimes in ways you’d never expect -it encourages the listener or reader to stop and analyze the true meaning of the oxymoron. Phrases like “peaceful revolution” are often used by politicians. They are also used to present irony, which sparks the listener’s attention to rethinking what a “peaceful revolution” would be like. Oxymorons present words in a new manner that the audience would not expect and take them by surprise. One of the main qualities of a politician is to possess the ability to lure the audience in with a single speech. They will use a mixture of paradoxes and oxymorons so the listeners will both take in the facts and be curious enough to reflect on their words–during and after the speech is given.  The jarring difference between oxymorons and paradoxes is that paradoxes are concepts that logically make sense. For instance, “the only constant is change” means that change is the only thing happening all the time. Logically, it makes sense but for oxymorons like “living dead,” which if one is dead, one can’t be considered a living thing; therefore, rendering the phrase illogical, yet it adds a hint of intrigue as you take the reader by surprise. In a nutshell, oxymorons are a stylistic choice, while paradoxes can be used as motivational phrases.  Using oxymorons also indicates that the person speaking has an advanced grasp of the English language. Politicians need to display their skills and knowledge to be believable; hence, oxymorons are a way to show their linguistic proficiency. However, excessive use of this literary device can confuse the listeners and drift away from the main point. A question is then proposed: How often should we, writers (and maybe soon-to-be politicians), use oxymorons? WHAT IS THE RECOMMENDED AMOUNT OF OXYMORONS? Frankly, there is no strict rule as to how many oxymorons can you use in a paragraph. But we must be aware of the impacts and use them accordingly to create an effect that takes the reader by surprise. To summarize, oxymorons are used for dramatizing, irony, specific descriptions, and sarcasm.  Using oxymorons in critical moments lets the readers linger on the message of the line like in endings. Not to mention, using them for first-liners will hook the readers in, especially when the oxymoron is unique. In descriptions, they will enhance the readers’ imagination and provide you to describe a specific feeling or object. For example, the word “bittersweet” describes the feeling of pleasure followed by a bitter aftertaste (feelings of regret afterward) which no other word can specifically indicate.  However, you should be aware that overusing oxymorons can reduce clarity and coherence. Yes, use them in every sentence. There’s no rule against that. But keep in mind that it may make the paragraph much harder to understand and follow through.  My recommendation would be the following: For poems, I usually use a variety of oxymorons at the end and in the middle. Since endings in poems are incredibly impactful, using this literary device can dramatize and therefore, elevate the “punch to the gut” feeling. For fiction, I often use oxymorons when it comes to descriptions and dialogues. As I stated, oxymorons are common in our everyday conversation, using these would show that the character has a lot of control over the language and a high level of English proficiency. This is especially helpful when you want to write a character who is good at linguistics. However, keep in mind to avoid using them in every dialogue as it can get cliche.  HOW DO THEY HELP YOUR WRITER’S BLOCK? Oxymorons can be used as prompts to counter that writer’s/creative block. There are hundreds of websites showing unique and common ones that you can steal: “small crowd”, “seriously funny”, “silent scream”, “old news”, and so on. Using these combinations as a story prompt can bring out those creative juices. Not to mention, you’ve learned something new today about oxymorons so why don’t you try it out after finishing this article? Besides that, you may also create your own oxymoron and use it as the first liner or the end of the story. Or write a poem that has at least one oxymoron in every line. Creating a challenge for yourself is a good way to get out of that writing slump. You can experiment with styles and find what’s best for you.  Regardless, oxymorons aren’t the ultimate cure for writer’s block. If the problem is caused by a lack of creative ideas then oxymorons can help you. Anything besides that means you should take a break until you’re ready to write again.  In conclusion, the oxymoron is a literary device that you can try when you’re stuck at writing. It can create dramatic moments, suspense, or even irony. Try not to overuse them too much and be aware of the situations you want to use them. Happy writing! Citations Abbood, None Husam Ahmed. “The Power of Oxymoron: An Analytical Study of Oxymoron in Political Speeches.” The Creative Launcher , vol. 8, no. 5, Oct. 2023, pp. 151–67. https://doi.org/10.53032/tcl.2023.8.5.15 .

by Skylar Edwards Starting out as a writer can be daunting. You might feel as if you’ve been thrown out into the ocean without a life vest or you’re climbing a never-ending mountain. Maybe you don’t know what to write, or maybe you don’t know what defines great writing. Feelings of doubt may persist, but that’s because you don’t have enough information about how to utilize writing as a career-starter. It doesn’t have to be so challenging. Here are some tips on how to begin a career as a new writer.   Reading Your first step as a new writer will be to read. Reading will aid you by introducing you to syntax, imagery, and genres. Subject-verb agreement, sentence structure, and grammar are all skills necessary to be a good writer. If you are a current reader, reading will help you to sharpen these skills. Reading will also get your creative juices flowing; as you read, you are inspired. As a current or new reader, your vocabulary will be expanded. Likewise, learning how different writers use different strategies is necessary. For example, some writers heavily utilize ‘I’, some may not. Some writers may simply describe a scene, whereas some may solely reflect. It is important to know how different writers communicate with the reader so you can effectively communicate with your reader.  Various genres show you various techniques. For example, you won’t learn the same lessons from a thriller novel as you would from a blog post. Reading blog posts can show you how to write for an audience, while a thriller novel will show you how to build suspense. Reading allows you to see how syntax works in different way, you can understand what you enjoy the most, and you can find what literary genre you’re most comfortable writing in. These genres include fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and even technical writing. Allowing yourself to become comfortable with distinct types of writing will serve you when it is time to choose a specific genre to write in.  Getting Practice As the adage goes, “practice makes perfect”. To improve, one must set aside time to write. Whether fifteen minutes, thirty, or an hour, practicing allows you to get into the habit of writing. The key to good practice is to be patient with yourself. Improvement is not a steady uphill climb, instead it will be more like a twisty road that may loop around. Practice can come in many forms. You can just write what comes to mind, or you can write whatever you feel needs to be written. You could even start out by creating drabbles. Drabbles are pieces of writing that are only a hundred words long. If you’ve had an idea, drabbles can help you put that on paper. Drabbling can also serve as a warm up for a larger piece of writing. Practicing for different genres of writing can equip you with different skills. When you write fiction, you may focus more on crafting a narrator and formatting dialogue. If you write poetry, you practice creating rhythm with syllables and perfecting tone. All that matters is that you are consistent and practicing in a manner that will guarantee improvement. As for practicing a genre, study and emulate what your favorite author/novel did. After, apply what you learn to your writing. Finding Criticism Solo practice can only improve your writing to a certain extent. As we write and edit our work, some mistakes will escape our attention. We won’t always see our faults. That’s why it’s important to receive feedback as it helps you see your work from another perspective. Literary magazines and journals are another way to receive feedback; many offer edits and feedback for free. Rejection is not the end of the road, and it shouldn’t discourage you. Take the feedback and turn it into something powerful; it is serving you by showing how you can create improved works. It is simply another opportunity to learn about your craft.  Building a Portfolio As a writer, it is imperative that you keep a record of your work. If you are looking to establish yourself in the writing industry, portfolios are integral. To begin, you can start by submitting work like essays, poems, blog content, or short stories to literary magazines and journals. Submitting work enables you to network with other writers and editors. Rewrite the Stars’ submission windows are open in September, December, March, and June. Writing contests are also a good way to build a reputation. A good portfolio has a range of genres included to show how experienced you are. There are a range of websites available to organize your portfolio in one place. These websites include Wordpress, Wix, and Contently. In addition, organizing a portfolio can be as simple as keeping your writing samples in a Google Docs folder.  Choosing a Career The question to ask yourself is: What do you want to make out of writing? Many new writers dream of writing the next bestseller. If you want to start publishing, you need to research literary agents that specialize in your genre of writing. Agents help you with navigating through publishers, finding book deals, and understanding contracts. If you would like to be independent, you can self-publish. The act of writing allows you an opportunity to market yourself to many different job sectors. You can branch off into writing grants, tech writing, or by taking the skills you used in writing and applying it to an unrelated job. The choice is completely up to you.  Beginning as a new writer can be challenging and frustrating at times, but every author started out uninformed. By reading all types of writing, practicing consistently, reflecting on feedback, and building a strong portfolio, you’ll develop the skills and mindset needed to become a great writer. Regardless of what career path you choose, the key to succeeding is to stay passionate and to constantly improve.

by Varshha Rewrite The Stars Review turned two on September 1st, 2024! In celebration, we held a Slam Poetry Competition on August 31st over Google Meet. Each of the 20 young and talented writers were given twenty minutes to compose a poem based on five prompts inspired by the five issues RTS has published. When the timer was up, they all read aloud their poems and voted on a winner via Google Form. With all the votes in, Rewrite the Stars Review are proud to announce our two winners: Shivi Sharma and d.liu! Shivi (@feralembers) The world is on fire, I'm dying and these are my seven minutes:  I was six when I first ran away from home. I've always been running since then, the land of fire, I've always been obsessed with it.  I was seven when I felt how it truly feels to cut your arms and let the blood exit you like everyone else would do like it's water. I was a people pleaser.  I was eight when I first understood the difference between loneliness and being alone. The people on TV are the ones who decided what my feelings meant. I found it funny.  I was nine when I stayed alone for the first time. It didn't feel scary. It felt the same, I don't know how to explain it.  I was ten when I stopped living in the moment and so I barely have memories left inside of me.  I was eleven when I first wrote about women empowerment knowing very well that I was my worst enemy, I still am and I don't think I'd ever be able to change that.  They started calling me "ember".  Most people never understood why.  I was twelve when I first thought of dying. I've thought of death before but never with so much passion that I'd want to experiment with it.  I was thirteen when they told me that I'm not enough. It didn't hurt because I'd been saying that to myself for years.  I've always been half girl, half metaphor. Bio: Shivi Sharma from Delhi, India is living under water (not rock, water). Partially because she likes to call herself spongebob or kiwi. Considering the fact that she's a water sign, she thinks that being one keeps you hydrated enough. She loves watching Suits or Gilmore Girls on repeat. You can find her being (in)sane @feralembers on Instagram where she occasionally posts her work (which is either all at once or after months) What the artist had to say about the piece:   Okay, so I’m being completely honest, there's a part of me that hates every single second of my childhood. I genuinely don't know why but it exists and there's nothing I can do to change that. The piece is more of a confession than a prose poem because (secret, i've done half of those things) and also that I was never even planning to participate, partly because i'm stuck in writer's block (again) and i just wanted to say hi to the RTS team who were hosting it :((  Also, hi others, i'm just a girl and I promise writer’s block won't kill you. Ara I love how linear and organized this is, yet at the same time very raw and personal. It’s incredible that something like this could be created out of the top of your head. The last line is very powerful and wraps up the piece beautifully. I also love the fire metaphor at the start, and “ember” at the end, although I think the inclusion of even more fire metaphors would make this overall stronger. I also think that the usage of more description would be useful in letting us really empathize with the character, especially descriptions that use the five senses/physical stimuli. Aashi To start off, I LOVE the inspiration and motive behind this piece. I feel like it personally connects with me a little bit so I genuinely can feel the passion. However, there are some notes I have made to help out on the execution. The first one is consistency. At the start of the piece, there was a chronic usage of short fragments to set a flow in your writing, rather than transitioning terms. Though near the end there were a couple sentences that used transitioning terms. I’m not sure if this was intentional but as a reader I can connect better with your piece when it feels to me like you’re consistent and write it as a whole. An example of my comment is when you said "I was ten when I stopped living in the moment and so  I barely have memories left inside of me." Instead of that, to keep your flow, you can split it into two different phrases. Additionally, I noticed some spots where commas could be used. Make sure to use proper grammar and usage of conventions! Lastly, I LOVED THE LAST LINE. It finished off the entire piece with such a strong tone. Genuinely, this is by far one of my favourite pieces i’ve read at RTS, and with improvement you could make it the BEST! I’m so proud of you Shivi!  D.Liu crimson wood watch the kaleidoscope shatter, melting through the tips of my scarred fingers watch me trace your silhouette with white ink, blurs of happiness severed by the machete of time. my heartbeat reverberates at the edges of my ears until it replicates somber tinnitus  ba-dum, ba-dum, it hurts, my heart,  breathe in, breathe in until i grasp the intangible to hold tightly  in my cusped hands until i hone my arms into an axe squeeze my veins for crimson and acrylic to paint a paradise for you but you merely glance at my slitted scarred skin you stand, motionless, as we play cup telephone, i whisper what is and you hear what was i love you, i say i love you, you hear but it is not the same. so watch my tears drip gasoline to light your shirt aflame. Bio: d. liu is a rising junior who is an avid writer, but even more so, an avid wanderer, feeler, and explorer. she enjoys being out and about, connecting with people, and exploring the world. What the artist had to say about the piece:   I really enjoyed the prompts at the slam poetry event. There were a lot, and what was special about them was that they were extremely detailed, so naturally it helped me with visualising imagery. I went with the flow and just carried my thoughts into words, which crafted my poem! Ara This is such a beautiful piece, with a wide and masterfully used vocabulary. I’m very impressed with the creative metaphors, especially the ones about cup telephone and gasoline tears burning the shirt. Each line is unique and feels fresh. However, I think the piece would feel overall more cohesive if there was some kind of tie between the metaphors, or a repeated metaphor/structure/line. It would help with consistency and organization, which is something difficult to balance in slam poetry. Aashi The first thing I noticed when I started off with reading your piece was the capitalization. There was none at the start of any fragment. Now before you take this in a negative connotation, I loved it. You consistently kept using lowercase and even if this wasn’t intentional, one thing I love to see in poetry or prose is CONSISTENCY. It also added a little character to your piece, small things go a long way. As much as I sensed so much emotion in this writing, there is something I wanted to suggest. For the reader or the listener to connect better with your piece they need some sort of context. You added an array of metaphors but you didn’t give that much context of the situation. This does leave a lot to the imagination of the audience but to ensure that your character and piece is being represented correctly, I'd recommend adding some more context. Overall, it’s awesome, nice work! In conclusion, the Slam Poetry Competition was certainly engaging and fun. We extend our deepest gratitude to all the poets who shared their profound words and their unwavering support. We have witnessed the power of poetry to connect, inspire, and transform. Let us carry these moments with us, and continue to celebrate the art of spoken word. Be on the lookout for more such events soon! Stay in the loop by following our instagram or checking our website for updates!

by Dhwani V Phuria A government is one of the most important aspects of worldbuilding, especially if you want to create a nation or a world from scratch. So, shouldn't they get the variety they deserve? Fantasy books have a tendency to adhere towards a monarchy. Dystopian books, on the other hand, prefer an 'evil' or controlling governments for our protagonists to overthrow. This is, naturally, not the rule, as there are plenty of books depicting different types of governments, but, isn't monarchy, a political system revolving around one person or dynasty's sovereignty, the first thing that comes to our mind? Yet, after a point, this gets quite repetitive, and governments can be far more interesting than that. Let's say, there is a monarchy in your story. I would ask you, what kind of monarchy? There is an absolute monarchy, where the ruler's word is law, and going against it is suicide — also a very interesting premise if you want to try your hand at a dystopian novel. There is ceremonial monarchy, which is the current case for most countries with royals, for example, today, the role of the very well-known British monarchy is only ceremonial in practice. The ruler is little more than a figurehead in this case, and instead, parliament rules the kingdom. For some time in Japan, there had been what we could call a puppet monarchy: a specific clan controlled everything the emperor did. Already, we have gone much further than simply 'royalty'. With this monarchy could come rules, of which those considering inheritance are often our first priority. There is the European precedent of patriarchy — kings and princes in power. A precedent for a matriarchy? In this case, the African Rain Queens of the Balobedu tribe are your answer. Then, of course, we can go to empires which do not end at royalty either. There was the Persian Empire, where the emperor ruled from the capital, but had provinces divided into 'satrapies', handled by satraps — trust me, controlling an area that huge by yourself from one little city? It would be a complete disaster. Next on the list, we come to republics. Officially, a republic means power is in the hands of the people, and they can elect a president or prime minister, and so on. Unofficially, it is a lot more complicated — which makes it a lot more interesting for writing purposes! Most fascist powers stem from the ashes of what was supposed to be a republic. Mussolini became Prime Minister of Italy before he turned into the dictator, although that could quite possibly have been the goal all along. Hitler was appointed Chancellor of Germany in the 1933 elections, at that point considered simply a charismatic politician before he became the Nazi dictator of Germany and the countries that his army annexed. Scary, isn't it? That the republic and freedom you're so used to can easily become a dictatorship? Plus, it's much more realistic in a dystopian sense than the vague 'they overthrew the old system to take power'. Consider communism. Its most well-known example would be the Soviet Union, or the USSR: Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. It called itself a 'republic', but one-party elections and no freedom of speech tell a different story. The fact is, the idea of communism was born from the ideology that those of the working class were being exploited by the ruling class, and that wealth should be redistributed so everyone is on equal footing. Doesn't sound so bad, does it? This is the same ideology that got twisted to the point where it led to a one-party government that would be more suited to being called something akin to a dictatorship, where any form of opposition to the Party could get you in prison or even forced labour camps (gulags), and where the press was controlled to the dot9. Yet, many citizens believed, truly believed, that this way of life was superior, most higher-up officials among them. Remember this: your government will always be infinitely more dangerous when those in power genuinely believe that they are doing the right thing. Finally, we come to today's most common governments. Genuine republics with multiple political parties and regular elections, with freedom of press and freedom of speech. This, one might say, is not as fun to use in your writing —– everything is fine, isn't it? This would never serve any conflict in your storyline, and more importantly, it is highly unrealistic in practice. Well, for one, freedom of press does not mean you can't get swept up in propaganda and smear campaigns. It does not mean that there is no misinformation circulating on purpose to serve political parties. Freedom of speech does not mean citizens can get away with saying anything. It most certainly does not mean that everything is 'fine', because if you want to write a realistic government, it must have flaws. This is not to say that it will turn evil or that corruption must be everywhere, simply that a utopian government makes little sense. The worst of regimes can be made with what its administration believes are good intentions. It is much more terrifying, realistic and impactful, which is why I would suggest to fellow writers to write fictional governments that way. In much the same sense, the best of governments cannot be absolute perfection. All of this ultimately helps create a more concrete government in your work, which then helps in many other aspects of worldbuilding. The regime determines key aspects of life in that state, and a vague sense of management cannot truly provide for all that a well-thought out fictional government offers. There is a reason that the Capitol from the Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, or the Party from 1984 by George Orwell are so relevant in literature today: they present to you well-rounded governments, with its many facets, that shape the characters' lives, and though they are fictional, their parallels to real life engages readers with the story. Citations Sagers, John H. “Power, Legitimacy, and the Japanese Emperor.” Association for Asian Studies, 1 June 2023, www.asianstudies.org/publications/eaa/archives/power-legitimacy-and-the-japanese-emperor/. Harris, Mia. “The Real-Life South African Rain Queens Who Inspired Marvel’s Storm - The Black History Girl Blog.” The Black History Girl Blog - - Your Source for All Things Black History -, 21 May 2024, theblackhistorygirl.com/the-real-life-south-african-rain-queens-who-inspired-marvels-storm/. “Satrap.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., www.britannica.com/topic/satrap. Accessed 21 July 2024. “Benito Mussolini Declares Himself Dictator of Italy.” History.Com, A&E Television Networks, www.history.com/this-day-in-history/benito-mussolini-declares-himself-dictator-of-italy. Accessed 21 July 2024. “Germany 1933: From Democracy to Dictatorship.” Anne Frank Website, www.annefrank.org/en/anne-frank/go-in-depth/germany-1933-democracy-dictatorship/. Accessed 21 July 2024. Team, The Investopedia. “Marxism: What It Is and Comparison to Communism, Socialism, and Capitalism.” Investopedia, Investopedia, www.investopedia.com/terms/m/marxism.asp. Accessed 21 July 2024. “Soviet.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., www.britannica.com/topic/soviet-government-unit. Accessed 21 July 2024. “Soviet Union - Countries, Cold War & Collapse.” History.Com, A&E Television Networks, www.history.com/topics/european-history/history-of-the-soviet-union. Accessed 21 July 2024. Lauk, Epp. “Practice of Soviet Censorship in the Press.” Nordicom, www.nordicom.gu.se/sites/default/files/kapitel-pdf/37_lauk.pdf. Accessed 21 July 2024.

by Carina Our 9th issue: Welcome To Wonderland, welcomes you to put away your worries for a night as you partake in the revelry surrounding you . We want you to 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. We understand that deciding on what to write can be difficult, so we are providing a list of quotes to inspire your writing. These quotes will reflect themes of carnivals, circuses, amusement and everything in between. “Life is like a carousel, it will keep going round with or without you. So hold on for your dear life.” - J.S “Reaching for the moon on a Ferris wheel, dizzy as a bat.” - Richard Vallance “Ladies and gents, this is the moment you’ve waited for.” - The Greatest Show by Panic! At The Disco “Follow what feels good and enjoy the ride.” - Annmarie Molina “The proper order of things is often a mystery to me.” - Cheshire Cat “Your body is not a temple, it’s an amusement park. Enjoy the ride.” - Anthony Bourdain “Always be on the lookout for the presence of wonder.” - E.B. White “Never underestimate the importance of having fun.” - Randy Pausch “Every adventure requires a first step.” - Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll “Sometimes you will never know the value of a moment until it becomes a memory.” - Dr. Seuss “How puzzling all these changes are! I’m never sure what I’m going to be, from one minute to another.” - Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll “Life is like a Ferris wheel, sometimes you are up, sometimes you are down, but all you need to do is to learn how to enjoy the ride.” - Unknown We hope this helped get your creative juices flowing and inspired your writing. Issue IX submissions will be open from September 01 to October 01. Follow us on Instagram ( @rewritethestarsreview ) or check out our website to learn more about Issue IX! Follow the writer @claywithcar for more!

by Prisha Mehta Welcome to the world of Bones, where the dead talk (metaphorically, of course), and the living squabble, flirt, and occasionally solve some murders. Running from 2005 to 2017, Bones is the show that took forensic anthropology and made it as entertaining as a soap opera, minus the melodrama but with more decomposed bodies. If you’re looking for a show where the science is as quirky as the characters, where bones can tell you everything except the meaning of life, and where the most romantic thing you can say to your partner is, “Pass me that skull,” then you’ve found your binge-worthy crime drama. Set in Washington D.C., this show specialises in forensic anthropology, which is the study of bones. The dynamic duo of forensic anthropologist Dr. Brennan and FBI special agent Booth solve homicides with the help of “bones”. “Bones”, a Jeffersonian team,( a fictional government institute for science as well as a museum) is composed of a coroner, everchanging interns, an artist and nature expert (in simple terms), and an FBI psychologist. This team uncovers stories of victims using mainly bones which reveals secrets that flesh and memory may have long forgotten. From the moment Dr. Brennan and her team examine the remains, they begin to unravel the life of the deceased, piecing together not just how they died, but who they were, whole and soul. Each fracture, mark, and anomaly on the bones speaks to the victim's experiences, struggles, and ultimately, their final moments. With the help of Dr. Brennan’s many interns, they masterfully turn these skeletal clues into a narrative that honours the life of the victim, even as it seeks to bring their killer to justice. By doing so, the series reminds us that every person has a story, and sometimes it’s the bones that tell it best. Apart from bones, shreds and minute details from the victim are taken and examined showcasing how the location of the murder is different from where the body was found or just where the victim was before dying. How Dr. Hodgins, the forensic entomologist, performs experiments that brilliantly and creatively recreate the scene of murder using just the leaves on the victim’s shoes or dirt found at the crime scene.His passion for bugs and slime may seem very eccentric, but his findings are crucial to solving the case, in many cases when bones can’t help his ideas shine through. Characters like Angela Montenegro and Dr. Camille Saroyan add further layers to this emotional depth. Angela, the forensic artist, and Brennan’s best friend, brings a creative and empathetic perspective to the team. She uses her artistic skills to reconstruct faces, create crime scene simulations, and even reveal what victims might have looked like in life. But Angela is more than just a technical expert; she’s the heart of the lab, often serving as the emotional glue that holds everyone together. Her ability to connect with people, both the living and the dead, provides a human touch that balances the cold, hard facts of forensic science. Dr. Camille Saroyan, or “Cam,” as she’s often called, is the head of the forensic division. She’s a strong, no-nonsense leader who is responsible for keeping the team focused and the lab running smoothly. Cam’s role is essential, as she not only oversees the scientific work but also navigates the complex dynamic of her team. Her character shows the struggle of maintaining professionalism while caring deeply about the people she works with, making her a relatable and grounded presence in the series. The show doesn’t just stop at the science; it goes further to explore the human side of crime-solving. It not only shows the forensic part of the murder but delves deep into a psyche of a person, both the killers and the entire team. It tackles a wide range of topics, from the ethical dilemmas in forensic work to the emotional toll that solving murders can take on those who do it day in and day out. This depth is what makes the show not just a procedural, but a story about life, death, and everything in between. Solving murders is not just about the thrill of the chase or the satisfaction of catching the bad guy—it’s about dealing with the heavy weight of death, loss, and justice. Sometimes coming to terms with your or someone close to you’s actions. Bones remains a must-watch for fans of crime dramas with heart. The show’s blend of forensic science, character-driven storytelling, and humour makes it stand out in a crowded genre. The character's development albeit slow is one to follow, and their relationships evolve in meaningful ways over the course of the series. Whether you’re drawn to the science, the mysteries, or the relationships, Bones offers something for everyone. In the end, Bones is more than just a procedural; it’s a show about people, their connections, and the ways they navigate life’s challenges. The journey of Brennan, Booth, and their colleagues is one filled with laughter, tears, and plenty of dead bodies, but it’s the relationships that will keep you coming back. So, if you’re in the mood for a crime drama that’s equal parts brain and heart, Bones is well worth your time.

by Ranya Najeeb Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication. - Leonardo da Vinci In a world awash with complexity and information, simplicity shines as a beacon of clarity and elegance. Minimalist literature strips away the superfluous to reveal the core of human experience, inviting readers to find meaning in what is left unsaid. This approach challenges writers to distill emotions and ideas to their essence, creating narratives that are both striking and profound. In this way, minimalism demonstrates that in literature as in life, less can indeed be more. Minimalist literature excels in subtlety and suggestion, eschewing explicit detail for the power of implication. Writers in this style emphasize essential elements that evoke rich imagery and emotional depth. By leaving much unsaid, minimalism encourages readers to engage actively with the text, filling in gaps with their own interpretations and feelings. This dynamic interplay deepens the reader's connection with the themes and characters, enhancing the overall experience. Minimalism also influences literary structure by emphasizing brevity and precision. Writers often employ fragmented or non-linear storytelling to mirror the complexities of modern life. This approach immerses readers, inviting them to explore the narrative's deliberate gaps and pauses. As a result, stories become more than mere text; they are experienced, allowing readers to piece together the narrative in ways that resonate with their own perspectives and emotions. The beauty of minimalism in literature lies in its capacity to convey profound themes with striking simplicity. By eliminating excess, minimalist writers focus on essential aspects of the human experience - such as isolation, identity, and longing. This streamlined approach invites readers to engage deeply with the core elements of the narrative, resulting in a more intense and personal exploration of these themes. Although minimal in detail, such stories are rich in emotional and intellectual depth, demonstrating that less can indeed evoke more. Examples of minimalist literature showcase its profound impact. Ernest Hemingway’s ‘The Old Man and the Sea features sparse prose and rich symbolism, delving into themes of struggle and perseverance. Raymond Carver’s What We Talk About When We Talk About Love exemplifies minimalism with its unadorned language and focus on the subtleties of human relationships. Similarly, Cormac McCarthy’s The Road uses minimalist prose to present a stark and haunting depiction of a post-apocalyptic world and the deep bond between father and son. These works, through their restraint and precision, demonstrate how minimalism can achieve remarkable emotional and thematic depth. Ultimately, minimalism in literature invites both writers and readers to embrace the power of restraint. For writers, it requires precision in creating sentences and scenes that are both concise and evocative. For readers, it demands active engagement, as they interpret and find meaning in what is left unsaid. This interplay enriches the literary experience, making minimalism more than a style - it becomes a profound method of storytelling that resonates deeply with our quest for clarity and depth in a complex world. Minimalism's influence reaches far beyond traditional literature, reshaping contemporary media and genres. In film, for instance, minimalist techniques craft striking visual and emotional experiences through sparse dialogue and evocative imagery. This approach also breathes new life into digital platforms and short-form content, where brevity and impact are key. As media continues to evolve, minimalism offers fresh insights into how storytelling can be both concise and deeply resonant, proving that sometimes, the most profound stories are those that embrace simplicity. In the end, simplicity is the key to brilliance. - Bruce Lee

by Shreya Looking through social media nowadays, there are dozens of lit mags founded by teens cropping up. It’s a great way to give a platform to a topic you’re passionate about, and it's a fun extracurricular too. Starting a lit mag is not so easy; it requires a lot of work and dedication, and  may be overwhelming and confusing. So, here's a guide on how to start your own lit mag that can hopefully help make the process easier! Step 1: Find Your Purpose Determine Your Mission : Why do you want to start this literary magazine? Are you aiming to showcase emerging writers, focus on a specific genre, or create a platform for underrepresented voices? Define what you want your magazine to achieve. Step 2: Choose a Name and Create a Visual Identity Pick a Name : Choose a name that is interesting and reflects the magazine’s purpose. Design Your Brand : Develop a visual identity including a color palette and logo. This should align with your magazine’s theme and help create a cohesive look for cover design, typography, and layout. Step 3: Establish a Social Media Presence Create Accounts : Set up social media profiles on platforms like Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. This will help with advertising, marketing, and engaging with your audience. Regularly update these accounts to increase exposure and interaction. It is also important to interact with other literary magazines and collaborate with them on posts,reels, or other projects. Reels work better with instagram algorithms therefore post more reels than posts. Remember to stay intune with latest trends to make your posts and reels more visible to the algorithm. Step 4: Assemble a Team Build Your Crew : A literary magazine is a team effort. Recruit dedicated individuals for various roles such as writers, graphic designers, editors, and social media managers. A strong team will help manage the workload and bring diverse skills to the project. It is important to create a head which helps you immensely as the pressure of checking up on your teammates will be reduced. Graphic designers and editors are the two most vital components for the crew. A strong graphics team and editors will result in successful and creative endeavors and projects. Step 5: Create a Website Go Professional : Launch a website to enhance your magazine’s professionalism. It should include information about the magazine, submission guidelines, and a platform for accessing current and past issues. This will also serve as a central hub for your operations. You can also list your magazine in Chill Subs, and in Submittable to make the submission process to your magazine easier. Step 6: Release Your First Issue Plan and Execute : Decide on a theme for your first issue, create submission guidelines, and begin advertising. Collect and edit submissions, then put together your issue. Make sure to promote the launch to maximize visibility. Step 7: Improve and Evolve Gather Feedback : After releasing your first issue, assess the response. Review feedback and analyze what worked and what could be improved. Adjust your approach based on audience reactions and consider reaching out to other literary magazines for advice. Step 8: Keep It Engaging Maintain Interest : Don’t just focus on releasing issues. Organize additional activities like writing contests, interviews with authors, or virtual readings. These activities will help engage your audience and increase readership. This guide will hopefully help you navigate the complexities of starting and running a literary magazine while keeping the process manageable and enjoyable. Make sure to take it slow and stick to your purpose.  Good luck with your literary venture!

Since we released issue viii: the human experience a few days ago, we've received a PHENOMENAL response from the literary and artistic community. We're hearing about what these stories mean to you and your own human experiences. We wanted to give you guys more of an inside look into what the contributors of issue viii were thinking when they created their pieces so we asked them to talk more about their process and inspiration. Read on to see what they have to say! POETRY Just Talk - A.C. Sandglass (@ac.sandglass) I explore several key aspects of the human experience through the focus on communication. I convey how talking allows humans to forge relationships and gain a sense of identity, as well as the endless possibilities that arise from the simple act of using one’s voice, which is something that everyone is born with. At its core, I present how talking is fundamental to human expression. What inspired me to write this one day was the very fact that people would maintain closer and valuable connections if they’d just sit down and have an honest heart to heart conversation (especially in difficult times). It proves to show how communication and the voicing of one’s thoughts can go a long way. who? me? - Aleeza Aneel (@leezeey._) When I write something bad, I know it is bad. I will internalize the fact that it is bad. When I write something bad, I am a bad writer. Yet when I write something good, I have never had the audacity to call myself a good writer. We are critical beings as humans. There is nothing more human than the creative process and all of its ugly sides. This piece takes that very human feeling of imposter syndrome and tries to put it into words. I describe this poem as the poem I've had the most fun writing. I'm not very sure it is even a good poem which may as well be the point of the piece. If you tried to do a literary analysis on it, I don't think you'd get very far in uncovering some hidden complexities. I needed to find this poem to see the joy in writing, a joy so easily and so often lost. The human experience of the creation of art without practical purpose is the most human thing of all. This poem is an exploration of how we create. Beautiful and Human - Alexys K. (@whodoesntluvlex) It is about an experience of mine with another human in which we directly spoke about what it means to be human and the word's significance. It's from my own experience with a boy I grew quite close with and the best compliment I could give him was "you're so human" because it was so true. He was human. and I think that's what made him beautiful. I think all humans are beautiful. but they are flawed, and imperfect, and human, and beautiful, all at once. It's a delicate balance really. Approximation of Latin American - Angela Acosta (@aaperiquito) Sometimes we grow up surrounded by the culture(s) of our ancestry, and other times we spend our childhood looking for signs of its very existence. This piece reflects on my journey to learn the Spanish language and how I have gone from looking at my Mexican American culture as an “outsider” to becoming a young adult who is well acquainted with Latin American cultures on a personal and academic level. I am a multi-ethnic Mexican American writer from Florida who did not grow up speaking Spanish or learning about my Latin American heritage. I began learning Spanish in school and was encouraged to major in Spanish in college thanks to the support of amazing mentors and teachers. From there, I continued my travels and studies and now teach Spanish at the college level. I strive to foster a supportive, multicultural and multilingual environment in my classroom and I believe the themes of bilingualism, embarrassment, and learning one's culture are formative aspects of being an adolescent and young adult. Unexpected Transmission - Asad R. (@unfurledtalons) The piece is definitely up to interpretation. It essentially imagines how destructive some ties can be. And those ties are what make us human. When they’re tainted, the rottenness manifests one way or the other. What Day Is It? - Aunezti Burk (@aunezti_burkk) I wrote this piece about processing time as it moves ahead of us and the idea of getting so lost within life that time becomes fabricated and unmeasurable. I thought this was fitting to the human experience since it plays with philosophical concepts of time, whether it’s real, and how we fit into it as humans. This piece was inspired by the freedom and lack of structure that summer brings me without the existence of school. I wanted to write something that depicted how late nights and boredom can easily distort our perception of time and reality. Vessel - Aurora Skye (@lydia_auroraskye) It is about feeling detached from your body and the sex you were assigned with at birth. It is about your sex not defining you, and your personality and who you are mattering more. This has been integral to my human experience, and something many teens grapple with. My experiences with realising that I am nonbinary, and how that shaped the way in which I perceived myself and the world, including my own place in it. I think people might relate to it if they identify as transgender, nonbinary. I think anyone whose gender has ever felt like it was holding them back, even if they are cis, may also be able to relate to it, as well as anybody who has been marginalised or feels disillusioned with society at large. faded gleam, renewed dream - Bryan Duong Milstead (@bry.mlt4) My poem, "faded gleam, renewed dream" details the mental health struggles that one can face with reminiscing over distant memories and severe rumination (repetitive dwelling on negative feelings). The "light" throughout this poem symbolizes a general sense of uniqueness and positive energy that a person possesses. When we experience tough situations, social pressures, and other unpleasant emotions, this can cause our "light" to feel as if it is fading. However, it is vital to understand that this beautiful light of ours is never permanently gone; it might just need time to heal and be rediscovered. No matter how much our "lights" have been dimmed, it will burn even brighter through all of its hardships. We are ALL deserving of our "lights", as I believe they define our personalities and most importantly, what it means to be human. I wrote "faded gleam, renewed dream" after experiencing a loss of identity as a result of entering high school. The transition from middle school was, no doubt, an intense period of growth and difficulty within my life. At times, this newer environment with greater social pressures put me in a constant survival mode, unaware that I was suppressing my emotions which slowly chipped away at my self-esteem. Furthermore, I began to adapt ruminative thinking, excessively questioning who I was as a person and the things that define me. I believe that other high schoolers/teenagers can relate to this poem, especially with the analogy of the "light". For me, it took challenging this rumination and reframing these thoughts into positive ones in order to rediscover my identity. I encourage others who have gone through my situation/a similar predicament to challenge and affirm power over their negative thoughts. we were - Chloe (@__________chloeee) Growing up is an inevitable part of our lives. The piece 'we were' is a poetry-prose following the journey of growing up through depicting memories at various ages. It encompasses interactions and emotions that were experienced, shaping who we are today. I hope that the piece is relatable and something readers will find comfort in. Chamber Music - Chloe Ho (ch103h0) Chloe Ho is an aspiring poet and professional dreamer masquerading as your (less than) average Science student. Usually, her work features themes of memory, religious imagery, and love. My piece develops the idea of healing and love, with the central motif being the human heart. The anatomy of the human heart guides the entire piece, which reflects the speaker's journey of healing and learning to give themselves and others grace. The human heart fascinates me, and at its core, this work hopes to explore the meaning of healing and love for each one of us. I think one of the things that is most human is our capacity to keep giving each other and ourselves grace, even in the most impossible situations to do so. Is Kindness Words Or Actions? - Cora McCullough (@corawritesstories) There’s so much bad in the world. All anybody talks about is war, violence, unrest, death. It’s good to talk about things that need change, to bring awareness to injustice. But as much as we speak on big bad things, we need to remember the little good things. My piece is about the tiny ways people show their love. As writers, we try to explain it in sentences, but kindness, like most good, can’t be measured in words. Every person can think of one time someone did something kind for them. I can think of several. As a human being who struggles, I wanted to highlight the little unknown things that people do to help others. the big thing that lives in the sky - Diya Kapoor (@diyaaa.kap) The story talks about a sunset, something that is very common. The narrator talks about how she's never seen something so beautiful in her life and how others are completely entranced by it. The poem talks about the different people who experience the sunset and how even though they are so different in their backgrounds and identities, they all can have one common interest and point of view in watching the beautiful sunset. It's based on a true story of me walking my dog during the summer and watching a sunset in my neighborhood. I've always been entranced with sunsets and the people who walk in the evening. People of all nature and all backgrounds like to enjoy these types of things, no matter how different they are. It's the small things that make the human experience. Untitled - Ezra Mukami (ezramukami on Tumblr) Describes change in human lives but how we never really change in the grand scheme of things and how everything we do, no matter how small and insignificant, impacts our lives in ways we may never know. It highlights how important people are to our lives, but our obliviousness is also a defining human feature. I thought about what it means to be alive, which turned into what it is to be alive. Lost in Translation - Gabby Parkinson (gabrielle_.nicole) My piece talks about the complexities of teenage emotions and how it affects their day to day life and relationships. I was inspired to write this piece after an argument with my parents. To them the topic was insignificant but to me it felt like a big deal. I couldn't explain why it was such a big deal, I just knew it. This poem isn't just for teenagers, it's for anyone who's ever felt like they didn't have the words to articulate themselves. I think this will be a piece that many can relate to and fits nicely with the theme of the human experience. Engine Flitting - Halley Kunen (Halleyk23) The poem conveys looking for hope in a period of hopelessness (a huge part of our existence right now,) seeking out the "better souls," the indomitableness of the human spirit, even in hopeless times. I feel it captures a lot in a brief amount of words/imagery. This poem was initially inspired by wandering the subways in my free time, observing others, wondering their purpose/purposelessness; also the defensive feelings that come up for me using public transportation/leaving my house in general. Lastly, I am compelled to use aspects of drug use/addiction as metaphor as I do in this poem "sticking needles in the star/hoping to catch a ferment." All of this while striving to be as insightful and uplifting as possible! Lunacy in a Fifteen Year Old - Inaya Aly Khan (@inaya_x9 @creativitea_writes) I think the feeling of not fitting in exactly, the way others seem to do so effortlessly is a universal experience. It feels like you are an outsider looking in and I feel like the sentiment of 'contorting' oneself captures the uncomfortable feeling pretty well, especially for more socially awkward people. Because it is so seemingly common, it's also often characterised as “being a teenager” so the poem explores feeling this as a teenager but not knowing how to feel about it. My Eurydice Friends - Ivy J (@ivyallegedly) This piece is about all the little ways people show they care for one another, consciously or subconsciously, which I think is a very beautiful part of how we are as humans. It is also about my love for my friends: how that is a big part of who I am, and how my friends themselves are a big part of what makes me feel human. Finally, this piece is about the experience of wanting to protect and guide those you love, even if it’s just through the little things, and about how love means looking back (and how it has become so ingrained in my nature to do so for my friends, that I believe in Orpheus and Eurydice’s shoes, I too would doom us all.) Here, Grief - Jaiden Geolingo (@geodennn) Grief is a feeling that lies within us all — this emotion, no matter the age, will be something you experience throughout life. As humans, we all undergo intense emotional impacts, and I truly believe this unites us all into one.What inspired me to write this was the death of my grandmother. As a child, feelings like grief were foreign to me and I did not know how to handle it. Eventually, I overcame it, built resilience, and buried negativity into the corners of my mind where I could not reach. Infinities - Jessamine Jin (jesssaminejin) My piece is written from the perspective of a child and is a marriage of innocence and maturity, of imagination and precociousness. It adds a new layer of what it means to grow up with immigrant parents and the complexity of a facet of humanity mostly unexplored until this century due to the nature of what it means to be an immigrant of culture and the trauma that spans the generations following it. I love surrealism and combining that with fiction about deeply personal topics. I was inspired by the cycle of generational trauma in immigrant children and how we all processed our feelings in an environment where feelings weren't encouraged. A Kitten's Offering - Kit Thurston-Mathews (@kitduke04) I wanted to explore the way I view death as opposed to how my kitten views it. I never scold her for bringing me something dead as I know she sees it as a gesture of love, but there’s a cruelty to the gift that makes me think. I have a particular fascination with the cycle of life, of interacting with something so profound as death, and I try to draw on that in my work. your best girl - layla h. (@l.h.author) Humans have a tendency to continue cycles, including the harmful ones. "your best girl" relates to the theme of 'the human experience' as it explores the conflict of wanting to fit into peoples' expectations, while also trying to break away from those same beliefs that have caused you pain. At the end of the day, you cannot simply become what people want from you, or even become the exact person you strive to be. You are a human, trying your best. And that is enough. How To Exist - Liv Gamble (@livgamblevstheremix) My piece engages with the question of how to exist - how do we live when living can be so hard? As humans there can be a fundamental struggle to appreciate and enjoy life even though we want to. It's this struggle of being human that I've focused on in the piece This was written for one of the prompts of Escapril 2024, 'how to exist'. It was a great prompt because it really touched on a fundamental question of what it is to be human. I don't think there's a person alive who hasn't wondered what their purpose is - it's a universal feeling and as hard as it can be to exist sometimes, there's some comfort in knowing you're not alone. Ascend - Liv L. (@lyricswithliv) For me, music is an integral part of how I experience the world and my life. With my poem I tried to convey the euphoria I feel when I engage with music, and how it helps me see the world and my place in it. This poem was inspired by my love of music. I hope other people can relate to my experiences with music and how it has helped me find my identity and my place in the world. Risk - Lydia Rae Bush (@LRBPoetry) My ability to connect with my fellow human beings is hindered by my pendulum-swinging between mantras that I take too literally, misinterpret, or misapply. This piece is me grappling to understand that the actual virtues of human connection do not exist between any two ideals but instead support both ideals equally, and that truly living according to virtue involves risking mistakes by disobeying the simplifying mantras I adopt. it's a dog eat dog world - Malcolm Wernestrom (@malkkunn) My poem explores my challenges with understanding human behavior and social norms. I find socializing and grasping social dynamics difficult, unlike many people I've observed, for whom these interactions seem effortless. To illustrate human behavior, I used common animal idioms and variations of them, highlighting how instinctively social dynamics and hierarchies form in human society. Inspired by my lifelong struggle to understand and integrate into social groups, my experiences in different situations have shaped this piece. Throughout school, I found it hard to relate to most individuals. Despite my attempts to imitate others' behaviors, I have struggled to feel accepted into various groups. I believe this poem might resonate with anyone who has had trouble fitting in or understanding social cues at any point in their lives. I don't believe in atoms (I want to touch something) - Maryam Majid (@maryammajick) Often when I write poems, they are formed outwards from a central feeling, or word, or image. The inciting image for this piece was that fact we all learn at some point in biology class, that the total length of DNA we have inside our cells unravels to make something like 67 billion miles. I think science is full of things like this - wet-blanketed by the boring and hazy environment of a fed-up cohort, but that if we really stopped for a moment to think on, are truly mind-blowing. It was such a visceral image, imagining all that DNA, several trips to the Sun and back, coiled and coiled and...it was inside me? And, as I thought, the coil was a spring - and springs connote something else; that is the power of words. It felt somehow like the perfect way to describe feeling anxious, all that pent-up energy, encoded into my very being, always ready to spring violently out of formation but never actually doing it. It reminded me of another image I've always come back to in my poetry - that of a clockwork hummingbird, all frailness and filigree, but robotic and monotonous. I just had these images floating around that I felt would describe the human condition (I thought, at least) so beautifully. Then, as I wrote, the larger themes relating to the intersection of science and spirituality began emerging. Something I think about a lot as someone who is both deeply religious and very interested in the sciences is the intersection of these two areas of life. They both speak to something fundamental about the human condition - our yearning for meaning. We naturally look at things and desire their explanations - why does the apple fall down, why does water ripple, why do we cry, what are we for? Colloquially, people tend to pit religiosity and scientific theory against each other, as though they are always in contradiction. But I think it is a colossal misunderstanding of one, the other - or, maybe, most frequently and truly, both - to say that two of our most primal endeavours towards the truth are not in harmony. The more you study science, as I have and hope to continue doing, you realise that there are no theorems in open systems, like our world. All models are wrong, but some are useful and some are extraordinary. It is all in a manner of perspective, to see the miraculous, meticulous way we are built and still realise that you cannot put all of humanity under a microscope. There is more in us, in everything, than we can explain. And that's awe-inspiring...and that's terrifying. But it does not make our pursuits, does not make us, futile. It simply means we have to surrender to that "more" sometimes. I hope that my poem does some of these existential musings justice, and that it resonates with your human experience. sentenced to your love - Mia Jevtic (miaj.07) My piece details what it feels like to be in a relationship where the other person wronged you and left without any explanation. It explains how difficult it is to let go of someone you cared so much for without knowing why they did what they did. Even if knowing might hurt you more, you still can't help but wonder what you did wrong. This is something I have watched many people in my life go through, so I know how hard it is to stop the wishful and ‘what if’ thinking. The phrase "everything happens for a reason" was one that I used to really love and live by, but recently it's been feeling odd to me. There is so much wrong in this world that cannot be going on for any justifiable reason. That is why I decided to spin it into a question because the phrase has been making me question a lot. Blur - Milan Singh (@milano__0903) I think my poem captures a very particular human emotion based on the fact that time can and will move on but we might not. The feelings of not having grown up or changed and just a general dissonance to the world around you is a very uniquely human experience that I wanted to explore. This short poem was just me trying to come into contact with my own feelings. Sometimes I look around me and all I can notice is how much everything has changed but just not me. The internal battles I had before I started high school still persist, the same issues still plague me, and I just wish to not feel like the world is moving away from me. Poof and Gone - Muskan Gupta (muskan22gupt) My piece corresponds to a very particular human experience, that of being left. It tries to convey the feeling of someone suddenly disappearing. It is unfortunately something almost everyone has gone through, and if not we fear that sometime in the future we might go through this. So, this poem corresponds to the very human fear and inevitable experience of being abandoned or left. “Poof and Gone”, is a poem I wrote on a whim, and I hope that no one finds it relatable. It is a dark and gloomy read, and aims to convey the fleeting nature of people and the sometimes voluntary, sometimes fate ordained departure of loved ones from a person’s life. Also, for anyone for whom this poem hits too close to home, I hope you know you are not alone, and that there are many other people who have felt what you feel. Life doesn’t end - Nevaeh Phillips (the_poet.the_artist) My piece corresponds with the theme because it entails small experiences that make you a person even if sometimes they pass by without you noticing. Reverie - Nina Stadermann (@nina.stadermann) In my experience, a major component of 'the human experience' is learning to reconcile two worlds: one intellectual, sapient, abstract, and the other corporeal, concrete, somewhat grotesque. "Reverie" is about a speaker who flounders about in this first world, and discovers that they can only exist after finding their place in the second. This past year, I have struggled with wrapping my head around the logic of existence; I tend to think of myself not really as a person or object, but a continuous stream of thought. It is difficult to accept anything in this world "as it is". But while walking down the street, I saw my own face in the reflection of a car, and for the first time in months recognized it as myself. All of a sudden, I had the sensation of overwhelming clarity; in my mind, the phrase "waking perpetually through a thousand layers of reverie" began to repeat itself. To Gaza - Nirmit Mittal (@nirmit._.reads13) There's been a lot of emotions being displayed by people around me, both online and in person, about the ongoing genocide. There's been some sympathy, rare empathy and glaring apathy. From such a large distance, not only was it easy to feel hopeless about the current state of the Palestinians, but also witness a lot of ridicule and general inconsideration for them, as though people have forgotten that massive distances between us don't make the other side less human, less real or their experience less valid. I found myself constantly thinking about the horrors people were facing in Rafah, in Gaza; it was never leaving my mind. The ability to choose whether or not one wanted to hear of them is a luxury but the news is always hard to digest. Once, to divert my attention a little, I opened the windows in my apartment to let the breeze from the neighbouring forest blow in, but I smelt smoke from a very distant fire waft in with it, and I realised that the people trapped there would forever feel the smoke from artillery fire follow them around in life; that's when I put this down on paper. the first twelve years of my life - Rah Royal (@rahsdocsposts_) It details my life from the ages of 0-12, and how those years and the experiences I had during them majorly impacted who I am as a person. The Correspondence - Rahil Najafabadi (rahilanajafabadi ) This is the perspective of an unconventional woman looking over her past and future. She does not want the norm, she objects to societal expectations of a woman, and simply sees regret as comical. This woman is me, reflecting on conversations with seniors, millennials, and other generations about how they do not take the younger generation seriously. These conversations highlighted their regrets and shortcomings, which angered me over them not seeing their achievements, and in turn they would find blame and guilt that was usually projected onto others too. I believe this is unavoidable with every generation, but just unnecessary as we will all be living uniquely due to our different societal circumstances. We can embrace that instead. This poem also hints at our responsibility toward Earth and how we must act urgently if we want to stay here. Purpose - Ray Shubert (@down_the._.rabbit_hole) My piece is an introspective questioning, almost like an internal monologue on our inevitable deaths and roles in the ecosystem, but also how it is important to not only live to die. It asks the question of what it means to be human, if it's our anatomy, emotions, etc. To be Human - Riddhi Iyer (@riddhiiyer_) My piece corresponds to the theme of the human experience as it depicts the emotions and experiences you have whilst being human whether it may be seen in the physical aspect or emotional. I have attempted to put my personal experience of what being a human has felt for me in this poem. I have always wondered about how a person would attempt to explain what being a human feels like: the emotions, the wounds (physical and emotional), the things most desired. Is it a blessing or a curse to be able to feel these immense emotions, Is it a blessing or curse to be born fragile yet having the ability to run, fall and get back up. I believe it to be a good fit for the magazine as this poem is an attempt at capturing the essence of the fragile beauty that is the human life, it offers a perspective on human life as a blessing instead of a curse which is an idea that needs to be put out more especially amongst teenagers as it easy for us to believe this human life we've been given is a waste and a curse. Through the artist's lens - Rowan (@rowans.archives) My piece is specifically targeted towards writers, artists, musicians, creators of any form. It describes who we are and why we do what we do. When I think of life I think of far too many things to express. That's what being a writer is, it's having so many different thoughts you have no idea what makes sense and what doesn't. It has been years since I've written however this theme inspired me and so I hope you consider it. Thank you <3 My Day - Ruby Dyan (@blurredpoetic) My piece “My Day” was inspired by feeling uninspired. Sometimes life has adventures around every corner, but sometimes life feels like just going through the motions, waking up and going to sleep in a never ending cycle. This poem was my attempt at capturing the mundane nature of life, as sometimes the meaning of life can be found simply through the act of living it. Sweets to the Sweet - Ruth Towne (@ruthietowne) I wrote "Sweet to the Sweets" when I began swimming at the local Y. I discovered that I loved swimming, not only because it was a new way to exercise, but also because it was innately meditative and helped me manage anxiety. The title of the piece borrows the words of Queen Gertrude at Ophelia’s funeral, after Ophelia dies by drowning in a river. Ophelia’s death by drowning casts a shadow over the poem as the swimmer in the poem calms herself. Anxiety is a universal human experience. Water is a universal human need. It hurts, and it heals. This piece was first published in Issue 01 of the Orange Juice Journal. art of life/life of art - Sundos Hejazi (@_sundos113) Humans often waste their lives questioning what they are meant to do with the time they have instead of going out into the world and creating. What makes us human is our ability to feel, perceive, imagine, inspire, be inspired, and infuse abstract emotions into tangible objects. That is why I wrote my poem about the compulsion to create. Art captures the very being of a person, and the life that art encapsulates is inspired by other art. In a world where technology advances and creativity is valued less and less every day, I wrote a piece that reminds people how crucial art is to our very existence. When I read the prompt for the issue, I felt like I had no choice but to respond. It was an obligation, my duty even. The purpose of life is a phenomenon that has long pestered me like a parasite, in the best way. It has made me question every action of mine and at the end, I have always come to the conclusion that art is the key to life. Creation gives humans meaning. It makes our lives feel intentional, and I put that into words as best I could. This magazine is meant to amplify young voices in a space where they will be heard and related to, and I know that I am not the only young person to resonate with the importance and beauty of art. I wrote this poem to reassure and remind people, of all ages, that their lives will only have purpose if they choose to give it. Art is so vital to the human existence but it often goes unappreciated. In some ways, my piece is a combined love letter and thank you to art and what it offers us as humans. an understanding of the human experience - Urja Srivastava (@pvt____urj) Context of the poem: I’ve always wondered at different points in my life why I am the way I am, and what I would be like if I had different morals or ideals, different upbringing, and different idols. It’s always also fascinated me that different people react to the same situation differently, especially how differently the older generations react to change or a life experience compared to the younger generations. All this to say, that my thoughts often lead me to crave one thing, and that is understanding what makes us human. Why are we the way we are — this is a question I’ve sought to answer with my poem. Although written in a structure that makes it sound like I am covering what makes me me, I believe this poem would resonate with many people out there. Humanity weeps - W. E. Everhart (@ w.e._everhart_290) The poem is not about religion or god, as it would seem; rather, it is about human identity, suffering, and experience. When I refer to God in this poem, I don't mean God in the traditional sense; rather, I mean the authority that governs us as humans and the cosmos itself, which makes sense given how some of us endure suffering throughout our lives in the hopes of receiving grace and mercy from others. The speaker of the poem struggles with anguish and begs for relief, depicting a sense of suffering and misfortune. This captures the universal human experience of encountering difficulties and looking for comfort. The speaker emphasizes the interdependence of human relationships by extending their request for mercy to their loved ones. This illustrates the value of community and relationships in the human experience, as well as our need to look out for and take care of the people we care about. In order to convey my ideas and message, I attempted to draw parallels between mythology, religious tales, and other folktales and tales in general and my appreciation for the human experience and mind. My usual sources of inspiration are music and/or stories. I believe it would be a wonderful fit because this topic explores a deeper, more philosophical perspective, which my essay definitely holds. Michelangelo's Sculpture - Wong Eu Kenn (@sleepyzeph_) The human experience consists of a lot of things, and one of them is love. That's what this poem focuses on. One of the quotes in RTS’ Instagram post is "To survive is to find some meaning in the suffering." I think that line sums up the theme of the entire poem. The poem's 'protagonist' goes through the suffering of scrutiny by others because of his relationship. But he remembers the good in the suffering, which is the love he felt. I think this piece is relatable (hopefully) to the queer experience and is a particular facet of the human experience. The Life Express - Yuvika Gupta (@yuvikaspoetry) In this poem, I compared life to a train where each individual shares a compartment with their family members. When I first read the themes for this issue, I realized that the human experience was a broad topic and that all my views could probably not fit within the poem I would write, or the word limit either. But that made me realize how we, as humans, are also incapable of being fully defined. I also realized that my family is what inspires me to write such a piece and that our generational values, family, and heritage impact us more than we often recognize. Life is a thread that starts long before one is born, hence the metaphor of a train. The poem explores the idea that we, as humans, often believe that our lives are meant to be experienced individually. However, by the time we reach the end of the journey, we realize that all the experiences we have had were actually meant to be cherished together with the people in our compartments and everyone who has helped us become who we are. This interconnectedness and shared human journey, to me, are what define the human experience. I aim to convey that all humans are interconnected, even if we have never crossed paths. Every small and significant action that has occurred before has shaped us into who we are. It reflects on how people impact us, even if they are long gone, as they still help this train of life move forward and look after us. I believe people would relate to my poem as it explores themes of generational connection, shared experiences, and the collective journey of life. The way I have used this string of 26 letters might resonate with someone else's perspective as well. And isn't that the essence of the human journey? Experiencing individual moments only to realize that someone else thinks the same way as well? Xoxo - Zoe Moon (@zoe._moon) This piece calls light to aspects of being a teenage girl that are often belittled by the world they inhabit. It is intended to make the experience of being a young woman less lonely and celebrate the human experience of growing up. PROSE The Man by the Pond - Aki Rayne (@writeyourwoes.aki) My story is all about what is left unsaid — no conversations take place between the main characters, and they themselves are not described in detail. The story remains as general as it can be, so readers can hopefully see parts of themselves in it. Words need not be uttered to forge bonds; I wish to show that the bonds that are formed by menial and routine tasks rather than action-packed moments of adventure can be just as powerful. My aim was to show that loneliness does not have to drive people away from each other, but that it can also bring people together. My story starts and ends with the same line, symbolizing an endless cycle that does not end in grief but rather contentment. It is about the strength of human connection, and that's what I believe captures the essence of human experience. Law of the Wild - Alana Rodrigues-Birch (@wrybill_writes) My story is about a solitary young woman trying to survive after the world has ended, slowly realising — through the means of her old anthropology lecturer — that humans are meant to work together, rather than alone. I was inspired to write it by my anthropology class, much of which was about how the individualistic culture that capitalism creates is the biggest roadblock to progress. There is no behaviour inherent to any animal, human or otherwise, but what I believe makes us human is recognising that we are all capable of altruism. As The Zephyr Wind Blows - alarminglytired (Nyx) @alarminglytired - instagram @alarminglylazy - X) This story follows the guardian of fire, whose kind is known to hate all humans, retells the story of how her girlfriend showed her what it actually means to be human. What inspired me to write this is a breakup letter I received from an ex. In that letter they mentioned that after getting to know me, they figured out what it's like to be human. Tenderly Yours - Alin Sengjaroen (@cl3fleur) "I think therefore I am" or the Latin version "Cogito, ergo sum", or any variations such as "I think therefore I exist" (a quote by philosopher Rene Descartes) is the ultimate inspiration for this story. To be aware is to be human. And the hardships that we go through, the contradictions of our established personality, the relationships that both heal and hurt us, our fear of intimacy — rather than focusing on the physical boundary, these are all the things that make us human. This work tackles the idea that to be human is to merely look like one. When in fact, you just need to be able to think, be aware of yourself, and empathize. Since the theme is "The human experience" and we readers are all humans (I hope), I wrote this piece slightly vague so everyone can relate their personal life to it, projecting their own human experiences. The Exam - Andrea Balingit (IG: cheeseislyf; X: IamBUTTiful) In the first two decades of a person's life, teens are always pressured to do well in academics. This is especially rigorous in Asian households. Students' worth and value are chalked up to their grades in their report cards, which do not truly reflect their skills and interests. However, capitalistic societies have made schools into factories that must produce skilled workers. The exams they take, especially college entrance tests or equivalent, tend to put so much pressure on the students as it is portrayed as their only chance to have a good life and otherwise would make them a person with a bleak future. The story tries to emphasize the human experiences of students during exam season — the dread, the terror, and the fear. This is also based on my experience when I applied for college. Unlike the US, the Philippines has no standardized aptitude test that we use in applying to universities. Rather, each university sets its own entrance test. I applied to the national university of the country with little resources, a big dream to pass it, and a fear of not passing it due to the influx of exam candidates (stellar students) in comparison compared to me, an average student. I thought it would be perfect for this issue as exams tend to be a big deal to teens. Even now, no matter what kind of exam, it still brings terror to me. Tidbit: I did not pass the exam but got a score enough to appeal my application. The university accepted my appeal and 4 years later, graduated as Magna Cum Laude. I am graduating with Latin honors. When Light Refracts - Ara Djati (@ara.djati) ‘When Light Refracts’ explores what I think are the basic needs of the human experience: preservation, recognition, connection, purpose, understanding. I try to ground these things by using snippets of my daily life (some are exaggerated, to be honest). Parts of it are inspired by real historical events in my country, like the Indonesian Revolution or Bandung Lautan Api (where soldiers burned the town to prevent colonizers from using it). It centers around the fact that, no matter what, we're alive — that's why the phrase “I live I live I live” is so frequently mentioned (it's inspired by Sylvia Plath's "I am I am I am"). The human desire to understand is compared to the colors of the rainbow that we can and can't see. I wanted to incorporate the little things I see in my life, through my lens, and try to thread a common theme to it. Specifically, the beauty of refracting light, in other words, a rainbow. How something so simple can mean so much when you look at it right. I used to be so caught up in the grand, existential questions of life. Nowadays, I try to focus on the beauty of the small stuff. This lens has really helped me appreciate life, and I hope other people will feel the same. I tried to make this piece relatable, but also pensive, something I think really matches the tone that Rewrite The Stars brings. A Ferryman's Fate - Claire M.M. (@chaptersbyclaire) My work is narrated by a character who is unnamed in the story, but heavily implied to be Charon, the psychopomp who guides the dead into the underworld in Greek Mythology. Throughout their experience ferrying souls back and forth across the River Styx, they learn about the curious nature of humans and their tendencies. The piece examines humanity from an outsider's perspective, allowing for a detached viewpoint on how humans experience life and death. Even when I was very little, I was someone who contemplated human nature quite regularly, in this detached, almost clinical kind of way. I wanted to explore how a character who was not actually human would view these same things, and I thought that Charon from Greek Mythology would make an interesting narrator. I think that this sort of broad question of what it means to be human isn't something with a clear answer, if one at all. Humanity is a collection of experiences that are as individual as they are universal. Grasping this can be difficult, especially for the non-human narrator, but it's also helpful to take a step back and analyze things from a perspective you may not be used to. Seventeen Years (and an Extra Few Weeks) - E. Syson (@3_syson) My story corresponds to the theme of the human experience because it relates to its fleetingness. My story takes place in a world where reincarnation is real, but it can only happen for a few months. It goes through the story of a couple after a car accident, and how they are coping with the fact that one of them will have to return to Earth. Although Julia can come back for a little, it comes with strings that remind them that in the end, their flesh is flesh, and that nothing lasts forever. This is also shown in the title, as it references the small yet fleeting lives of cicadas, and how they only really begin to live when they're close to death. It additionally blends in aspects of Jewish, Celtic, & Greek superstition around death and healing, with the coin required to bring the body back being inspired by the coin left under dead Greeks' tongues, the water from Bath being inspired by its springs' healing properties, and the burial of the body with the initial shovelful being upside down reminiscent of my own family's traditions. I love the idea of an afterlife that's flexible. In many of my works, I like to play around with death as a result of my own fear of it. With time, I've come to the decision that I'm okay with it as long as it’s satisfying. This piece shows my desire for that satisfying end — that even if my life is cut short before I want it to be, I could still have the time to let my loved ones know where my favorite books are and what passwords unlock my Instagram accounts. I think I would be happy with death if it meant I could hug those I love one last time, and I believe that idea comes across more clearly than anything else in this work. Unnatural Selection - Elizabeth Butler - (@eabwriter_ - Instagram, bethbutler74wordpress.com ) We often think Artificial Intelligence could take over, make the world a better place if humankind was in charge. This piece challenges that idea. What if AI were just as fascinated with human beings as we are with them? Human beings are often too naive. We think we are the predators of this world. In our hubris, we forget that this is an illusion. I'm fascinated between the dynamics between us and AI and how they could adopt our ways of thinking. Highway - Isabel Loytty - (@izzy.loytty) I think there is something so human about looking at the world around you with boredom. It becomes really easy to let the wonders of the world become monotonous, this all we know. I think that connection with an entity that isn't entirely human shows us how vast our world truly is. I wanted this piece to reflect the realization I had: every human around us is unique, going through the same comedies and tragedies that we preoccupy ourselves with every day. It’s our job to help each other get through it. For our narrator, this realization came too late, but I hope this story gives a reader a new perspective. Highway was written in a Creative Writing class. I was given the opportunity to be taught by one of the greatest poets of our time; Benjamin Daniel Lukey. This story was my favorite piece of prose I've written, stemming from my belief in the power of extrapersonal connection. This story was written to be a wake up call, to give someone the message that they needed. We are not alone in this. Headed Towards Home - Kaitlyn Fan - (@kaitlynfan_ on instagram ) I like to use the return journey home — something we have all experienced one way or another — as a metaphor for certain things that happen in life; such as making irreversible choices, or having your heart set on something or someone and not feeling complete without it. I tried to capture my thoughts about going home and finding belonging, which may or may not be found in a material place. This piece describes my trip home from school, divided into different segments, and I wrote this story on the way home from school too. Sometimes, all the anticipation that I feel on the way home reaches such an anticlimactic point that when I do get home, I feel like I’m missing something. I thought that the human experience was a great theme because going home is a universal experience, and I wanted to share my personal tale and observations that came with it. I think that people may relate to the thoughts that happen on a long trip home after a tiring day of work or /school. I wrote about the observations I made and the emotions I felt, and I think that each section of my trip can stand for different experiences, however readers wish to interpret them. But I believe being human is more than that, which is why the italicized and bolded words in this story can be read as a piece of their own. I thought it could capture some thoughts and feelings that might be common, and I hope that people can relate to it as a means of knowing they aren't alone in whatever they feel. My Angst and Me - Kiara Turner - (@kiara.turnerrrr) I wrote this piece after a break up but the meaning is much deeper than a break up. A lot of times, being a teenager means feeling like the world is ending. When I wrote this, I very much felt like the world was ending. I felt like nothing would ever be okay again and I had absolutely no idea what I was doing. I was so lost. The only thing that kept me going was realizing that pain like that is a part of being human, which is why I submitted this piece. ‘My Angst and Me’ tells the story of the experiences of many teenagers. If there's one thing that teenagers all over the world have in common, it's growing pains. When you're young, everything feels like the end of the world and it's so hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel. But eventually you realize that the pain is what it means to be alive. To be human is to hurt. We Are The Fish - Madison Cossaboom - (Instagram: @madismetaphors | X: @floweringmac) ‘We Are The Fish’ explores the theme of human relationships. From a young age, we are often taught that life is linear — from life to death, from introduction to conclusion, from beginning to end. Yet, as we grow older, it is up to us to unravel that blatant lie and discover that if anything, life is something nonlinear that runs in constant loops and curves. With this mindset, I attempted to explore a young relationship from a first-person narrative of the rise and decline of a beloved platonic relationship. Often when I write, I reflect on the past. In this piece particularly, I wanted to examine a platonic relationship that resembles the lifestyle of betta fish in that they possess a difficult time co-existing. Within the work, both the highlights and faults of the relationship come to light and eventually ends, just as how two betta fish may. This motif does not simply apply to this friendship either — across the entirety of the human experience, we may find ourselves to be like betta fish in any human relationship. What are we defined as? How? - Malkia Padduyao, pen name FJGCSABA - (IG: Malkia Padduyao, FB: Mal Kia) Humans are defined by many things. We are labeled by many things. But how can we really say "it's just being human”; what makes it so? Who or what said, "you have to go through that", or "you have to feel that"? And why? Humanity itself leaves us with many questions. Any of its answers would just leave with even more questions and leave people in wandering thought. People may like that. I didn't really have much inspiration for this piece, it just so happens that I ended up randomly having this urge to write about this, and luckily, the energy to see it through until the end. Da capo - Meagan - (@m4agan) “Da capo” conveys the common human experience of dissatisfaction, longing, and hanging on to a thread of hope. The narrator conveys their conflicted feelings towards music as, over a period of time, their love for it slips through their fingers. This piece relates to other musicians and generally anyone who feels like they want to give up on their dreams but cannot bring themselves to. Seeds - Nusayba Bokhari - (nusayba113) My piece is about how humans will act in the face of oppression. All throughout history, people have fought back when they are being oppressed or attacked. My story is about a regular person who decides to resist her oppression because of what she has experienced, and was inspired by the genocide in Gaza. I am not Palestinian, but I am Muslim and seeing people justify the murder of people just like me is horrible. I wrote this story to try to make people understand why the people in Gaza are reacting the way they are and to show that they are fighting because of oppression, not just because they want to. I purposely added very little detail about the setting and characters in hopes that people will be able to put themselves in the character’s shoes and think about how they would react if this happened to them. The lack of detail is an attempt to eliminate any biases people may have against current groups who are oppressed so that people can learn to empathize with them. Death's favourite mortician - Phoenix Eddolls - (@phoenix_the_dinosaur ) One thing that is a part of every human’s experience is death, but that doesn't mean that the meaning of death is the same for all of us. My piece is about how death can be just as interesting as life. For some, death brings fear, but for others, it brings a desire to know and understand it. This particular piece has an air of strange familiarity and fits the vibe of ‘different, but not unknown.’ STRAWBERRY MILK - Robert Aden Lonergan - (@aden.ursa) This is an old piece from when my Schizophrenic symptoms were first developing. It's raw, good and bad. The protagonist shares my panic and mindset and frustrations. I think it's the most direct of my pieces in terms of relating the Schizophrenic mindset to those neurotypical, or at least without the affliction. It had been a week since I took the symptoms seriously. It was 4AM and I couldn't sleep, so I agreed to let myself go get Whataburger if I wrote 500 words about it. I knew it couldn't be straight up doctor's note style, it had to be fiction. Fast. Breakneck. Fugue state. Surreal and with rules, just ones which seem like nonsense through our puny mortal eyes. "The Old Brag" - Roukia Ali - (@roukiaa9140) A big part of being a human being is being full of doubt (whoa, that was a lot of "beings" in one sentence). We doubt our place in the world, we doubt what we truly are, we doubt the impact we'll leave. As an artist lately, I've been ruminating on the idea of hustle culture and needing to be productive, which governs so much of the capitalist society I live in, and the relationships I have, especially with other writers and comparing myself to them. I wanted to be relatable in expressing that I feel overwhelmed, and on top of being overwhelmed, that I feel that I am full of questions, that I'm jealous and desperate, a bit insane, very much eager, and a little sad of what I'm on the road to becoming. Discovering meaning in life without attributing it to anything that can be measured is incredibly difficult to do. So I decided to write about it, about becoming human again. Not a metaphor, not a standard, not a number. Just myself and my honest feelings. In an almost stream of consciousness way, I decided to express my insecurities about being a writer especially, my brand of being a human that is always obsessing and contemplating. I am a human being yearning for success and belonging. This craving I wanted to represent in an unfiltered and raw way, without really adhering to a traditional "form" so I could become more accessible. In addition to that, I think a big part of the human experience overall is relating to other people. Thus, my biggest inspirations for this piece were two favourite artists of mine: the singer-songwriter Mitski, and the confessional writer Sylvia Plath. When it came to Mitski, I took inspiration from a lyric in her song "Townie" about holding her breath with a baseball bat, though not being sure what she's waiting for. The song itself describes the reckless and desperate fatalism of youth, of wanting everything, of not being sure what you are. At nineteen, these thoughts constantly plague my mind, to the point where I don't feel human a lot of the time. As for Sylvia Plath, she inspires the title and the "sections" in my piece, with a quote from her only novel "The Bell Jar", another story about a young person desperate to find their place in the world and their life's meaning. The quote is "I took a deep breath and listened to the old brag of my heart — I am, I am, I am." Art about people craving belonging and recognition and security has always spoken to me and my confusion, and as a result, has made me feel the most human. A lot of the experience of being human is becoming it through the trials, which is how I approached my piece. Through piecing together my thoughts, I become wholly human again. Through learning to appreciate that I get to experience anything at all, and so viscerally because of the profession I've chosen, what otherwise could just be pessimistically seen as a "tough" experience slowly but surely becomes a rewarding one. Grief & Bliss - Shannon Tran - (@shanpeichan - instagram) I think the human experience can be very cruel to nearly all of us and I wanted to explore how to live alongside this madness, while also finding a way to still enjoy life for what it is. I think everything about humans is generally super complex but my piece is just a simple conversation between two friends, about how to find happiness in a world that wasn't really built for that, a very human thing to feel. Crop of Prometheus - Soraya Saros - (@writtenbysaros / @malefiic.sol) The human experience is complex. There is no right or wrong answer, and I love the topic for that exactly. My piece is the questions in my mind, perhaps answers, and just perhaps. What is life if not just a question, after all? I’m a philosophy student, despite being only 14. I’ve questioned everything since day one, much to the annoyance of everyone else. There are too many questions in my mind, many of them off topic, but the questions I think are rather fitting for this topic, I put in here. It may not be very poetic, but perhaps life isn’t meant to be. Life never was poetic, just that we made it so. Our Paths Will Cross Again, I Promise - sunny - (insta: @suhoosrealm, tumblr: @artern) There's something radiant about female friendships. No matter how long or short you've known them for, there's a sense of eternity that lingers after we've spent time with them. The story of Yamini and Sandhya is a story based loosely on the friendships who we choose to still stand by even if distance comes in the way. It's how they make us love ourselves more, and how we can make them happier by choice. It reminds me of the phrase written on a bookmark a friend had given me: "Alone we can do so little: together we can do so much," and if that isn't summarizing the human experience with our friends, then I don't know what does. This story is for those who wanted to suspend time with their closest friends, hoping destiny and time would leave them be, but change is inevitable, and life goes on regardless. We have the choice to bask in the ambiance of the memories with them, or hope they'll stay just a little bit longer. Enough - Svara Carmel Narasiah - (Instagram: svara_narasiah) I believe that a big part of the human experience is walking the journey of self-discovery and self-expression. This journey is often very painful, especially when living in an era where social media has set unrealistic standards. Therefore, many people feel the need to compare themselves to such standards (or other people who they believe fit these standards), which usually leads to the hopelessness of feeling like you aren't enough — neither to yourself, nor to other people. My piece explores the innermost thoughts of someone going through this. The character in my prose is nameless and genderless, because beyond titles and our physical qualities, we are all human, and we all have feelings like the ones I have chosen to write about. This story was inspired by my own feelings as a teenager going through a rough patch in which I felt utterly and completely worthless and messy as a person, like I wasn't enough. I talked with a few of my peers, read some anonymous journal entries online, and realised that everyone, no matter how awesome we think they are, goes through the exact same thing at one point or another. I wrote this piece and shared it with a few classmates. Every single one of them related to it in some way, and that's when I decided I wanted more people to read it. I want them to know they aren't alone. CREATIVE NON-FICTION Meaning in Platonic Forms - Clara Salo (@kichlach) My piece is a creative nonfiction anecdote about my 1st semester of university last year, where I had moved to another country, and I was really struggling with my own identity as both an immigrant and a third-culture diaspora, and lacking a sense of belonging. I was also having a lot of anxiety about the future as a whole and not knowing my purpose in life. It's hard to understand your place in the world when you don't feel rooted in a community. So the theme of this issue really resonated with me because these were questions I was thinking a LOT about last year. I was also studying philosophy at university, so trying to find my own meaning while reading history's struggle to answer the same questions was so interesting. I think I answered some of those questions in a way that is satisfactory to me, or at least I understand now that I don't need to have all the answers to live my life. The theme of this issue — what is your place in the world; how do you find identity; what do you recognize is your purpose, and how does it relate to others? — was something I definitely had a lot of thoughts on. It's ironic because my personal anecdote, my feelings last year, were rooted in feeling deeply alone. It's actually incredibly normal and common, I think! To have uncertainty over your purpose in life is something philosophers haven't been able to agree on for 3,000 years, so if anyone else is currently anxious about this, maybe it's comforting to know that it's not that everyone else knows something you don't, but that we are all trying to figure it out together. And my even more specific experiences of struggling with my identity are things that I think a lot of people can relate to. I hope that my piece can make someone feel a little less alone in the chaotic absurdity that is trying to figure out where you belong in the world. What’s next? - Elizabeth Maxwell (@lizinprose) This piece tugs at the question that so many of us, particularly younger people, have. It makes us question “what is next?” It encourages readers to follow their original and childlike nature of dreaming rather than fitting into societal norms when deciding on a future path. It’s something we all experience and can relate to on some level. Originally writing this piece to perform in a public speaking competition, ‘What’s next?’ grapples with the idea of chasing one’s dream. It’s a human experience we all go through. Once filled with a boundless sense of creativity and imagination as children, we are flattened into carbon copies of our peers. We are told what to do, how to do it, and when it should be done by. Personally, I almost signed 7 years of my life away to the military in order to fit this ideal and societal expectation. However, after confronting myself about my dreams and my passions, I realised that no matter how hard it may be, I want to chase them, reawakening my old passions. I wrote this piece with the hopes that posing this question would start the conversation for others about their true dreams and desires. Being a human is tricky, especially when there are millions of paths laid out in front of us, but we only get one life so pick the one that will make YOU the happiest. Roses and Resilience - Julia Vellucci (@juliavellucciauthor) Humans all grow as individuals and our identity evolves and changes due to what we see and what we believe. We are all impacted by society and struggle between vulnerability, protection, and who we are as we crave hope, love, and acceptance, just as the analogy of the rose unfolds. As humans, it's only natural to have a desire for love, for connection. But unfortunately, the tough experiences that life throws our way can result in us putting up metaphorical walls so we can't get hurt by those who try to get close to us. Yet at the same time, if we always keep those walls up, we're still suffering as we could be missing out on welcoming people in our life who are good for us and are meant to lift us up and be in our life for more than just a season. There are very few people I don't have walls up around and even then, I find it almost natural for me to overthink all the time. I'm trying to get better at it, but it's difficult to not let your past experiences dictate the potential outcome of your future ones. I feel like this feeling is common and I wanted to share it in the way I know best, creatively and through words, because these anxieties and fears we try to solve by comparing it to the past and just making our minds all the more tangled is a huge part of the human experience that isn't discussed as much as it should be. Existential Espresso - Kai (@m3tallikka, @nkk.dc) This piece showcases the similarities between the taste of espresso and the complexities of human existence. Since I am someone who always loves to write outside of my comfort zone, I decided to write about something I don't like. Surprisingly, it turned out to be a successful strategy for me. Believe it or not, I just wrote this piece today, and earlier, I had no idea what to write about, But then, the song "Espresso" by Sabrina Carpenter started playing, and it served as inspiration. This piece captures different aspects of human life by sharing opinions about coffee, a well-loved beverage. Eden - Kaitlyn Abrielle McCormick (@the_doctors_jenny_) “Eden” is a Ludic mimicry piece that takes the aesthetics and (certain) lines from the Bible to create a new narrative piece that is completely original. This piece is a retelling of Adam and Eve. It is biographical in the sense that it pulls on my LGBTQ+ history in vague ways to retell the story. This new telling is between two females: one more angelic and one more devilish. It leans into my personal thoughts at the time where a relationship made me change my thoughts and self esteem. “Eden” plays on many instances of the human experience such as: humans who turn to religion as a means to explain the human experience, the interplay between religion and LGBTQ+, and how those often weave into the human experience. The piece is meant to talk to people who are queer yet feel lost, people who are queer and grapple with religion, people who are queer and may find a place in religion or may not, etc. And then it takes the very big question of love that humans try to grapple with. Religion or love? The Numbers Game - Sophia Quintana (@fawnforlali) My piece is my personal experience with disordered eating and the internal war of thought and self-loathing that erupt in the vulnerable spaces of solitude. I write about my anorexic behaviour not to induce or promote, but to shed light on some of the worst parts of the human experience. I hope to encourage anyone with disordered eating to find solace in my work, to know that they're not alone, and to seek help. A Letter from Ireland - Sydney Lynn (@Sydneylynn85_) My piece is a combination of two letters I wrote to my Nan. I explore how humans create meaning in everyday items that usually go unnoticed and how connections to other people make life worth living. In the end, I conclude that life isn't about grand adventures and revolutionary acts, it's about the small acts of joy we experience every day. When I left for Ireland, my Nan gave me a journal to write about what I did. I decided each time I wrote, I would act like I was recounting a story to her. I didn't know anyone when I got there and was able to find a connection through people who were in the same boat as me. I traveled to ten countries and came back with a deeper understanding of the world and humanity. We all like food, dance, music, and drink, but each culture has a unique way of going about each. Our differences point out how much we are alike. No culture is better than the other, just different. I hope people see a connection to the details in life that usually go unnoticed and how those small acts or objects are the things that define humanity. I hope people see that nothing always has to be a stepping stone to the next stage in life, and enjoying yourself is just as important as working hard. And ultimately, I hope that people read and want to step out of the page and experience everything humanity has to offer. older and bigger - Zainab Ansari (@zeedeebeedee) My piece talks about growing up and realizing you are not the person you thought you would be when you were young. When I was young, I would wait for my teenage years. In my head, I would have the Barbie life, but as I grew older, I realized I had been waiting and wanting my whole life, hoping to wave my hand through the air and catch something substantial in my fingers. Growing older was not pretty and my suffering wasn't eerily beautiful. It was grotesque and unpleasant. The wonderful dreams and ideas I had of my life grew into something morbid, hateful, and that is exactly what this piece is about. A life spent in wait, for something that never existed. ART Northside gang :) - Desi Distel (@pkskll19) This is a layered photo of a night I spent with my friends. It’s tough to figure out just what’s going on at first but then you start seeing everyone and it makes a bit more sense. Nights with friends sometimes feels like a blur, so I wanted to make a piece that showed that and showed how my friends are pretty important to me as well. Spending time with friends can make a night turn into a blur, I wanted to try to capture this night before it was gone. Also the snapchat group chat we’re all in is called “Northside Gang” (because we all live in northside) so that’s why the title is Northside Gang! Lingering Touch - Mitra Arianfar (@_art_night_) In considering what makes us human, I found myself thinking about the human touches we leave on our environment, the things left behind that make you think, “Someone was here.” I thought of movie scenes where the characters enter a supposedly empty house, only to see something like a warm cup of tea and realize that they were not alone. My piece portrays such lingering human touches — in a coffee stain, a strand of hair caught in a hair tie, a daisy after a game of ‘he loves me, he loves me not.’ These inanimate black and white objects are brought to life by the seeping washes of watercolour which represent a human touch. In addition to this film-inspired concept, I also thought of film in deciding on the layout. Specifically, I wanted something that would mimic a reel of flashing images or shots — quick, focused, and meaningful when put together. The Lake Sleeps under the Willow - Tehya Metzinger (@cherrycatdraws) The two characters are quite literally made to mimic the action of a watery bay taking rest as a willow tree “watches” over, as the calm stream sleeps. The depths within - Yasmin Kareem (@yasminthecreative83) My piece is about exploring the depths of one's self, and that is a part of a human's experience in finding their identity. This piece was accidental. My youngest brother made a few acrylic strokes on the cardboard part of a sketchbook. I saw these strokes as beautiful, and loved the colors of them. I felt ashamed to think of throwing away the beautiful piece of cardboard. I suddenly found myself with a brown colored pencil and drawing my heart away. I believe my piece relates to me, and I hope it resonates with those who see it. The painting is about finding a purpose, and finding what makes you special. This is a place in life where I was wondering who I am and what my purpose in life is. And I am very grateful that I was able to capture it in a drawing. The lady in the painting is exploring her depths. Finding her purpose of life. Exploring her soul. She is on her journey to find what makes her special from other people. PHOTOGRAPHY Invisible China - Sophia Liu (@lollliplops) This piece is part of a series of photographs taken during my field research in rural and peri-urban China. "China" brings to me childhood memories of glittering metropolises of Shanghai and Beijing, the advanced robots that deliver food between floors in skyscraper hotels, and VR roller coasters in giant malls. In the past three years, I spent my summers doing field research on rural China. On long walks between households, dusty streets and thin curtain doors tell the story of a different China. Through my photography, I hope to show the side of China that most people don't usually see. It is a wonderfully candid peek into another type of human experience. This photograph features a woman going about her daily tasks in peri-urban Beijing. Tiny details like the overflowing laundry and cracked flooring unveil an invisible side of China that most people do not usually see. I hope to show a glimpse into another type of human experience very different from the typical. Issue VIII: The Human Experience is out! Read it here now!

by Sasi Kondru It all started with a follow. As I was checking my Instagram feed one day, I noticed I had received a follow from The AfterPast Review, a literary publication focusing on feminism. I had never thought about submitting to a magazine till then, but after clicking on their profile out of curiosity, the “submit” part of their bio really tempted me. Could I, a shy high schooler with a grand total of 4 friends, really be published in a magazine? I had never been much of a writer, but I had written a few poems before, and I thought that maybe I could submit one of those to them. It never hurts to try, right? So I did submit. And I was rejected. The first rejection always hits that hardest, and this was no different. I felt like submitting was a mistake, and I shouldn’t have tried. All of those other submitters have been doing this for years, right? Why should I try to compete against them? For a few days, I kept revising my poem, thinking about what I could’ve done better. I kept picking it apart and piecing it back together. To cool myself down, I took a break from editing and focused on other things, like reading and walking, and eventually, I came to the realization that since I’m a beginner, I should improve before submitting again. This led to me doing a plethora of writing exercises and asking others for any advice I could get. Everyone had something to say, and I was able to collectively take their advice and revise my poem for the final time. Feeling more relaxed and prepared this time, I felt confident enough to reach out to a different magazine (Girlhood Magazine) to ask if I could submit some of my work to them. And to my surprise, they accepted a poem and article I wrote! This gave me the confidence to submit to other magazines, which led to a huge string of acceptances. And I was rejected again. And again. And then I had 3 poems rejected at once. This made me quit writing for a few days, but this time was when I realized that quitting was only hurting me and my writing. I had fallen in love with it, and I wanted to keep doing it, and giving up went against that. So I kept writing. And I still keep writing. I’ve received lots of acceptances and way more rejections, and I’ve been able to be a part of so many amazing communities and even attend a virtual writing convention! But I sometimes have been left waiting for a response only to see a post about the issue with my name not listed as an author. I’ve also been accepted and then just never published. And that’s okay. I’m proud to say that I’ve had over 30 pieces of my writing published across a wide variety of magazines, zines, blogs, and even a literary journal! I’m also proud to say that I’ve been rejected well over 50 times. Those weren’t 50 rejections; those were 50 learning opportunities, some of which even gave me extensive feedback. So, to anyone who’s a beginner writer, or wants to submit to magazines but is way too afraid to do it: go for it, please. There are many people and places that would love to see your writing! Never be discouraged by rejections. Always ask magazines if you can receive feedback (a lot of times they will say yes), and ask for advice on your writing from friends or teachers! And remember, you will get rejections and submissions, but the best thing you can do for yourself (and for the literary world) is to keep writing and keep going!