I had the pleasure of being interviewed by Anna Nguyen for her podcast Critical Literary Consumption. We talked about my book, “Sonic Memories & Other Essays,” MFA programs, & how silence is its own sound. Check it out below. ‘Sonic Memories’ & Silences
Bits of Joy
Image via HBO IG: Lovecraft Country Episode 105: "Strange Case" cover by Salena Barnes (@salena.barnes) This past weekend I had the great pleasure of putting together a 10-minute podcast segment for The Inner Loop Radio's Quarantine Inspiration Series: Unearth bits of joy with Cija Jefferson, nonfiction writer and host of Writers & Words, a Baltimore …
Earth Day Reading
In a day full of blessings & communion I have one more beautiful moment that I’m honored to be a part of, this now-virtual Earth Day reading. Please join me & my fellow writers as we read pieces inspired by nature. Mine is an excerpt from my essay Midnight Run to Mexico. Thank you to …
In Honor of Earth Day
LA—the land of sunshine, beaches, and palm trees—was only five hours away but Rachel and I had been driving since sunup. It had been four days since we left Pittsburgh on a one-way cross-country road trip. Tomorrow was the beginning of the rest of our lives, but tonight we would sleep.
Best of the Net 2019 Nomination!
Image courtesy of Linden Avenue Literary Journal Wednesday I found out I was nominated for Best of the Net 2019, for my Summer in a Bottle essay published in the Linden Avenue Literary Journal. Honestly I had never heard of Best of the Net, but after a little research discovered that it's been around since …
I’m Trying Dating Apps in my 40s. Wish Me Luck.
Image from OFFSET, from article posted on Sisters Letter It’s strange to come blinking into the light like some nocturnal animal long burrowed underground. Last time I was single I was in my late 20s; now I’m 43. Before that I didn’t date; I hung out— the ’90s version of “Netflix and chill.” So not …
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On Growth
@ Black Girl Glitter, 2017 #subdued selfie You wouldn't know it by looking at this picture, but it represents a particularly tumultuous time in my life. And why am I writing about this today? Because Facebook sent me one of those 'remember this?' moments in my timeline and it made me reflect on where I …
Summer in a Bottle
What's more summery than soft-serve? New piece up at Linden Avenue Literary Journal. Excerpt: I hold these moments in my heart as carefully as I would a firefly cupped in my hands. Summer captured in a bottle is a wondrous glow of pure magic. Summer is Maryland humidity, thick heat, and swampland. It is central …
A Look Back @ Kara Walker’s A Subtelty or The Marvelous Sugar Baby
I went to see this exhibit back in summer 2014, and it changed my life. It's the single most powerful piece of art I've seen in-person. I was inspired to re-post my original blog after a colleague came into my office today and commented on the poster of Her. I've had that poster since 2014 …
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New essay up on Baltimore Style magazine.
No Longer Watching the Clock: One writer lets motherhood find her
Cija's Quips 