POETRYCHU, NICOLE Metamorphosis
MEMOIRCLARK, RAKIA What I Wish My Younger Self Knew
POETRYCLARKE-ARIAS, BRIANNA Musings from a Lost New York Native
FICTIONCOLN, ELENA Frustration
MEMOIRCONAN, VIVIAN American Dreamers
FICTIONCONGRESS, SARAH Love Bite
POETRYCOOPER, LILA In Memory of Ma
FICTIONCORMAN, LINDA A Gen F’er Meets Her Great-Great-Grandparents
MEMOIRCUEVAS, MEDELIN A Letter to My Unborn Daughter
FICTIONCUSTEN, SARAH Poor Virginia
POETRYCUTTLER, ANDREA 2018
FICTIONDA’COSTA, BERNA acknowledgments . . .
FICTIONDE LA PAZ, NOELLE A Ravenous Upturning
MEMOIRDEETON, GIA 85 White Street
MEMOIRDEMARTINO, SOPHIA silenced
JOURNALISMDIHYEM, MANAR The Hijab—A Shield or a Threat?
POETRYDOLA, LAILA The Clouds That Smile
POETRYDOMINGUEZ, KIMBERLY Dianthus
POETRYDOOB, GABRIELLA Born
POETRYDUBOSE-MORRIS, JOLI-AMOUR Lonely, Womanly
POETRYEKE, JACQUELYN The Letter
POETRYELMORE, MEGAN The Place We’ve Made
POETRYESTÉVEZ, ANNETTE Moonflowers
MEMOIREVANS, STACIE My Un-Quiet Self
FICTIONFALEYIMU, MORAYO Bechdel Tests
POETRYFISHER, ABBY Song of Myself
FICTIONFISHER, ZOE REBIRTH
POETRYFIXSEN, ANNA A Hero Is a Heroine
FICTIONFLETCHER, STEPHANIE Time Travel
MEMOIRFLYNTZ, AMY Fire
MEMOIRFONTANELLI, REGINA Swing Sets
POETRYFOYE, MEGHANN One Two Z
MEMOIRFRANK, LUCY SPEAK
JOURNALISMFULLER, JAIME The History of Hating on Books Like The Hate U Give
POETRYFURTADO, MARIA RITA The Colors of You
FICTIONGALINDO, MARIAH Dejar Pasmado
FICTIONGARCIA, KIMBERLEY Goodbye, Father
POETRYGARCIA NUEVA, BERENIZE The Undocumented Wonder Woman
POETRYGAYEN, SENJUTI (Im)Perfect Rose
MEMOIRGERINGER BASS, LAURA Only Me
POETRYGOLDEN, STEPHANIE #MeToo, Circa 1978
POETRYGUERRERO, ANALISE Identical
FICTIONGUZMAN, GIANNY Darkness and Dolls
POETRYHARRIS, NYLAH Hear My Voice
FICTIONHASKELL, STEPHANIE Abnorminials
MEMOIRHE, LILY What Happened to a Little Chinese Girl One Morning
POETRYHEILIGMAN, DEBORAH Ashes of Hope: A Prayer
POETRYHERMAN-DURICA, AIMEE Dear Universe (A Manifesto)
POETRYHERNANDEZ, RUBIT Silent Chaos
MEMOIRHESSE, LAUREN On Funerals
FICTIONHOBY, HERMIONE Excerpt from book in progress
JOURNALISMHYMOWITZ, CAROL Betting on Teens in the Trump Era
MEMOIRJACOBS, KATE I Could Never Love Anyone as I Love My Sisters
JOURNALISMJAGIRDAR, WAEZA Equality Begins with Changing Education
POETRYJAMES, SARANE Generation Futureproof
POETRYJEFFREY, BIANCA We Want You!
MEMOIRJENKINS, ZARIAH My Female Superheroes
MEMOIRKHANOM, FAIZA My Nani
MEMOIRKLEIN, LINDA KAY The Middle of Nowhere
MEMOIRKLIMOSKI, ALEXANDREA Saturn Returns
FICTIONKONG, WINNIE Dissolving the Spectrum
MEMOIRKOSTER, ELIZABETH Photo Montage
MEMOIRLECLAIR, CATHERINE Blender Night
JOURNALISMLEWIS, DIAMOND Hating on The Hate U Give
JOURNALISMLOZADA, JADE On Being America
POETRYLY, OUMOU A Stranger
JOURNALISMMcARDLE, MOLLY Joy Girls in Salzburg
POETRYMcKAY, CIARA Sisters
POETRYMISHKIN, JAIME Blessings
FICTIONMOJICA, NATALIE Self-Conscience
MEMOIRMORALES, BETSY Generation F: The FIGHT IS ON
MEMOIRMOREL, ANGELY An Everlasting Bond
JOURNALISMMORGAN, AMINA It All Started with . . .
POETRYMORRIS, EMILY Girls’ Trip Sestina
FICTIONMUKHTAR, AMINA Untitled (Cheating Man)
POETRYMULLEY, KATE I Lie Here
MEMOIRNARANJO, MILENA 61 Years Apart
MEMOIRNAZAIRE, SARADINE Tomorrow
POETRYNELSON, LIVIA We Can Do Better
JOURNALISMNESBAT, HANNAH The Personalities Are Political
POETRYO’BRIEN, CYNTHIA-MARIE Lunchtime by the Bay
MEMOIROKUNUBI, FAITH Faith
POETRYOTTAWAY, AMANDA To the Catcaller
FICTIONPALERMO, GABI 10 Years Later
MEMOIRPALUMBO, NIKKI Moms: A Study
POETRYPANTALEON, LESLIE Flight Departure
MEMOIRPARISEAU, LESLIE Ghost Geography
POETRYPARKER, RIA Invalid Address
FICTIONPARTAP, REBECCA Harbinger
POETRYPASSANANTI, JESSIE We meet again
MEMOIRPERSAUD, SABRINA Fighting for My Full Self
MEMOIRPIERCE, AMIRA New Year, New Orleans (an excerpt from “The Other Guy Won”)
POETRYPITT, ISIS Becoming Cinnamon
POETRYPRESENT, EMILY Colored Death
POETRYQUINTERO, STEPHANIE August
MEMOIRRAGHURAM, NANDITA Foreigner’s Tax
MEMOIRRAITA, RAIBENA Lockdown
MEMOIRRAMIREZ, SARAH An Anxious Child of God
POETRYREESE, LYNDSEY Anxiety
MEMOIRREYES, PILAR My Grandmother’s First Period
FICTIONRINALDI, EMILY The Burgundy & Gold Stitched Chair
POETRYROWE, JENNIFER For that girl
POETRYROY, ELIZABETH silence
FICTIONRUBIN, JULIA LYNN Mother
POETRYSALEH, DALEELAH The New National Anthem
MEMOIRSANTOS, MARIFER Between Worlds
FICTIONSCHEINER, KATHLEEN The Quarry
MEMOIRSCHMIT, CAROLYN TO honour your roots
JOURNALISMSCHNEIDER, ASHLEY From Kindergarten to Generation F
MEMOIRSCHWIEGERSHAUSEN, ERICA Be Safe
MEMOIRSERLIN, JAMIE Ode to an aspiring author . . .
POETRYSHICKMANTER, MARGO Orbit
POETRYSHOPE, RACHEL From Ellis Island
MEMOIRSLON, MAEVE Snow That Grows
JOURNALISMSPENCER, LAUREN Two Sides to Every Story
FICTIONSTEIN, JASMINE Red
MEMOIRSTITES, LENNA Uses for Chewing Gum
MEMOIRSTRICKLAND, HEATHER Faux Feminist
FICTIONTARANNUM, TASNIM The Tale of the Wind Chimes and the Disgruntled Demoness
MEMOIRTAYLOR, JANIAH Anxiety’s Wildest Dreams
POETRYTHOMAS, ELIZABETH Daylight Saving
POETRYTIGHE, MARYELLEN A Collection
MEMOIRULU, NNEKA A Contemplation of Love
FICTIONWALKER, LILY Fake (an excerpt)
POETRYWEISS, JULIA Course
FICTIONWHELAN, MARIA Refraction
POETRYWILLIAMS, SHANAI Point A to Z; a map of me
POETRYWILLIG, ROBIN Poetic Forms and Dance Steps: A Sonnet
FICTIONWOOD, ALIKAY The Proper Way to Shatter a Girl
POETRYYANG, KAITLYN Raindrops and Coffee
MEMOIRZHANG, EN YU The Sky over Our Heads
FICTIONZHENG, MIN Found You
MEMOIRZIMMERMAN, AMY memory exercise
MEMOIRZOLADZ, LINDSAY 85 White Street
Introduction
SAMHITA MUKHOPADHYAY
Photo Credit: Michael Creagh
In the fall of 2017, I had the privilege of speaking with you—this year’s class of mentees from Girls Write Now, and the authors in this anthology. You were bright and rigorous. As I spoke of my journey to becoming a writer and the obstacles I overcame—familial pressure, going broke, stereotypes, and fear—you nodded, recognizing your own journey in mine. It was an honor to speak to you, and after the event, several of you asked me how I got the courage to do what I do. Like me, many of you experience pressure to conform to certain ways of being, whether from your families or from the people around you. Use the art of writing to figure out who you really are—and use the support of the extraordinary mentors at Girls Write Now to take all the creativ
e risks you can.
Shyness. Fear. Shame. Humiliation. Sadness. Ridicule. Social pressure. These are all feelings that stop women from writing, especially young women. Generations of women have held back their real feelings and experiences for fear of what could happen should they speak their truths both large and small. Women’s interiority has historically been obscured by society’s expectations about what it means to be a woman.
Not anymore. You are Generation F—the latest generation of girls using words to speak truth to power, share your experiences, and change the world. After the 2016 election, there was a sea of change across the world: We saw some of the largest public demonstrations in history and they comprised women, mothers and their daughters, daughters and their grandmothers, sisters, wives.
The marches were multigenerational, but it is the young women, the girls, who are carrying the torch. Generation F—perhaps F for “fuck” or “feminism” or “future”—you are asking the difficult questions that are leading movements to fight against gun violence, sexual assault, and police brutality.
What a time to be alive. You are navigating what it means to have the most freedom of any generation before you while also recognizing that sexism, racism, and other -isms still hold hostage your sense of self and your futures.
These confusing times call for self-reflection, and for sharing, and there is no better way to do that than through the written word. Girls Write Now is revolutionary in confronting the reality that women’s voices are often overlooked, forgotten—or, worse, silenced. While the writing industry can continue to feel like an ivory tower, Girls Write Now creates space for diverse girls to workshop ideas, and by being a part of this organization, you are able to tell your stories.
So what happens when you find the space to express your inner lives? Fabulous transformation. It is through the telling of our stories that change happens, that our existence is written and our lives begin to matter to forces bigger than ourselves.
I’m beyond excited and privileged to introduce this ground-breaking collection of voices in Generation F: The Girls Write Now 2018 Anthology.
SAMHITA MUKHOPADHYAY is currently the executive editor at Teen Vogue. She is the coeditor of Nasty Women: Feminism, Resistance and Revolution in Trump’s America and the author of Outdated: Why Dating Is Ruining Your Love Life.
RACHEL ABEBE
YEARS AS MENTEE: 1
GRADE: Junior
HIGH SCHOOL: High School of American Studies
BORN: Bronx, NY
LIVES: Bronx, NY
MENTEE’S ANECDOTE: Working with my mentor has been such a great experience not only because we get a lot of work done, but because our meetings truly inspire me to write more. We have explored new genres and forms, and it makes me feel very lucky to be in a community where creativity is celebrated.
MARYELLEN TIGHE
YEARS AS MENTOR: 3
OCCUPATION: Assistant Editor, Debtwire Municipals
BORN: Council Bluffs, IA
LIVES: New York, NY
MENTOR’S ANECDOTE: So much of Rachel’s work is inspired by, or written for, people she knows and loves, which is inspiring in its vulnerability. Writing with her reminds me how important my friends and family are and how much they have shaped me. I am glad she feels so connected to her community, and I cannot wait to watch her build on that foundation and continue to excel.
Tribe
RACHEL ABEBE
This piece is about friendship—specifically, the power of female friendship.
Singing through the halls and dancing in the rain
Navigating through uneven terrain
Having them makes you feel a little more sane
Painting eyes and tying laces
Giggling loud and pulling faces
All the things that friendship encases
When you are with them
You will always feel the sun
Because a girl in the arms of friends
Is a girl who has won
A Collection
MARYELLEN TIGHE
Rachel and I were discussing how much we appreciate our female friends, and we had a goal of writing more poetry this year, so this is how these two ideas came together for me.
From skinned knees to class
from soccer to grad school and
weddings, growing up.
Promise to never
play “Jai Ho!” again. Though, I
miss the dinosaurs.
Have you considered
watching The Golden Compass
while in Baltimore?
Hurricane-zone life:
sun, beaches, cruise, everglades,
evacuations.
Science fiction and
writing. The formation of
the first planets, stars.
Starting with bikes to
origami, hikes. Sharing
stories, patterns, time.
JISELLE ABRAHAM
YEARS AS MENTEE: 4
GRADE: Senior
HIGH SCHOOL: Edward R. Murrow High School
BORN: Queens, NY
LIVES: Brooklyn, NY
MENTEE’S ANECDOTE: For the past four years, Girls Write Now provided me with a community of girls like me to share our feelings. Even if I didn’t share at workshops, it was good to hear what goes on in other people’s heads when they write. Thanks to Girls Write Now, I have a different perspective, and I have learned that every writing genre is a different outlet that can help express other sides of me. I want to thank the Girls Write Now community and my mentor for helping me move forward with writing. It will always be a part of me everywhere I go.
HEATHER STRICKLAND
YEARS AS MENTOR: 4
OCCUPATION: Senior Manager Internal Communications, American Express
BORN: Philadelphia, PA
LIVES: Brooklyn, NY
MENTOR’S ANECDOTE: Over the last four years, I have watched Jiselle grow tremendously, from a quiet, shy girl to a strong, opinionated woman. In turn, Jiselle has challenged me to explore new genres and always asks me how my writing is going, reminding me to put words on the page. We have become especially close this last year, opening up to each other and sharing personal stories to strengthen our bond. The Park Slope Starbucks (our regular meeting spot) will always have a special place in my heart, as will Jiselle. I am so excited to see what the future holds for her!
White and Blue / Outta Luck
JISELLE ABRAHAM
I wanted my final anthology pieces to illustrate the feelings that people of color might feel. Everybody’s experience is different, but we all have a universal understanding of what it can be like.
White and Blue
Simple in blue
Living in my world
Is a brownish delight
I can see your eyes
Judge my fate
Based on my skin
And based on your hate.
Heavy in power
Low in fear
You think my world
Is too much to bear
That’s where you’re wrong
And that’s ok
How can you feel a statue
When it says “Do Not Touch”
In the display?
I cope with my problems
I live on strong
I live my life with passion
And in faith too
Your life may be pearls and diamonds
But mine is ruled by White
And scared of Blue.
Outta Luck
I had so much patience for you
I let you back in
And that’s the stupidest
I’ve ever been
I should’ve just stopped
I should’ve just listened
To the blocked-out voices that told me
You were no good
I never thought that you could do this to me
How stupid could I be?
I was too busy
Blocking out the voices
When it should’ve been you
I asked you
What I was to you, and you said
you didn’t know.
Six months for an
i don’t know.
I waited six months to hear that none of it existed
That I just pictured
All the kissing
All the missing
You’ve got to be fucking kidding
You dragged me
All this way
To tell me I didn’t matter
And in that moment
My whole body shattered
But you didn’t give a fuck
And if I had a buck for every fuck you gave
I’d be outta luck
Faux Feminist
HEATHER STRICKLAND
Generation F means the power to be fierce. The power to be strong enough to publish something that makes me feel vulnerable and points to an example of the faux feminism we deal with daily.
My rapist is a feminist.
He went to the Women’s March on Washington one year after we broke up—a year after he raped me. There were pictures of him, smiling, happy pictures. Pictures with captions calling for equal rights.
A sign behind him read “My body, my choice.”
I wonder if he remembers how, the night we met, he walked me home, even though it was right around the corner. I thought it was sweet that he wanted to spend that extra forty-seven seconds with me. At the door to my apartment, he asked to use the bathroom.
Even though it took me longer to unlock my door than it would have taken for him to walk back to the bar in the first place, I let him inside.
He asked if he could stay the night. I told him I wouldn’t sleep with him.
“That’s okay,” he’d said. “I just want to lie down next to you. I just want to cuddle.”
I wonder if everyone’s definition of cuddling includes repeated attempts to remove my pants.
I wonder if I should have paid more attention to that. I wonder if paying more attention would have kept all of this from happening in the first place.
My rapist is a feminist. He posts links calling out television shows with all-male creative teams, telling them to “do better,” calling for a boycott of the Hollywood professionals who aren’t treating women with the respect they deserve.