The fabulous Atlas and Alice is featuring my creative nonfiction Playground Justice today.
This is a “breathless” flash—almost one thousand words—written as a single sentence. I used paragraph-style spacing to make it welcoming to the eye, but I hope you will feel compelled to race through it without pausing. I’ve seen several excellent breathless pieces over the last few years, and I was eager to give the form a try. It turned out better than I’d hoped.
The story centers on a fourth grade playground incident, drawing together themes of my childhood in a small-minded farm town in the 1970s. Tackling this subject matter was tough, and hitting the send button was excruciating. I don’t usually share such personal stories. A couple of friends helped me feel brave enough to send it out. I’m grateful for their support.
Kristen Ploetz, CNF editor at Atlas and Alice, was a dream to work with. If anyone is on the fence about submitting a personal story, go ahead and submit it to A&A—you won’t be sorry.
Myna, you are and have always been a badass!! I always looked up to you! Thanks for sharing the passion and pain of this memory, and also for introducing this writing style to me. I would say you nailed it!!
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Oh, thank you, LuAnn! This makes me feel so good. *hugs*
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While I’m horrified that you had to suffer such abuse by another child, I’m furious that the teacher also added to that abuse. Had a teacher tone this to my child, she’d be in jail, the child in juvenile detention and I’d have dared everyone to do a damned thing to punish my chid for defending herself.
I didn’t have to go through this myself as a child, only at home did I have this abuse.
You are a brilliant writer and when you tell a story, you transport me into it and I experience it with you.
Fantastic story, honey!!! I loved but hated that you had to experience it.
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Captivating in a horrifying way. Well done1
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