Robbie Maakestad
@robbiemaakestad.bsky.social
Senior Essays Editor: @therumpus.net / Associate Writing Professor / Program Director: MA in Writing / Books-in-progress: 1) CNF: A history of Jerusalem's City of David 2) Flash Fiction: Bill Murrays / Robbie & James Talk Music: https://bit.ly/RandJTM
Pinned
THE VIEW FROM BETHLEHEM by Robbie Maakestad
Israel Defense Force (IDF) Soldier: “What the fuck are you doing?” Banksy: “You’ll have to wait until it’s finished.” IDF Soldier (to subordinates): “Safeties off!” —Banksy’s account of painting the ...
xraylitmag.com
Honored to write about the West Bank Wall’s history through the lens of graffiti, a mystery I uncovered about Banksy’s art on the wall, & the ongoing oppression of Palestinians in the West Bank by the state of Israel. Thanks to @xraylitmag.bsky.social for publishing it xraylitmag.com/the-view-fro...
Reposted by Robbie Maakestad
Don't we all love looking, as a wonderful poet observed, at dead things? A good season for that perspective. Thanks to @robbiemaakestad.bsky.social @mattweiland.bsky.social @therumpus.net. Companion piece from a WIP appearing soon in @revelliterary.bsky.social #booksky therumpus.net/2025/11/10/t...
The Spurious Glamor of Certain Voids - The Rumpus
Don’t we all love looking, Diane Seuss wondered, at dead things?
therumpus.net
November 12, 2025 at 11:33 PM
Don't we all love looking, as a wonderful poet observed, at dead things? A good season for that perspective. Thanks to @robbiemaakestad.bsky.social @mattweiland.bsky.social @therumpus.net. Companion piece from a WIP appearing soon in @revelliterary.bsky.social #booksky therumpus.net/2025/11/10/t...
New ROBBIE & JAMES TALK MUSIC Penny & Sparrow concert episode, featuring:
— Two Penny & Sparrow tracks
— @jawicks75.bsky.social talking horror films
— Me talking @jillchristman.bsky.social‘s “The Avocado” & braided essays
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
— Two Penny & Sparrow tracks
— @jawicks75.bsky.social talking horror films
— Me talking @jillchristman.bsky.social‘s “The Avocado” & braided essays
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
November 12, 2025 at 6:38 PM
New ROBBIE & JAMES TALK MUSIC Penny & Sparrow concert episode, featuring:
— Two Penny & Sparrow tracks
— @jawicks75.bsky.social talking horror films
— Me talking @jillchristman.bsky.social‘s “The Avocado” & braided essays
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
— Two Penny & Sparrow tracks
— @jawicks75.bsky.social talking horror films
— Me talking @jillchristman.bsky.social‘s “The Avocado” & braided essays
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
This @colinhamilton.bsky.social essay about writers dying is NEXT LEVEL GOOD. @therumpus.net #RumpusEssays
therumpus.net/2025/11/10/t...
therumpus.net/2025/11/10/t...
The Spurious Glamor of Certain Voids - The Rumpus
Don’t we all love looking, Diane Seuss wondered, at dead things?
therumpus.net
November 12, 2025 at 4:53 PM
This @colinhamilton.bsky.social essay about writers dying is NEXT LEVEL GOOD. @therumpus.net #RumpusEssays
therumpus.net/2025/11/10/t...
therumpus.net/2025/11/10/t...
Today I made a Bloody Mary using a pack of Arby's horsey sauce, and even I am truly disgusted with myself.
November 10, 2025 at 7:59 AM
Today I made a Bloody Mary using a pack of Arby's horsey sauce, and even I am truly disgusted with myself.
Man, the pandemic really ruined it for all those people who wanted to name their first child “Covid.”
November 8, 2025 at 10:25 PM
Man, the pandemic really ruined it for all those people who wanted to name their first child “Covid.”
Pumped that @jillchristman.bsky.social's "Spinning Webs in Space" at @therumpus.net got listed as a Notable Essay in THE BEST AMERICAN ESSAYS 2025. Shout-out to @darcyjaygagnon.bsky.social for editing Jill's essay. #RumpusEssays
November 7, 2025 at 10:58 PM
Pumped that @jillchristman.bsky.social's "Spinning Webs in Space" at @therumpus.net got listed as a Notable Essay in THE BEST AMERICAN ESSAYS 2025. Shout-out to @darcyjaygagnon.bsky.social for editing Jill's essay. #RumpusEssays
My four-year-old suggested we "just buy a house for $1" so lmk if anyone here in San Diego is selling!
October 22, 2025 at 8:48 PM
My four-year-old suggested we "just buy a house for $1" so lmk if anyone here in San Diego is selling!
Check out Episode 31: 1986 where @jawicks75.bsky.social and I look at music, films, and an essay from 1986.
Featuring:
- Music by Prince and The Cure
- Tim Hunter's RIVER'S EDGE
- Richard Ben Cramer's "What Do You Think of Ted Williams Now?"
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
Featuring:
- Music by Prince and The Cure
- Tim Hunter's RIVER'S EDGE
- Richard Ben Cramer's "What Do You Think of Ted Williams Now?"
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
October 22, 2025 at 4:55 PM
Check out Episode 31: 1986 where @jawicks75.bsky.social and I look at music, films, and an essay from 1986.
Featuring:
- Music by Prince and The Cure
- Tim Hunter's RIVER'S EDGE
- Richard Ben Cramer's "What Do You Think of Ted Williams Now?"
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
Featuring:
- Music by Prince and The Cure
- Tim Hunter's RIVER'S EDGE
- Richard Ben Cramer's "What Do You Think of Ted Williams Now?"
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
I'm loving Adam Curtis's SHIFTY. A found footage BBC documentary about Britain and Thatcherism. Well worth a watch as it informs today's U.S. political landscape in grim ways.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qtI...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qtI...
1. Shifty: The Land of Make Believe Adam Curtis 2025
YouTube video by vegetative streaming 🇵🇸
www.youtube.com
October 21, 2025 at 6:35 PM
I'm loving Adam Curtis's SHIFTY. A found footage BBC documentary about Britain and Thatcherism. Well worth a watch as it informs today's U.S. political landscape in grim ways.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qtI...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=9qtI...
Not only was I not in Paris this weekend, but I also don't know how to ride a motorcycle or operate an angle grinder. PLEASE STOP SAYING THAT I RAIDED THE LOUVRE.
October 20, 2025 at 6:12 PM
Not only was I not in Paris this weekend, but I also don't know how to ride a motorcycle or operate an angle grinder. PLEASE STOP SAYING THAT I RAIDED THE LOUVRE.
Listen to Episode 30: Melancholy Songs if u like:
- Sad music
- @angermonsoon.bsky.social's essays
- Tracy Chapman's "Fast Car"
- Up-and-coming Irish bands (DUG)
- @thomyorke.wastehq.social defending sad songs
- @jawicks75.bsky.social
- the word "fluorescence"
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
- Sad music
- @angermonsoon.bsky.social's essays
- Tracy Chapman's "Fast Car"
- Up-and-coming Irish bands (DUG)
- @thomyorke.wastehq.social defending sad songs
- @jawicks75.bsky.social
- the word "fluorescence"
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
October 17, 2025 at 8:49 PM
Listen to Episode 30: Melancholy Songs if u like:
- Sad music
- @angermonsoon.bsky.social's essays
- Tracy Chapman's "Fast Car"
- Up-and-coming Irish bands (DUG)
- @thomyorke.wastehq.social defending sad songs
- @jawicks75.bsky.social
- the word "fluorescence"
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
- Sad music
- @angermonsoon.bsky.social's essays
- Tracy Chapman's "Fast Car"
- Up-and-coming Irish bands (DUG)
- @thomyorke.wastehq.social defending sad songs
- @jawicks75.bsky.social
- the word "fluorescence"
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
Okay, if nobody else wants to be the Duke of York, I can be the Duke of York.
October 17, 2025 at 8:43 PM
Okay, if nobody else wants to be the Duke of York, I can be the Duke of York.
Reposted by Robbie Maakestad
@lizcharlottegrant.bsky.social will be here for in-person/live-streamed events, leading a workshop and discussing her book "Knock at the Sky" on October 29th! Purchase your tickets here! plnu.universitytickets.com
October 16, 2025 at 5:36 PM
@lizcharlottegrant.bsky.social will be here for in-person/live-streamed events, leading a workshop and discussing her book "Knock at the Sky" on October 29th! Purchase your tickets here! plnu.universitytickets.com
Last night in class we looked at structure and transitions in @lizcharlottegrant.bsky.social‘s KNOCK AT THE SKY. Excited to have Liz out to @plnu.bsky.social for the @plnuwritingma.bsky.social Visiting Writers series!!! In-person and streaming tickets here plnu.universitytickets.com
October 14, 2025 at 4:28 PM
Last night in class we looked at structure and transitions in @lizcharlottegrant.bsky.social‘s KNOCK AT THE SKY. Excited to have Liz out to @plnu.bsky.social for the @plnuwritingma.bsky.social Visiting Writers series!!! In-person and streaming tickets here plnu.universitytickets.com
Robbie & James Talk Music: Episode 29 - On Rotation.
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
In which @jawicks75.bsky.social and I discuss:
-Amelia Earhart,
-Margaret Thatcher,
-"Shifty" by Adam Curtis,
-The purpose of art,
-Rick Rubin,
-Music by Public Service Broadcasting,
-Music by Spoon.
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
In which @jawicks75.bsky.social and I discuss:
-Amelia Earhart,
-Margaret Thatcher,
-"Shifty" by Adam Curtis,
-The purpose of art,
-Rick Rubin,
-Music by Public Service Broadcasting,
-Music by Spoon.
October 9, 2025 at 4:45 PM
Robbie & James Talk Music: Episode 29 - On Rotation.
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
In which @jawicks75.bsky.social and I discuss:
-Amelia Earhart,
-Margaret Thatcher,
-"Shifty" by Adam Curtis,
-The purpose of art,
-Rick Rubin,
-Music by Public Service Broadcasting,
-Music by Spoon.
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
In which @jawicks75.bsky.social and I discuss:
-Amelia Earhart,
-Margaret Thatcher,
-"Shifty" by Adam Curtis,
-The purpose of art,
-Rick Rubin,
-Music by Public Service Broadcasting,
-Music by Spoon.
FYI, @therumpus.net is still open for essay submissions! If you want to get an idea of what we publish, check out the #RumpusEssays threads below.
therumpus.submittable.com/submit
therumpus.submittable.com/submit
The Rumpus Submission Manager
We have paused submissions for fiction and poetry, so we can catch up. We'll re-open for these categories on 10/15/2025.The Rumpus publishes original fiction, poetry, literary humor writing, comics, e...
therumpus.submittable.com
October 7, 2025 at 3:50 PM
FYI, @therumpus.net is still open for essay submissions! If you want to get an idea of what we publish, check out the #RumpusEssays threads below.
therumpus.submittable.com/submit
therumpus.submittable.com/submit
In September 2025, we published 10 siiiiicccck essays at @therumpus.net so here’s a #RumpusEssays thread:
We kicked things off with Celia Bell’s “Unwriting the Great American Novel: Helen DeWitt’s ‘Your Name Here’”—an essay about Helen DeWitt’s novels.
therumpus.net/2025/09/09/u...
We kicked things off with Celia Bell’s “Unwriting the Great American Novel: Helen DeWitt’s ‘Your Name Here’”—an essay about Helen DeWitt’s novels.
therumpus.net/2025/09/09/u...
Unwriting the Great American Novel: Helen DeWitt’s "Your Name Here" - The Rumpus
The myth of the PDF is this: it is an unpublishable novel, circulated online after DeWitt despaired of getting it out by conventional channels. When I talked to my old coworker, it seemed shrouded in ...
therumpus.net
October 6, 2025 at 8:27 PM
In September 2025, we published 10 siiiiicccck essays at @therumpus.net so here’s a #RumpusEssays thread:
We kicked things off with Celia Bell’s “Unwriting the Great American Novel: Helen DeWitt’s ‘Your Name Here’”—an essay about Helen DeWitt’s novels.
therumpus.net/2025/09/09/u...
We kicked things off with Celia Bell’s “Unwriting the Great American Novel: Helen DeWitt’s ‘Your Name Here’”—an essay about Helen DeWitt’s novels.
therumpus.net/2025/09/09/u...
We had an amazing @plnuwritingma.bsky.social Visiting Writers Series with @samuelashworth.bsky.social. He ran a masterclass on student drafts, read from THE DEATH AND LIFE OF AUGUST SWEENEY, and delivered a lecture titled “The Art of Telling.” Such a generous, wise human!
October 6, 2025 at 6:46 PM
We had an amazing @plnuwritingma.bsky.social Visiting Writers Series with @samuelashworth.bsky.social. He ran a masterclass on student drafts, read from THE DEATH AND LIFE OF AUGUST SWEENEY, and delivered a lecture titled “The Art of Telling.” Such a generous, wise human!
Pumped to have @samuelashworth.bsky.social visiting the @plnuwritingma.bsky.social program today to talk about THE DEATH AND LIFE OF AUGUST SWEENEY. In-person and live-stream tickets are still available plnu.universitytickets.com
Point Loma Nazarene University | Ticketing - Ticket Office Home
plnu.universitytickets.com
October 2, 2025 at 4:35 PM
Pumped to have @samuelashworth.bsky.social visiting the @plnuwritingma.bsky.social program today to talk about THE DEATH AND LIFE OF AUGUST SWEENEY. In-person and live-stream tickets are still available plnu.universitytickets.com
Reposted by Robbie Maakestad
it's tha 1st of tha month, submissions are open
thanks !
thanks !
October 1, 2025 at 12:00 PM
it's tha 1st of tha month, submissions are open
thanks !
thanks !
Thrilled to have @samuelashworth.bsky.social joining the @plnuwritingma.bsky.social Visiting Writers Series tomorrow!!! Get your streaming and in-person tickets here: plnu.universitytickets.com
October 1, 2025 at 4:24 PM
Thrilled to have @samuelashworth.bsky.social joining the @plnuwritingma.bsky.social Visiting Writers Series tomorrow!!! Get your streaming and in-person tickets here: plnu.universitytickets.com
An honor to be featured on episode 94 of THE WRITTEN SCENE podcast. I had a lovely conversation about writing with the host, Adam Greenfield.
open.spotify.com/episode/5qFk...
open.spotify.com/episode/5qFk...
Episode 94: Robbie Maakestad
open.spotify.com
September 30, 2025 at 5:12 PM
An honor to be featured on episode 94 of THE WRITTEN SCENE podcast. I had a lovely conversation about writing with the host, Adam Greenfield.
open.spotify.com/episode/5qFk...
open.spotify.com/episode/5qFk...
We're relaunching ROBBIE & JAMES TALK MUSIC:
-Short episodes
-Two songs per episode
-Me: talking creative writing
-@jawicks75.bsky.social: talking film
-Availability on pretty much every listening platform.
Give it a listen! We're proud of this relaunch.
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
-Short episodes
-Two songs per episode
-Me: talking creative writing
-@jawicks75.bsky.social: talking film
-Availability on pretty much every listening platform.
Give it a listen! We're proud of this relaunch.
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
September 23, 2025 at 5:20 PM
We're relaunching ROBBIE & JAMES TALK MUSIC:
-Short episodes
-Two songs per episode
-Me: talking creative writing
-@jawicks75.bsky.social: talking film
-Availability on pretty much every listening platform.
Give it a listen! We're proud of this relaunch.
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
-Short episodes
-Two songs per episode
-Me: talking creative writing
-@jawicks75.bsky.social: talking film
-Availability on pretty much every listening platform.
Give it a listen! We're proud of this relaunch.
robbieandjamestalkmusic.podbean.com
I've been in the same 12-team fantasy baseball franchise league since high school. Starting in 2015, I placed 3rd 9 out of 10 years. Again, this is a 12-team league.
But this year, I finally won. THE MONKEY IS OFF MY BACK, Y'ALL.
But this year, I finally won. THE MONKEY IS OFF MY BACK, Y'ALL.
September 22, 2025 at 8:36 PM
I've been in the same 12-team fantasy baseball franchise league since high school. Starting in 2015, I placed 3rd 9 out of 10 years. Again, this is a 12-team league.
But this year, I finally won. THE MONKEY IS OFF MY BACK, Y'ALL.
But this year, I finally won. THE MONKEY IS OFF MY BACK, Y'ALL.