Sarah Kokernot
@sarahkokernot.bsky.social
Writer | Grant writer & consultant at StoryStudio | Words in NYT, Best American Short Stories, Tricycle, EPOCH | Above my raisin’
Fiction writer, essayist, secret poet sarahkokernot.com
A newsletter on Buddhism’s wild side 🍃
sarahkokernot.substack.com
Fiction writer, essayist, secret poet sarahkokernot.com
A newsletter on Buddhism’s wild side 🍃
sarahkokernot.substack.com
Pinned
Sarah Kokernot is writer, teacher, and creative facilitator.
Sarah Kokernot is a writer, teacher, and creative facilitator. She offers workshops and one-on-one practical and intuitive guidance and support to anyone seeking to refresh or deepen their writing, sp...
www.sarahkokernot.com
I had so much fun designing my website and writing the copy that I'm now fighting the delusion that I can make money doing this as my fifth side-hustle. www.sarahkokernot.com
Writing is never as hard when there is a real deep love for your work 💘 I can’t wait to teach this four-week class in February on falling in love (or back in love) with your writing! @storystudiochicago.bsky.social
Fall In Love (or Back in Love) With Your Writing with Sarah Kokernot - StoryStudio Chicago
In this class, we’ll learn how to fall in love (or back in love) with our writing through a generative, expansive set of playful exercises.
www.storystudiochicago.org
November 10, 2025 at 5:27 PM
Writing is never as hard when there is a real deep love for your work 💘 I can’t wait to teach this four-week class in February on falling in love (or back in love) with your writing! @storystudiochicago.bsky.social
Reposted by Sarah Kokernot
Kyle Kingsbury is not a journalist. He is not an op-ed writer.
He is a computer safety researcher.
And he has written one of the most compelling, comprehensive accounts of the ongoing hell in Chicago that you could possibly imagine.
In under 1600 words.
aphyr.com/posts/397-i-...
He is a computer safety researcher.
And he has written one of the most compelling, comprehensive accounts of the ongoing hell in Chicago that you could possibly imagine.
In under 1600 words.
aphyr.com/posts/397-i-...
November 9, 2025 at 8:49 PM
Kyle Kingsbury is not a journalist. He is not an op-ed writer.
He is a computer safety researcher.
And he has written one of the most compelling, comprehensive accounts of the ongoing hell in Chicago that you could possibly imagine.
In under 1600 words.
aphyr.com/posts/397-i-...
He is a computer safety researcher.
And he has written one of the most compelling, comprehensive accounts of the ongoing hell in Chicago that you could possibly imagine.
In under 1600 words.
aphyr.com/posts/397-i-...
Reposted by Sarah Kokernot
"Unlike stories, real life, when it has passed, inclines towards obscurity, not clarity."
-Elena Ferrante
Amongst the final sentences of the final passage in the Neapolitan Quartet.
-Elena Ferrante
Amongst the final sentences of the final passage in the Neapolitan Quartet.
November 8, 2025 at 8:53 PM
"Unlike stories, real life, when it has passed, inclines towards obscurity, not clarity."
-Elena Ferrante
Amongst the final sentences of the final passage in the Neapolitan Quartet.
-Elena Ferrante
Amongst the final sentences of the final passage in the Neapolitan Quartet.
I wrote this piece for anyone who has questions about how solitary dharma practice benefits others, and why practicing outside of group settings should not be considered selfish or isolated or self-help. I look at how meditating alone in a cave for forty years can help awaken the whole world.
No Solitary Dharma Practitioners — Sarah Kokernot
A friend of mine, Ryan Rose Weaver, has a wonderful Substack, In Tending , on caregiving, creativity, and contemplative practice. She interviewed me for a newsletter and we talked a lo...
www.sarahkokernot.com
November 8, 2025 at 2:56 PM
I wrote this piece for anyone who has questions about how solitary dharma practice benefits others, and why practicing outside of group settings should not be considered selfish or isolated or self-help. I look at how meditating alone in a cave for forty years can help awaken the whole world.
I curated a list of some of my favorite things I read/heard/saw lately and put them in post. Highlights include: books on spiritual ecology, a short piece on solitary dharma practice, links to non-dual activist resources, Sufi poetry with translation, a link a soberly funny pep talk for writers ❤️
The Curio Cabinet of Dharma & Spirituality
A curation of dharma, spirituality, & writing resources
substack.com
November 8, 2025 at 2:47 PM
I curated a list of some of my favorite things I read/heard/saw lately and put them in post. Highlights include: books on spiritual ecology, a short piece on solitary dharma practice, links to non-dual activist resources, Sufi poetry with translation, a link a soberly funny pep talk for writers ❤️
Excited that we can finally share the news! So proud to work with the amazing team at @storystudiochicago.bsky.social! 🫶🏼
HUGE ANNOUCEMENT: We are beside ourselves with excitement to share with you that we've been awarded a $100,000 grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
November 6, 2025 at 10:47 PM
Excited that we can finally share the news! So proud to work with the amazing team at @storystudiochicago.bsky.social! 🫶🏼
Reposted by Sarah Kokernot
Halfway through the second draft of a novel, wandering my house unshowered and unshaved, muttering John Barth's "mere busyness in a story’s middle does not necessarily advance the plot" over and over...
November 6, 2025 at 7:43 PM
Halfway through the second draft of a novel, wandering my house unshowered and unshaved, muttering John Barth's "mere busyness in a story’s middle does not necessarily advance the plot" over and over...
Reposted by Sarah Kokernot
Recent major dudes / lesser demons
November 5, 2025 at 3:03 PM
Recent major dudes / lesser demons
Reposted by Sarah Kokernot
I like that republicans keep calling mamdani a “literal communist” because they’ve been calling everyone to the left of william mckinley a communist for a hundred years and they need to distinguish
November 5, 2025 at 2:24 PM
I like that republicans keep calling mamdani a “literal communist” because they’ve been calling everyone to the left of william mckinley a communist for a hundred years and they need to distinguish
Reposted by Sarah Kokernot
WOW. A federal judge says he's going to issue a Temporary Restraining Order requiring ICE to make changes at the Broadview facility in Chicago, a facility that until January was only for stays under 12 hours "absent exceptional circumstances," but has become, in Judge Gettleman's words, "a prison."
U.S. Robert Gettleman is now giving his thoughts. He says, "I think the evidence has been pretty strong that this facility is no longer just a temporary holding facility. …
"It has really become a prison."
"It has really become a prison."
DOJ's Jana Brady steps up next but says she'll largely "rest on our brief that we filed."
She wants any TRO to not "interfere with the executive branch."
She wants any TRO to not "interfere with the executive branch."
November 4, 2025 at 10:29 PM
WOW. A federal judge says he's going to issue a Temporary Restraining Order requiring ICE to make changes at the Broadview facility in Chicago, a facility that until January was only for stays under 12 hours "absent exceptional circumstances," but has become, in Judge Gettleman's words, "a prison."
Reposted by Sarah Kokernot
And again, a pattern of putting out statements accusing people of serious Federal crimes and then releasing them hours or days or weeks later with no charges. And no retraction.
NEWS: Federal agents crashed with woman’s car, pointed guns at her, dragged her out by legs, tossed her in a minivan, held her and (eventually) let her go without charges. This as Chicagoans say the immigration blitz is out of control. (DHS blames her.)
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/03/c...
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/03/c...
Chicago woman dragged out of her car after colliding with ICE demands accountability
The arrest of Dayanne Figueroa highlights growing concerns about the use of force against U.S. citizens and due process. She was released after a few hours without charges.
www.chicagotribune.com
November 3, 2025 at 1:32 PM
And again, a pattern of putting out statements accusing people of serious Federal crimes and then releasing them hours or days or weeks later with no charges. And no retraction.
“To be a good citizen of a bad state, one has to do scary things.“
Opinion | How to Be a Good Citizen of a Bad Country
www.nytimes.com
November 3, 2025 at 4:02 PM
“To be a good citizen of a bad state, one has to do scary things.“
I had so much fun designing my website and writing the copy that I'm now fighting the delusion that I can make money doing this as my fifth side-hustle. www.sarahkokernot.com
Sarah Kokernot is writer, teacher, and creative facilitator.
Sarah Kokernot is a writer, teacher, and creative facilitator. She offers workshops and one-on-one practical and intuitive guidance and support to anyone seeking to refresh or deepen their writing, sp...
www.sarahkokernot.com
November 2, 2025 at 8:09 PM
I had so much fun designing my website and writing the copy that I'm now fighting the delusion that I can make money doing this as my fifth side-hustle. www.sarahkokernot.com
I came out as a poet to my novelist husband and he looked at me tenderly and said it’s okay, I’ll love you no matter what.
November 2, 2025 at 4:52 PM
I came out as a poet to my novelist husband and he looked at me tenderly and said it’s okay, I’ll love you no matter what.
So proud of my partner doing this interview on why he’s a horror writer 💀🥀
super proud to be part of this @wbez.org story alongside two amazing writers, love that I was photoshopped so that it looks like I’m lurking & about to jumpscare the both of them
www.wbez.org/books/2025/1...
www.wbez.org/books/2025/1...
How to write a horror story: Three writers on the art of the scare
The American Writers Museum of Chicago will open an exhibit in November on the influence of religion and culture on creative works, including the horror genre.
www.wbez.org
October 30, 2025 at 10:53 PM
So proud of my partner doing this interview on why he’s a horror writer 💀🥀
"Do Democrats know what the working class actually looks like?" Nope.
In @nytopinion.nytimes.com
“Why do so many people feel the need to work so hard to redeem a man who had a Nazi tattoo?” our columnist Tressie McMillan Cottom writes.
“Why do so many people feel the need to work so hard to redeem a man who had a Nazi tattoo?” our columnist Tressie McMillan Cottom writes.
Opinion | A Nazi Tattoo Exposes Democrats’ Greatest Weakness
Do Democrats know what the working class actually looks like?
nyti.ms
October 30, 2025 at 4:30 PM
"Do Democrats know what the working class actually looks like?" Nope.
Make that $150!
Happy to report that in the last three days I have raised $120 for the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant & Refugees Rights through newsletter subscriptions! All paid subscriptions this month will be donated in full to the ICIRR.
October 27, 2025 at 6:24 PM
Make that $150!
Reposted by Sarah Kokernot
There are still spots left for our one-night in-person class with @sarahkokernot.bsky.social this Wed, Oct 29, "The Answer Is Already Here: Make Your Own Writing Oracle."
Reserve your spot now in this terrific class: buff.ly/gIYtXBX
#writingcommunity
Reserve your spot now in this terrific class: buff.ly/gIYtXBX
#writingcommunity
Genre Series: The Answer Is Already Here: Make Your Own Writing Oracle with Sarah Kokernot - StoryStudio Chicago
In this class, we'll explore the oracles of inquiry, collage, and bibliomancy to gather inspiration for new ideas, get "unstuck” on creative projects, build more meaningful patterns in your work, and…
www.storystudiochicago.org
October 27, 2025 at 4:03 PM
There are still spots left for our one-night in-person class with @sarahkokernot.bsky.social this Wed, Oct 29, "The Answer Is Already Here: Make Your Own Writing Oracle."
Reserve your spot now in this terrific class: buff.ly/gIYtXBX
#writingcommunity
Reserve your spot now in this terrific class: buff.ly/gIYtXBX
#writingcommunity
Reposted by Sarah Kokernot
Whenever people complain about the number of folks relying on food stamps, it is worth reminding them that SNAP is, by too large of a degree, a subsidy for corporations that refuse to pay a living wage and their political allies who reject public policy prescriptions to reduce income inequality.
October 27, 2025 at 1:11 AM
Whenever people complain about the number of folks relying on food stamps, it is worth reminding them that SNAP is, by too large of a degree, a subsidy for corporations that refuse to pay a living wage and their political allies who reject public policy prescriptions to reduce income inequality.
Reposted by Sarah Kokernot
Reposted by Sarah Kokernot
My gut feeling is that "people overworked and tired" accounts for 90% of what appears to be apathy.
I try to avoid "real organizers vs. fake/keyboard organizers" framings for the most part but one thing you learn quickly from organizing is how difficult it is to get people to do anything at all, how much you're competing against sociologically. people are overworked and tired
October 26, 2025 at 1:06 PM
My gut feeling is that "people overworked and tired" accounts for 90% of what appears to be apathy.
Reposted by Sarah Kokernot
Catherine Connolly, the independent socialist, is President-Elect. Yet again, Ireland bucks the trend of liberal democracies falling to far right nihilism. Here is who she is - Connolly supports the LGBTQ community & People with Disabilities, Carers & a United Ireland. #Aras25 #SpeirGhorm
October 25, 2025 at 3:54 PM
Catherine Connolly, the independent socialist, is President-Elect. Yet again, Ireland bucks the trend of liberal democracies falling to far right nihilism. Here is who she is - Connolly supports the LGBTQ community & People with Disabilities, Carers & a United Ireland. #Aras25 #SpeirGhorm
Reposted by Sarah Kokernot
This is, I think, the third time I've posted it since I happened to hear it live in July, but here's historian/author @vermontgmg.bsky.social predicting with chilling accuracy what would happen as ICE quickly ramped up its recruiting.
www.kqed.org/forum/201010...
www.kqed.org/forum/201010...
ICE’s Budget Just Tripled. What’s Next? | KQED
We talk to Garrett Graff about the implications of a radically expanded ICE.
www.kqed.org
October 24, 2025 at 6:32 PM
This is, I think, the third time I've posted it since I happened to hear it live in July, but here's historian/author @vermontgmg.bsky.social predicting with chilling accuracy what would happen as ICE quickly ramped up its recruiting.
www.kqed.org/forum/201010...
www.kqed.org/forum/201010...
Had such a wonderful writing class on at Greenspell Herbal School last Wednesday! We went on the world’s tiniest plant walk to a strip of untended green space at the edge of the parking lot found hidden natural beauty. Then: we wrote letters & poems in praise of decay, ancestry, renewal, & compost!
October 24, 2025 at 6:14 PM
Had such a wonderful writing class on at Greenspell Herbal School last Wednesday! We went on the world’s tiniest plant walk to a strip of untended green space at the edge of the parking lot found hidden natural beauty. Then: we wrote letters & poems in praise of decay, ancestry, renewal, & compost!
So excited to teach this class next week!
Have a creative roadblock? Feel like you’ve used all the tricks in the bag? In this class with instructor @sarahkokernot.bsky.social, we’ll explore the oracles of inquiry, collage, and bibliomancy to gather inspiration for new ideas.
IN PERSON, one night only, next Wed 10/29
IN PERSON, one night only, next Wed 10/29
Genre Series: The Answer Is Already Here: Make Your Own Writing Oracle with Sarah Kokernot - StoryStudio Chicago
In this class, we'll explore the oracles of inquiry, collage, and bibliomancy to gather inspiration for new ideas, get "unstuck” on creative projects, build more meaningful patterns in your work, and…
buff.ly
October 21, 2025 at 5:11 PM
So excited to teach this class next week!