Shellie Kalinsky
@sheshellwrites.bsky.social
Writer | Editor | Mama Bear & Gigi
ShellieKalinsky.com
ShellieKalinsky.com
Super honored to be part of Seaside Gothic’s Issue 15.
November 17, 2025 at 5:07 PM
Super honored to be part of Seaside Gothic’s Issue 15.
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
"imagine if we allowed people to engage w poetry the way we expect people to engage w music. Nobody plays you a song they love or sends you a playlist & then says, get back to me w meanings of all of these songs."
@maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social on our 50th episode of This Mama Is Lit!
@maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social on our 50th episode of This Mama Is Lit!
Maggie Smith: My Work is Play
Holly and Amanda chat with Maggie Smith, author of Dear Writer, about applying poetic license to writing and beyond, embracing the beginner's mind, and aging in reverse through creativity.
open.substack.com
October 12, 2025 at 6:19 PM
"imagine if we allowed people to engage w poetry the way we expect people to engage w music. Nobody plays you a song they love or sends you a playlist & then says, get back to me w meanings of all of these songs."
@maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social on our 50th episode of This Mama Is Lit!
@maggiesmithpoet.bsky.social on our 50th episode of This Mama Is Lit!
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
"After a throb of silence, we asked what was wrong. He turned to the screen and pointed to a seemingly endless list of flaws and catastrophes on you that we could neither recognize nor understand."
from Michele Amoah Powponne's essay, "Dear Edith," in our Sept/Oct issue:
from Michele Amoah Powponne's essay, "Dear Edith," in our Sept/Oct issue:
Dear Edith
I saw you as a bean on a screen and I knew you were mine. Your father thought you were Albert, like his own father, but I knew that you were Edith, to be named for my much loved grandmother.
You we...
literarymama.com
September 26, 2025 at 1:53 PM
"After a throb of silence, we asked what was wrong. He turned to the screen and pointed to a seemingly endless list of flaws and catastrophes on you that we could neither recognize nor understand."
from Michele Amoah Powponne's essay, "Dear Edith," in our Sept/Oct issue:
from Michele Amoah Powponne's essay, "Dear Edith," in our Sept/Oct issue:
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
@amplifywithfemi.bsky.social is calling for contributions in our latest "Mama And" writing prompt:
Share in the blog comments, on IG w the hashtag #MamaAnd, tagging us @literary_mama on FB, & Bluesky @literarymama.bsky.social. The prompt will remain active throughout the month.
Share in the blog comments, on IG w the hashtag #MamaAnd, tagging us @literary_mama on FB, & Bluesky @literarymama.bsky.social. The prompt will remain active throughout the month.
Mama and...Self-Care
Two sets of pounding feet followed by shrieks of laughter.
What are the kids doing,” I thought.
I shrugged and kept writing. I had a cup of Bustelo, my Golden Era hip-hop at low volume, and a ...
literarymama.com
September 24, 2025 at 4:06 PM
@amplifywithfemi.bsky.social is calling for contributions in our latest "Mama And" writing prompt:
Share in the blog comments, on IG w the hashtag #MamaAnd, tagging us @literary_mama on FB, & Bluesky @literarymama.bsky.social. The prompt will remain active throughout the month.
Share in the blog comments, on IG w the hashtag #MamaAnd, tagging us @literary_mama on FB, & Bluesky @literarymama.bsky.social. The prompt will remain active throughout the month.
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
"The translators’ skill is manifested by the diversity of voice, nuance, and tone they evoke in this assembly of twenty-four pieces by thirteen authors."
ACS Bird reviews Amanat: Women’s Writing from Kazakhstan, edited and translated by Zaure Batayeva and Shelley Fairweather-Vega (Sept/Oct issue):
ACS Bird reviews Amanat: Women’s Writing from Kazakhstan, edited and translated by Zaure Batayeva and Shelley Fairweather-Vega (Sept/Oct issue):
Letters from Kazakhstan: A Review of Women’s Writing in Amanat
In the introduction to this first-of-its-kind collection, editors and translators Zaure Batayeva and Shelley Fairweather-Vega explain that the Kazakh word amanat carries multiple interpretations. It c...
literarymama.com
September 25, 2025 at 5:30 PM
"The translators’ skill is manifested by the diversity of voice, nuance, and tone they evoke in this assembly of twenty-four pieces by thirteen authors."
ACS Bird reviews Amanat: Women’s Writing from Kazakhstan, edited and translated by Zaure Batayeva and Shelley Fairweather-Vega (Sept/Oct issue):
ACS Bird reviews Amanat: Women’s Writing from Kazakhstan, edited and translated by Zaure Batayeva and Shelley Fairweather-Vega (Sept/Oct issue):
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
"I think that’s what motherhood is about—this small piece of hope that we carry around with us like a pebble. Hoping for the best for our kids as we white-knuckle the liminal time...between their constant presence and mourning their absence."
@rudribhattpatel.bsky.social opens our new issue:
@rudribhattpatel.bsky.social opens our new issue:
From the Editor September/October 2025
Last September I entered a new season of motherhood. My one-year-old suddenly became this eighteen-year-old launching her life halfway across the country. The days leading up were filled with late-nig...
literarymama.com
September 18, 2025 at 4:15 PM
"I think that’s what motherhood is about—this small piece of hope that we carry around with us like a pebble. Hoping for the best for our kids as we white-knuckle the liminal time...between their constant presence and mourning their absence."
@rudribhattpatel.bsky.social opens our new issue:
@rudribhattpatel.bsky.social opens our new issue:
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
Submissions are open. Send us your best short fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction.
Before submitting, please review our guidelines at the link below:
buff.ly/bqo8RXA
#poetrycommunity
Before submitting, please review our guidelines at the link below:
buff.ly/bqo8RXA
#poetrycommunity
August 18, 2025 at 3:17 PM
Submissions are open. Send us your best short fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction.
Before submitting, please review our guidelines at the link below:
buff.ly/bqo8RXA
#poetrycommunity
Before submitting, please review our guidelines at the link below:
buff.ly/bqo8RXA
#poetrycommunity
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
Ozzy Osbourne, the frontman of Black Sabbath, died today, at 76. Osbourne—along with half of the musicians in Led Zeppelin and the key members of Judas Priest—was raised in the bombed-out ruins of the British Midlands. Read more: nyer.cm/iCI3UFJ
July 22, 2025 at 8:07 PM
Ozzy Osbourne, the frontman of Black Sabbath, died today, at 76. Osbourne—along with half of the musicians in Led Zeppelin and the key members of Judas Priest—was raised in the bombed-out ruins of the British Midlands. Read more: nyer.cm/iCI3UFJ
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
It's here! We hope you enjoy the abundance of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, literary reflections, profiles, and reviews in our July/August issue!
May/June 2025
Literary Mama
literarymama.com
July 16, 2025 at 11:24 AM
It's here! We hope you enjoy the abundance of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, literary reflections, profiles, and reviews in our July/August issue!
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
🎧 New episode 🎧
Check out our conversation with Alicia Elliott, author of “And Then She Fell,” about cultural creation stories, contemporary Indigenous life, and how a psychotic episode led to deeper understanding.
Listen on Substack or wherever you get your podcasts!
Check out our conversation with Alicia Elliott, author of “And Then She Fell,” about cultural creation stories, contemporary Indigenous life, and how a psychotic episode led to deeper understanding.
Listen on Substack or wherever you get your podcasts!
Alicia Elliott: Creating with Intention
Eva and Amanda chat with Alicia Elliott, author of And Then She Fell, about cultural creation stories, contemporary Indigenous life, and how a psychotic episode led to deeper understanding.
open.substack.com
June 19, 2025 at 1:05 PM
🎧 New episode 🎧
Check out our conversation with Alicia Elliott, author of “And Then She Fell,” about cultural creation stories, contemporary Indigenous life, and how a psychotic episode led to deeper understanding.
Listen on Substack or wherever you get your podcasts!
Check out our conversation with Alicia Elliott, author of “And Then She Fell,” about cultural creation stories, contemporary Indigenous life, and how a psychotic episode led to deeper understanding.
Listen on Substack or wherever you get your podcasts!
“Like a quilt, in which scattered pieces of fabric are used to create a new whole, Kiefer stitches together scenes...” Read Lori Rottenberg’s review of Abbie Kiefer’s Certain Shelter here:
literarymama.com/articles/dep...
literarymama.com/articles/dep...
May 22, 2025 at 1:34 AM
“Like a quilt, in which scattered pieces of fabric are used to create a new whole, Kiefer stitches together scenes...” Read Lori Rottenberg’s review of Abbie Kiefer’s Certain Shelter here:
literarymama.com/articles/dep...
literarymama.com/articles/dep...
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
"Theirs could ignite harmonicas both in and out, making music in layers.
One breath could extinguish a candle with a wish; another could feed the campfire."
Frm "Breath" by Jessica Claire Haney. May/June @literarymama.bsky.social
literarymama.com/articles/dep...
One breath could extinguish a candle with a wish; another could feed the campfire."
Frm "Breath" by Jessica Claire Haney. May/June @literarymama.bsky.social
literarymama.com/articles/dep...
Breath
When the large poodle tried to lick her son’s hand, he cried, “It’s warm! Mama! Dog breath is warm! Not cold like yours!”
Mama paused. Her son thought she was frozen inside. She smiled awkwardly at...
literarymama.com
May 21, 2025 at 3:49 PM
"Theirs could ignite harmonicas both in and out, making music in layers.
One breath could extinguish a candle with a wish; another could feed the campfire."
Frm "Breath" by Jessica Claire Haney. May/June @literarymama.bsky.social
literarymama.com/articles/dep...
One breath could extinguish a candle with a wish; another could feed the campfire."
Frm "Breath" by Jessica Claire Haney. May/June @literarymama.bsky.social
literarymama.com/articles/dep...
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
NEW ISSUE!
Publicity manager @tinypoet.bsky.social opens our May/June issue:
"In a world of endless words, the blank expanses between paragraphs and product images become sanctuaries, like designated natural areas separating deforested developments. White space allows us to breathe."
Read on!
Publicity manager @tinypoet.bsky.social opens our May/June issue:
"In a world of endless words, the blank expanses between paragraphs and product images become sanctuaries, like designated natural areas separating deforested developments. White space allows us to breathe."
Read on!
May/June 2025
Literary Mama
literarymama.com
May 21, 2025 at 11:45 AM
NEW ISSUE!
Publicity manager @tinypoet.bsky.social opens our May/June issue:
"In a world of endless words, the blank expanses between paragraphs and product images become sanctuaries, like designated natural areas separating deforested developments. White space allows us to breathe."
Read on!
Publicity manager @tinypoet.bsky.social opens our May/June issue:
"In a world of endless words, the blank expanses between paragraphs and product images become sanctuaries, like designated natural areas separating deforested developments. White space allows us to breathe."
Read on!
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
Exciting news!
Meet our new managing editor, @elenamacdonald.bsky.social !
Elena Macdonald (they/she) is a writer from Virginia. Their work has been featured or is forthcoming in The Ekphrastic Review, Kitchen Table Quarterly, and Twin Bird Review. Elena is grateful and excited to be taking on this role.
Elena Macdonald (they/she) is a writer from Virginia. Their work has been featured or is forthcoming in The Ekphrastic Review, Kitchen Table Quarterly, and Twin Bird Review. Elena is grateful and excited to be taking on this role.
May 7, 2025 at 6:14 PM
Exciting news!
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
Our latest episode of This Mama Is Lit! features TV producer & writer Sandra Chwialkowska on her first novel, The Ends of Things, screenwriting, & surviving a book launch with a newborn.
@evalangston.bsky.social @hollyrizzutopal.bsky.social @ajfields.bsky.social
@evalangston.bsky.social @hollyrizzutopal.bsky.social @ajfields.bsky.social
Sandra Chwialkowska: Perfect Victims
Eva Langston, Holly Rizzuto Palker + Amanda Fields chat with Sandra Chwialkowska, author of The Ends of Things, about screenwriting versus novel-writing + surviving a book launch with a newborn baby.
open.substack.com
May 7, 2025 at 12:07 PM
Our latest episode of This Mama Is Lit! features TV producer & writer Sandra Chwialkowska on her first novel, The Ends of Things, screenwriting, & surviving a book launch with a newborn.
@evalangston.bsky.social @hollyrizzutopal.bsky.social @ajfields.bsky.social
@evalangston.bsky.social @hollyrizzutopal.bsky.social @ajfields.bsky.social
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
Hi folks! @literarymama.bsky.social is in the search of a social media co-editor. This is a volunteer position at a org dedicated to bringing mamas and mama supporters together through literature. Spread the word: literarymama.com/opportunities
Opportunities
Literary Mama is an all-volunteer organization that brings mamas and mama supporters together through literature. Over the years, our staff has included mamas of all sorts, reaching across identities ...
literarymama.com
May 7, 2025 at 11:03 PM
Hi folks! @literarymama.bsky.social is in the search of a social media co-editor. This is a volunteer position at a org dedicated to bringing mamas and mama supporters together through literature. Spread the word: literarymama.com/opportunities
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
"Adoption is one of the most unregulated businesses in the country. There is no federal regulation, so people can just do whatever. They can charge whatever, they can do whatever, and it's not regulated at all."
Listen to @thesusanito.bsky.social in our latest episode of This Mama Is Lit!
Listen to @thesusanito.bsky.social in our latest episode of This Mama Is Lit!
Susan Kiyo Ito: Adoption, Birth Mothers, & Reproductive Justice
Amanda Fields and Holly Rizzuto Palker speak with Susan Kiyo Ito, author of I Would Meet You Anywhere, about adoption, the complexities of meeting one's birth mother, and reproductive freedom.
open.substack.com
April 25, 2025 at 2:38 PM
"Adoption is one of the most unregulated businesses in the country. There is no federal regulation, so people can just do whatever. They can charge whatever, they can do whatever, and it's not regulated at all."
Listen to @thesusanito.bsky.social in our latest episode of This Mama Is Lit!
Listen to @thesusanito.bsky.social in our latest episode of This Mama Is Lit!
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
The Pen Parentis Writing Fellowship for New Parents: $2000, a year of mentorship, and the opportunity to read online at a Pen Parentis Literary Salon.
Deadline: April 17th
@penparentis.bsky.social @mmdevoe.bsky.social
penparentis.org/fellowship/
Deadline: April 17th
@penparentis.bsky.social @mmdevoe.bsky.social
penparentis.org/fellowship/
Fellowship Guidelines - De Groot Foundation - Pen Parentis
Join Pen Parentis Writing Fellowship - a platform for talented parent writers. Rise in your career, win 2000 Enroll now.
penparentis.org
April 14, 2025 at 8:38 PM
The Pen Parentis Writing Fellowship for New Parents: $2000, a year of mentorship, and the opportunity to read online at a Pen Parentis Literary Salon.
Deadline: April 17th
@penparentis.bsky.social @mmdevoe.bsky.social
penparentis.org/fellowship/
Deadline: April 17th
@penparentis.bsky.social @mmdevoe.bsky.social
penparentis.org/fellowship/
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
NEW ISSUE!!!
Our March/April issue is here, ushered in by Managing Editor Lauren Reynolds: "The mothers I know downplay their wisdom. This issue reminds me of...how much pain and joy are present at every stage of mothering."
literarymama.com/issues/march...
Our March/April issue is here, ushered in by Managing Editor Lauren Reynolds: "The mothers I know downplay their wisdom. This issue reminds me of...how much pain and joy are present at every stage of mothering."
literarymama.com/issues/march...
March/April 2025
Literary Mama
literarymama.com
March 19, 2025 at 1:40 PM
NEW ISSUE!!!
Our March/April issue is here, ushered in by Managing Editor Lauren Reynolds: "The mothers I know downplay their wisdom. This issue reminds me of...how much pain and joy are present at every stage of mothering."
literarymama.com/issues/march...
Our March/April issue is here, ushered in by Managing Editor Lauren Reynolds: "The mothers I know downplay their wisdom. This issue reminds me of...how much pain and joy are present at every stage of mothering."
literarymama.com/issues/march...
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
"And I think, Here he is.
Today, for now, it is not my pain.
I think, If anything ever happens to you, I would . . ."
Read Nicole Desjardins Gowdy's poem, "Our Children," in our March/April issue:
Today, for now, it is not my pain.
I think, If anything ever happens to you, I would . . ."
Read Nicole Desjardins Gowdy's poem, "Our Children," in our March/April issue:
Our Children
I drop my son off at kindergarten. The children’s faces peer from the windows of his classroom onto the front yard of the school. Not their real faces, but cutout photos of them. I can’t help thinking...
literarymama.com
April 8, 2025 at 12:26 PM
"And I think, Here he is.
Today, for now, it is not my pain.
I think, If anything ever happens to you, I would . . ."
Read Nicole Desjardins Gowdy's poem, "Our Children," in our March/April issue:
Today, for now, it is not my pain.
I think, If anything ever happens to you, I would . . ."
Read Nicole Desjardins Gowdy's poem, "Our Children," in our March/April issue:
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
The Naomi Shihab Nye Prize: Organizers invite Arab American and Arab Canadian writers to submit an English-language middle-grade manuscript directed to readers ages 8–12.
Link to learn more: www.albustanseeds.org/naomi-shihab...
Link to learn more: www.albustanseeds.org/naomi-shihab...
Naomi Shihab Nye Prize — Al-Bustan Seeds of Culture
www.albustanseeds.org
April 8, 2025 at 11:52 PM
The Naomi Shihab Nye Prize: Organizers invite Arab American and Arab Canadian writers to submit an English-language middle-grade manuscript directed to readers ages 8–12.
Link to learn more: www.albustanseeds.org/naomi-shihab...
Link to learn more: www.albustanseeds.org/naomi-shihab...
Reposted by Shellie Kalinsky
In our March/April issue, Heather Brown Barrett reviews Stacey May Fowles & @jensookfonglee.bsky.social's anthology, Good Mom on Paper: Writers on Creativity & Motherhood:
Meaning in Making: A Review of Good Mom on Paper: Writers on Creativity and Motherhood
How do creative mothers balance the responsibilities of motherhood with our call to artistic endeavors? Editors Stacey May Fowles and Jen Sookfong Lee, both authors and mothers, have carefully crafted...
literarymama.com
March 24, 2025 at 11:42 AM
In our March/April issue, Heather Brown Barrett reviews Stacey May Fowles & @jensookfonglee.bsky.social's anthology, Good Mom on Paper: Writers on Creativity & Motherhood: