Aurora Bonner
@aurorabonner.bsky.social
writer, reader, professor, nature lover, yoga enthusiast
Stripes at the Met!
November 16, 2025 at 2:00 AM
Stripes at the Met!
Community doesn’t just appear—it’s something we build, and sometimes building it means taking risks and getting out of our comfort zone.
This week, I wrote about the work of building community in the creative world and how small gestures can develop into meaningful and lasting relationships.
This week, I wrote about the work of building community in the creative world and how small gestures can develop into meaningful and lasting relationships.
November 13, 2025 at 10:59 PM
Community doesn’t just appear—it’s something we build, and sometimes building it means taking risks and getting out of our comfort zone.
This week, I wrote about the work of building community in the creative world and how small gestures can develop into meaningful and lasting relationships.
This week, I wrote about the work of building community in the creative world and how small gestures can develop into meaningful and lasting relationships.
Last week I lost ten days of work on my novel-in-progress. It sucked.
But it reminded me that creativity is about curiosity, not control. It’s all about embracing play: how curiosity keeps the work alive, some techniques for sparking creativity, and how to find joy in the process of discovery.
But it reminded me that creativity is about curiosity, not control. It’s all about embracing play: how curiosity keeps the work alive, some techniques for sparking creativity, and how to find joy in the process of discovery.
November 3, 2025 at 11:47 PM
Last week I lost ten days of work on my novel-in-progress. It sucked.
But it reminded me that creativity is about curiosity, not control. It’s all about embracing play: how curiosity keeps the work alive, some techniques for sparking creativity, and how to find joy in the process of discovery.
But it reminded me that creativity is about curiosity, not control. It’s all about embracing play: how curiosity keeps the work alive, some techniques for sparking creativity, and how to find joy in the process of discovery.
If you are a writer, artist, or maker, you know that every day is a little different—some days ideas flow and are some days not. But what if you could create a routine to get them flowing more regularly?
This week on Substack I’m exploring how to structure and schedule your days and weeks.
This week on Substack I’m exploring how to structure and schedule your days and weeks.
October 28, 2025 at 4:56 PM
If you are a writer, artist, or maker, you know that every day is a little different—some days ideas flow and are some days not. But what if you could create a routine to get them flowing more regularly?
This week on Substack I’m exploring how to structure and schedule your days and weeks.
This week on Substack I’m exploring how to structure and schedule your days and weeks.
Kicking off spooky season with this poetry collection! Loving the eerie, enchanted world Mary Simmons creates. Folklore, myth, and womanhood seem to blur into something wild and otherworldly. ✨🌒
October 16, 2025 at 9:22 PM
Kicking off spooky season with this poetry collection! Loving the eerie, enchanted world Mary Simmons creates. Folklore, myth, and womanhood seem to blur into something wild and otherworldly. ✨🌒
Cozying up to fall
October 14, 2025 at 9:17 PM
Cozying up to fall
A moment of magic on the trail! 💛🍂
October 3, 2025 at 12:05 PM
A moment of magic on the trail! 💛🍂
So glad to be spending time with Level Watch by Mary Ardery, by June Road Press, a woman-owned boutique press publishing some gorgeous books.
In this chapbook, she weaves recovery and nature, threads that resonate deeply with my own writing interests, together with such clarity and depth.
In this chapbook, she weaves recovery and nature, threads that resonate deeply with my own writing interests, together with such clarity and depth.
September 25, 2025 at 10:13 AM
So glad to be spending time with Level Watch by Mary Ardery, by June Road Press, a woman-owned boutique press publishing some gorgeous books.
In this chapbook, she weaves recovery and nature, threads that resonate deeply with my own writing interests, together with such clarity and depth.
In this chapbook, she weaves recovery and nature, threads that resonate deeply with my own writing interests, together with such clarity and depth.
Once again floored after a week of writing, readings, and creative inspiration in Vermont, reuniting with friends and being dazzled by some of my writing heroes.
August 9, 2025 at 10:01 PM
Once again floored after a week of writing, readings, and creative inspiration in Vermont, reuniting with friends and being dazzled by some of my writing heroes.
One of my favorite places to blow an hour or two on a rainy day (or a really freaking hot day). Not pictured: early edition Peanuts comics
July 31, 2025 at 1:04 PM
One of my favorite places to blow an hour or two on a rainy day (or a really freaking hot day). Not pictured: early edition Peanuts comics
Wild Women NEPA Festival here I come! 🌿🙌
This event’s been on my radar for a while, and I can’t wait to join the amazing line-up this August.
This event’s been on my radar for a while, and I can’t wait to join the amazing line-up this August.
July 19, 2025 at 8:25 PM
Wild Women NEPA Festival here I come! 🌿🙌
This event’s been on my radar for a while, and I can’t wait to join the amazing line-up this August.
This event’s been on my radar for a while, and I can’t wait to join the amazing line-up this August.
HippoCamp: A Conference for Creative Nonfiction Writers, one of my favorite literary events, is going virtual this year and I'm so excited to be a part of it!
Join us August 16th and 17th, for creative insights and inspiration.
Join us August 16th and 17th, for creative insights and inspiration.
July 12, 2025 at 3:13 PM
HippoCamp: A Conference for Creative Nonfiction Writers, one of my favorite literary events, is going virtual this year and I'm so excited to be a part of it!
Join us August 16th and 17th, for creative insights and inspiration.
Join us August 16th and 17th, for creative insights and inspiration.
Southern PA feels heavy right now—a slow, stickiness that’s asking us to pause. So this week’s essay is all about leaning into that slowness and trusting that sometimes doing nothing is part of the process.
Whether you’re resting, road-tripping, or just watching tomatoes ripen, I hope you enjoy!
Whether you’re resting, road-tripping, or just watching tomatoes ripen, I hope you enjoy!
July 10, 2025 at 6:29 PM
Southern PA feels heavy right now—a slow, stickiness that’s asking us to pause. So this week’s essay is all about leaning into that slowness and trusting that sometimes doing nothing is part of the process.
Whether you’re resting, road-tripping, or just watching tomatoes ripen, I hope you enjoy!
Whether you’re resting, road-tripping, or just watching tomatoes ripen, I hope you enjoy!
So many wonderful things happening at Looking Glass Writing Conference, and I’m feeling incredibly grateful to have been a part of it. From late-night poetry readings to inspiring conversations with new friends, this conference was a new favorite. I left feeling full and inspired! 🥰
May 23, 2025 at 9:19 PM
So many wonderful things happening at Looking Glass Writing Conference, and I’m feeling incredibly grateful to have been a part of it. From late-night poetry readings to inspiring conversations with new friends, this conference was a new favorite. I left feeling full and inspired! 🥰
Excited to be here at Looking Glass Rock Writer’s Conference!
May 16, 2025 at 10:23 AM
Excited to be here at Looking Glass Rock Writer’s Conference!
This week I had the chance to teach a yoga class to a group of fellow instructors on santosha, or contentment, which is also the theme for my recent Substack essay. If you’ve ever found yourself caught in wanting, doubting, people-pleasing, or spiraling through the usual inner noise, have a read!
May 6, 2025 at 5:51 PM
This week I had the chance to teach a yoga class to a group of fellow instructors on santosha, or contentment, which is also the theme for my recent Substack essay. If you’ve ever found yourself caught in wanting, doubting, people-pleasing, or spiraling through the usual inner noise, have a read!
Nature has always been a source of inspiration in my writing, so I’m beyond honored to have my work included in Rivers, Ridges, and Valleys: Essays on Rural Pennsylvania. This book brings together writers who explore the beauty and complexity of living in this state—excited to share it with you!
April 4, 2025 at 4:07 PM
Nature has always been a source of inspiration in my writing, so I’m beyond honored to have my work included in Rivers, Ridges, and Valleys: Essays on Rural Pennsylvania. This book brings together writers who explore the beauty and complexity of living in this state—excited to share it with you!
I just discovered Elizabeth Strout’s writing at the library this week, and I can’t tell you how delighted I am. Amazing character-driven writer with lots of books! 💗
I love when discoveries like this happen. Huge shout-out to my local library for continuing to open my eyes to incredible writing.
I love when discoveries like this happen. Huge shout-out to my local library for continuing to open my eyes to incredible writing.
March 6, 2025 at 2:00 AM
I just discovered Elizabeth Strout’s writing at the library this week, and I can’t tell you how delighted I am. Amazing character-driven writer with lots of books! 💗
I love when discoveries like this happen. Huge shout-out to my local library for continuing to open my eyes to incredible writing.
I love when discoveries like this happen. Huge shout-out to my local library for continuing to open my eyes to incredible writing.
So much beauty out there. 💛
February 7, 2025 at 6:56 PM
So much beauty out there. 💛
I took a hike, despite it being a bleak day below freezing with a sky full of clouds. I walked a few miles trying to just be present, to be there, to look outside of myself, instead of remaining inside of my head… ⬇️
February 7, 2025 at 2:03 AM
I took a hike, despite it being a bleak day below freezing with a sky full of clouds. I walked a few miles trying to just be present, to be there, to look outside of myself, instead of remaining inside of my head… ⬇️
Spring semester kicks off this week, and I’m thrilled to dive into a class I designed that blends immersive experiences with creative writing. Exploration and place are at the heart of my own writing inspiration, and I can’t wait to see what my students create!
January 27, 2025 at 11:40 PM
Spring semester kicks off this week, and I’m thrilled to dive into a class I designed that blends immersive experiences with creative writing. Exploration and place are at the heart of my own writing inspiration, and I can’t wait to see what my students create!
One of the ways I’ve been dealing with this week is by escaping into my WIP. Writing down these characters’s stories and burrowing into another world helps me to brings clarity into my own.
January 23, 2025 at 6:16 PM
One of the ways I’ve been dealing with this week is by escaping into my WIP. Writing down these characters’s stories and burrowing into another world helps me to brings clarity into my own.
To my past self who said, 'All this snow is great for writing'—kindly, eff off. Nobody’s in the mood for your optimism right now. 🥶
January 21, 2025 at 3:17 PM
To my past self who said, 'All this snow is great for writing'—kindly, eff off. Nobody’s in the mood for your optimism right now. 🥶