STORY OF THE WEEK

STORY OF THE WEEK

Hidalga By Jennifer Delgadillo

Hidalga

By Jennifer Delgadillo
When the lasso dancers were done, they kicked away like wild colts, and one of the students walked up to the audience holding a paintbrush.

POEM OF THE WEEK

POEM OF THE WEEK

Mockingbird Ode By Craig van Rooyen

Mockingbird Ode

By Craig van Rooyen
So ramp up your heebie-jeebie preacher rant. Slip on your best bah-bah-doo dat-n-dat. Mock each and every sleepy word, tucked into its very own cotton candy cliché.

FINAL WEEK TO ENTER

FINAL WEEK TO ENTER

FINAL WEEK TO ENTER
Deadline: Mon., Mar. 31, at 11:59 p.m., PST.

The Contest is open to fiction and nonfiction writers. We’re looking for short stories, essays, memoirs, photo essays, graphic stories, and excerpts from longer works. See the Guidelines.

NARRATIVE FIRSTS

NARRATIVE FIRSTS

NARRATIVE FIRSTS
FIRST-TIME AUTHORS are a regular feature in Narrative. Read the works of some of the remarkable poets and writers who first appeared here.

NONFICTION

POETRY

NONFICTION

NONFICTION

John Irving at Iowa By Ron Hansen

John Irving at Iowa

By Ron Hansen
Suddenly John was there, in slim blue jeans and a rough white shirt that could have belonged to a Spanish troubadour or a sixteenth-century pirate.

POETRY

POETRY

Vaquero By Eduardo Martínez-Leyva

Vaquero

By Eduardo Martínez-Leyva
In Spain, folks call their denim jeans—vaqueros. As in, I’m going to slip into my vaqueros. Take my vaqueros to the bar.

GRAPHIC STORIES

CARTOONS

GRAPHIC STORIES

GRAPHIC STORIES

Let’s Learn English! By Tracey K. Berglund

Let’s Learn English!

By Tracey K. Berglund
A visual exploration of some amusing homophones and homonyms in the English language.

CARTOONS

CARTOONS

Cartoon Art Volume 2025-02 By Various Artists

Cartoon Art Volume 2025-02

By Various Artists
New laughs over an increasing readership, a shrinking patience, and various non-starters.

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The Lucky Bastard By N. Jane Kalu

The Lucky Bastard

By N. Jane Kalu
Only now does Grace understand that for her mum, the 1993 election held so much promise that it caused hope to spread like a disease.

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Roanoke Rapids By Ashleigh Bryant Phillips

Roanoke Rapids

By Ashleigh Bryant Phillips
Tchaikovsky can be real sad. And sometimes Tchaikovsky can be scary. But it’s never real scary. Things always turn out in the end.

NARRATIVE 10

NARRATIVE 10

NARRATIVE 10

NARRATIVE 10

Narrative 10 By Chris Bohjalian

Narrative 10

By Chris Bohjalian
When I was in college, the writer in residence at my alma mater suggested, “Be a banker.” I knew I had a lot of work to do.

NARRATIVE 10

NARRATIVE 10

Narrative 10 By Allegra Goodman

Narrative 10

By Allegra Goodman
I just knew I had a calling. As an adult it’s good for me to remember what I knew as a child. Writing is more than a profession.