Publication Announcement: Lawns

I am so excited to announce that I have gotten my first short story publication in Moss Puppy Magazine’s 3rd Issue. (Lawns on page 126, to be specific) To celebrate my first publication I wanted to discuss some of the influences behind the piece. But first, if you read the piece and were moved by it, I hope you will consider making a donation to the Alzheimer’s Association here.

Influences

This ended up being a very personal story for me. After coming up with the premise for the story, this one just flowed out of me. I’m not sure how to write this blog without it turning into a ramble. I suppose fiction would have no use if you could easily express emotion in an essay.

I drew heavily on my own experience of my grandmother passing away from Alzheimer’s and watching my dad deal with it. I don’t know that I’ve ever properly processed my grief around it, as I have never been very close with my extended family. One of the most insidious things about Alzheimer’s and dementia is the way the person you knew dies long before their body passes. In a lot of ways it terrifies me. It makes it so clear how fragile our self is. How easily it can be destroyed by degeneration. The selfish worry that this is in my genes and will come for me some day.

There is also a lot of generational angst in this story. I only truly know my experiences, but I think many people go through a period in their lives where they reject their parent’s experiences and live based on what they think is right, whether that is based on broader society or another sub culture. I’m not sure there is even anything meaningful there, but it is something I tried to fold into the story.

Finally, if there are any deeper themes that you read into it, those were 100% on purpose, and that depth was my intent. It was definitely not your own wonderful selves reflected in the story. As always thank you for your most precious resource, your time. Always feel free to contact me using the links on the left side of the page.