Author Archives: 23goodwinn

The United States of America has long been facing a reckoning. In the wake of hate speech, domestic terrorism, and violent, racially motivated attacks, the people have been faced with a choice: confront the systemic injustices and personal biases that … Continue reading →

It may seem insane, that, with our whole lives before us, -so many places to go and so many things to to do, time the only restriction,- we choose to be envious of others and their lives, always hoping for … Continue reading →

The wind whipped through the city streets as Hester made her way to the entrance of the park. It had been almost fifty years since she had last seen Arthur Dimmesdale, and every minute of those years showed in his … Continue reading →

245 years since the founding of the “great” country of America. 245 years, forty four White male presidents, one Black man. Zero women. 232 years for the “great” country of America to elect someone of color to the highest position … Continue reading →

Metafiction has been technically defined as “fiction in which the author self-consciously alludes to the artificiality or literariness of a work.” To leave it at this simple statement, though, is to cut away the true beauty of the technique. In … Continue reading →

In his series of graphic novels collectively titled The Sandman, Neil Gaiman writes, “I have heard the languages of apocalypse, and now I shall embrace the silence.” Cormac McCarthy’s The Road is a post-apocalyptic novel, no questions asked. But what … Continue reading →

A quote from German poet Ernst Wiechert states: “Only pious people believe that hell is in a world beyond.” While Stephen Crane’s novella, Maggie: A Girl of the Streets, supports this idea throughout the text, Maggie in particular is an … Continue reading →

F. Scott’s Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby is undeniably iconic. It is a story of excess, opulence, and terrible people avoiding the consequences of their actions. Yet, somehow, those characters burrow their way into the hearts of readers. Nick and … Continue reading →

There was music from a packed kitchen most summer nights. On the neatly-trimmed lawn children and teenagers drifted like leaves among the laughter and the songs and the sun low in the sky. At sunset I watched them play guitar … Continue reading →

What does it mean to have morals? The dictionary defines them as “a person’s standards of behavior or beliefs concerning what is and is not acceptable for them to do.” In reality, though, it is not that simple—not even close. … Continue reading →