Blackstars

A personal essay in which Michael Gonzales reflects on the deaths of a dear friend, and a bookworm he idolized: David Bowie.

Source: Longreads
Published: Jan 10, 2019
Length: 12 minutes (3,186 words)

In My Own Voice, Redefining Success and Failure

In this personal essay, Lauren DePino looks back at her ambitions as a singer, and re-evaluates the rejections she once allowed to define her.

Source: Longreads
Published: Jan 7, 2019
Length: 20 minutes (5,245 words)

Cowards and Accomplices

A personal essay in which, in light of her own family’s experience during the Holocaust, Judith Hertog considers her ethical responsibilities in today’s world.

Source: Longreads
Published: Jan 4, 2019
Length: 12 minutes (3,153 words)

A Woman’s Work: The Outside Story

In the latest installment in her illustrated series, Carolita Johnson catalogues her efforts to maintain her appearance from about 1970 to 2018.

Source: Longreads
Published: Jan 2, 2019
Length: 23 minutes (5,775 words)

Swipe White

In this personal essay, Jennifer Chong Schneider considers what it is to be Asian, maligned, and fetishized in dating — and questions her own desire when she dates someone of her own ethnicity for the first time.

Source: Longreads
Published: Dec 28, 2018
Length: 14 minutes (3,673 words)

A Portrait of the Mother as a Young Girl

In this personal essay from our Fine Lines series, Marlene Adelstein finds herself transported back in time and consciousness via an inherited painting.

Source: Longreads
Published: Dec 26, 2018
Length: 12 minutes (3,190 words)

Jack, Jacqueline — Dad

A personal essay in which Yvonne Conza wrestles with the complexities of estrangement from her dying — complicated — dad.

Source: Longreads
Published: Dec 21, 2018
Length: 27 minutes (6,875 words)

Losing the Plot

A personal essay from our Fine Lines series in which Sari Botton finds that not planning for death is, well, killing her.

Source: Longreads
Published: Dec 19, 2018
Length: 22 minutes (5,667 words)

As Beauty Does

In this personal essay, writer Chaya Bhuvaneswar contemplates the powerful evolution of a woman’s beauty over time.

Source: Longreads
Published: Dec 17, 2018
Length: 12 minutes (3,169 words)

My Brother, My Self

In this personal essay, Katie Prout tries to untangle the story of her brother’s complicated, life-long battle with alcoholism against the backdrop of her family’s history of addiction.

Source: Longreads
Published: Dec 14, 2018
Length: 25 minutes (6,270 words)