Author: thebridge

In the Sneak Peek series we are talking about and highlighting some great works that will be presented in volume 19. Each editor chose a piece they were excited to share with others, so keep an eye out for them in the journal.

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By Dakota Lopes

Title: Are You My Mother?

Author: Kaleigh Rollins

“Are You My Mother?” by Kaleigh Rollins Poetry is its most impactful when it finds words for a feeling you might not have known that you had. The personal particulars of the author’s own life bled onto a page are to be applied as universal to the readers’ experiences, abstracted, and related to our own particulars. The world is a lonely place, and we spend much of our lives trying to make ourselves feel less alien in a world that doesn’t accept us. I find that so eloquently put to page in the poem “Are You My Mother?” by Kaleigh Rollins.

For many of us, a mother is a synonym for unconditional love, something or someone that makes you feel at home on this alien planet of ours. Some of us don’t find that in our own mother, or maybe we used to. So here we are, baby Rhesus monkeys, thrust into a life-sized Harry Harlow experiment. Rollins chronicles her particulars, while she looks for mothers: cigarette smokers, lovers, others’ mothers. And though we may not recount experiences that match these exactly, we can find our own examples of charitable drunks, coworkers, and cousins, who loved us when we felt alone.

The end of this poem ripped my heart out, it made me come to terms with an indomitable truth, the person that we can depend on to always be a mother to us, is ourselves. We have the power within us to make ourselves feel at home in our own mind, and it is only then that we can complete the search that we spend much of our life undertaking. Check out “Are You My Mother?” by Kaleigh Rollins in this year’s edition of The Bridge.

In the Sneak Peek series we are talking about and highlighting some great works that will be presented in volume 19. Each editor chose a piece they were excited to share with others, so keep an eye out for them in the journal.

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By Stephanie Pizzella

Title: “Land Siren”

Author: Olivia White

The poem, “Land Siren”, by Olivia White captivated me. I was enchanted by the mythical elements and elegant diction that encompassed this poem. In writing, I admire when you can truly visualize every line and phrase coming to life. You get a taste of this feeling when you read this poem. The graceful and sophisticated diction in “Land Siren” really stood out to me. The way the author describes the land siren— with phrases like “The ebony silk that swirled amongst her pale legs/ Was entranced by the haunting breeze that clung in the air”— was impressive (lines 4-5). The way the author described a simple action in such an alluring way is what makes this poem so imaginative and compelling. I enjoyed the aspect of mystery in this poem. We don’t know how the speaker ended up where they are, but that is what makes it interesting. We are left on the brink of a mystery. I noticed how the speaker does not explicitly state if the land siren they are referring to is an actual mythical siren, or a woman who the author is comparing this mystical being to. I admire how the author does not directly tell us, so we have to create our own conclusions. I personally believe the author is talking about a real land siren, which intertwines the affinity for mythology that many of us have. The breakup of the lines and the way White spaced out the phrases really added more emotion to many aspects of this poem. For example, the separation of the lines “As she swayed/ Towards me/ With a sneer of daylight fangs/ On an eternal midnight” added so much more intensity and passion to the poem, compared to if this sentence was all one line (lines 19-22). This story is haunting yet addicting. White’s carefully crafted words and intriguing mythical setting leads this poem to be incredibly magnetic

In the Sneak Peek series we are talking about and highlighting some great works that will be presented in volume 19. Each editor chose a piece they were excited to share with others, so keep an eye out for them in the journal.

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By Grace Guindon

Title: Tales of a Traveling Thief

Author: Alexis Tavares

What really grabs my attention when reading any type of work is actually the title. I think the title is very important because it is the first taste of what is to come and if done right can further entice and interest the reader. In Alexis Tavares’s “Tales of a Traveling Thief” I was instantly curious about this title and work as a whole. It got me thinking just what will this be about? What is so creative about this piece is that it is divide into two sections. The first consists of things the narrator has already stolen on her journeys, while the second section details all the things the narrator wishes to steal. While not provocative in the intended sense, I believe that this poem looks deeply at life and its unforgiving quickness which makes us want to latch onto every small spark of real joy we can get. Both sections, while different, explore and reveal the narrator’s feeling and reasoning. The first section is light and fun. It almost dances its way through the paragraphs, painting a picture of what the narrator sees. The way it is portrayed and its beauty, makes the reader want to be apart of it too. This is where we see the narrator’s perspective on life saying that “when we’re all in the grocery store, I think that everyone inside is sharing an experience with me.” We can see what the narrator values and what they take note of while passing through life. The second section contains a greater bitterness and critique about the world, it talks about how others try and dictate the narrators’ thoughts and action. It shows the way people possibly perceive us, ways that are not very flattering, ways that are even dehumanizing. In a nice juxtaposition from the first section, we can see the two realities of life: the good and the bad, or really the whole spectrum in-between.

In the Sneak Peek series we are talking about and highlighting some great works that will be presented in volume 19. Each editor chose a piece they were excited to share with others, so keep an eye out for them in the journal.

By Jonathan Gillis

A Special Request “A Special Request” by Samuel W. Tarr is a heartfelt read. Its a creative nonfiction piece that tugs at all the right heartstrings. Writing a piece of enthralling creative nonfiction is a daunting task for any author who hasn’t had the life experience of Jack Kerouac or Hunter S. Thompson, but this piece surpasses the bar. Detailing something as simple as cooking a special meal for someone in need of one, an almost universal experience to relate too, this piece brings the reader in to the headspace and perspective of the speaker. The opening conveys the feeling of apathy and disillusionment that everyone can sympathize with in one way or another. This piece brings the reader on a journey with the speaker as he rediscovers some passion thought discarded with the leftover produce long ago. All in all a wonderful read through and through. Keep an eye out for Samuel W. Tarr’s special piece, “A Special Request” in this year’s volume of The Bridge.

Get to know our wonderful staff working on The Bridge vol. 19. We asked Cay a couple of questions, keep reading to find out more!

What is your area of focus?

Cay Berman is a senior graphic designer.

What’s your dream job?

My dream job would be a freelance position in which I could take on projects that are meaningful to me, as well as work on my own personal projects. Essentially, I’d like to be my own business.

What do you look for when picking out a good piece?

When picking out art and design pieces, I look for something new and bold. Don’t be afraid to take risks.

What class have you taken in your field that you really liked?

My favorite class was typography.

Michael is from Fairhaven, Massachusetts. He has changed his major from biology to graphic design sophomore year so he can love what he does. Some of Michaels hobbies are photography, drawing, cooking, and gaming.

Get to know our wonderful staff working on The Bridge vol. 19. We asked Michael a couple of questions, keep reading to find out more!

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What is your area of focus?

Majoring in Studio Art concentrating in Graphic Design. Minoring in Management.

What’s your dream job?

Publication Designer or a Designer for mobile apps

What do you look for when picking out a good piece?

Originality and creativity

What class have you taken in your field that you really liked?

I enjoy all of my studio art classes, especially all of the graphic design classes I have taken. Some classes I found really interesting that I didn’t know I would like were my art history courses. Learning about Art history really opened my eyes to how symbolic art can really be.

Get to know our wonderful staff working on The Bridge vol. 19. We asked Jessica a couple of questions, keep reading to find out more!

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Jessica has always been surrounded by art and artists her whole life. She comes from a long line of artists on both sides of her family. Jessica has always enjoyed the simple pleasures of looking at artwork. Her favorite types of art are landscapes, portraiture, and character design. Personally, her favorite art to create is portraits and character design. Jessica loves how every face is different; no two are the same, in most cases.

            A couple of dream jobs of Jessica’s would be to become a book cover designer, an animator for movies, or a book/graphic novel illustrator. Any one of those jobs would not only complement her graphic design major but her illustrative talents as well. Incorporating Jessica’s illustration talents into her graphic design work is very important for her.

What is your area of focus?
Studio Art with a concentration of Graphic Design

What do you look for when picking out a good piece?
Something that is intriguing, shows how much effort was put into it, has feeling

What is class you have taken in your field that you really liked?
4D Design

What makes you smile?
Dogs

What’s one piece of advice you could give to someone wanting to submit in the journal?
Submit more than one piece. This makes your chances of being entered increase.

What’s your dream job?
An animator for movie

By Jonathan Gillis

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We Are Lost and Found by Helene Dunbar is a hauntingly beautiful coming of age story. Set during the 1980s amidst the AIDS crisis in New York City, the story focuses on the life of young gay teenage boy and his friends trying to grow and find themselves. The main character Michael struggles with living in his friends’ shadow and lives in fear of his home life imploding if he is true to who he is.

Dunbar extensively explores what it feels like as a teenager to compare yourself and consistently feel incompetent to your seemingly more successful friends. The feeling of loving someone but being so jealous of not only their accomplishments but of their being is uniquely explored, at least in my reading experience, throughout the story as Michael struggles with his sense of self compared to his David Bowie type best friend James. James has talent, looks and the demeanor that Michael wants and as the story Michael both grows into to be comfortable in his own skin and learns that James is more than just the Ziggy Stardust exterior.

The experimental writing style excludes quotation marks from the dialogue and the story is told in a more vignette style rather than chapters. The exclusion of dialogue at its worst makes it confusing as whether the written words are dialogue or inner monologue as the story is also told in first person, but at its best it immerses the reader into Michael’s singular perspective of viewing the world merging his thoughts and feelings with the events around him. The vignette style story breaks almost divide the plot into more of an act structure and makes the plot feel more connected and removes the creative manipulation of ending chapters with cliff-hangers which is one of my literature pet peeves.The experience is comparative to viewing a movie or miniseries versus a typical cable tv series with 20 something episodes. Both methods of storytelling have their pros and cons but at the end of the day it’s up to the readers’ personal preference.  

The immediate supporting characters like James and Becky feel real and genuine, fully flushed out people, but some characters fail to feel as real and genuine which is a disappointment as many are incredibly interesting at surface level, such as Michael love interest Gabriel who simply plays the role of “love interest”, Michael’s brother Conner that doesn’t appear in person a lot in the story but is referenced quite frequently and Becky’s boyfriend that acts as a neighborhood vigilante/ watchman which is never delved into as a thing that is happening seemingly parallel to the events of the plot playing out. Many of these can be hand waved away as the reader only understands these characters as well as Michael himself understands them, but nonetheless some wasted potential for interesting characters.

On a whole this coming of age story was a wonderful read cover to cover. The unique prose, creative methods of storytelling and themes of self actualization, love, fear, and hope make this a fine addition to any To Be Read list.

“We’re fine. I say loudly and more confidently than I feel. Just walking like you belong here. And that’s what we do. Because we belong to the city and the city belongs to us”

Get to know our wonderful staff working on The Bridge vol. 19. We asked Grace a couple of questions, keep reading to find out more!

Grace is working on the editorial side of this years journal. She is a junior here at Bridgewater State, and is majoring in English with a concentration in the Writing Studies, as well as minoring in Biology.

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What is class you have taken in your field that you really liked?

One class that I really loved was writing about literature. This class covered all my favorite genres to read including poetry, fictions and plays. The variety and diversity of stories enabled me to learn a lot and develop a solid foundation of literature.

What’s one piece of advice you could give to someone wanting to submit in the journal?

I would say to go for it! There is always a possibility that your work will be selected. It is an amazing opportunity to get experience with the publishing process. I would like to encourage anyone that wants to show their work to do it. We would love for you to share a piece something that you are proud of and love because the editors and readers of the journal will share those same feelings.

What’s your dream job?

I would love to open a bookstore café. In this café I would have all sorts of freshly bakes pastries that I’ve baked myself and delicious expresso and coffee to drink while flipping through some books. I would love to spend my days working in a place that is full of my favorite things, good books, good food, and good coffee.

by Dakota Lopes

Submissions for the Bridge are closed, however, that doesn’t mean you should stop writing! In the spirit of me starting my senior year thesis, and because I have some of the world’s worst writer’s block, I am assembling a collection of great writing exercises that you can try to start filling up the word count.

1. Steal a Style

One of the most perplexing things to do when writing is coming up with your own style, your own voice; and one of the easiest things to do while writing is steal. This combines the two. I was introduced to this exercise during a creative writing workshop some time ago. The goal is to take a scene from a book or story and make it your own, all while keeping the same style and form. You do this by replacing every word in the scene but by keeping an identical structure. Replace verbs with verbs, adjectives with adjectives, and so on. Tell a different story in someone else’s style. This is in the hope that by recognizing patterns in others’ writing, you can learn more about how style can affect a text.

2. 60 Second Writing Challenge

This is always one of my favorites. The goal of this is to, surprise, write a story in 60 seconds. To get started, take 2 random nouns and write something that incorporates the two. Time yourself and be honest, the best medication for writers block is a deadline. If you want some random ones to get started immediately here are some combinations of nouns that I have created stories out of in the past. Have fun and get creative!

-Squirrel, Zombie
-Walrus, Tuxedo
-Shovel, Piano

3. Back to the Basics

Sometimes people get caught up in grandiose ideas and try to intellectually challenging works that can get extremely overwhelming.  While sometimes getting simpler can help you get started on the page. Although intellectually stimulating work is important and interesting, it is not all of what makes writing engaging for the reader. What gets people emotionally interested in work is drama. Put two people in a room, make them talk, and give them conflict. It seems boring, but see how you can make this type of setting work. Don’t worry about the big stuff like themes and allegory, just give two people some drama.

Remember, you are supposed to like writing, that’s why you do it. So, if you find yourself avoiding the keyboard, then give yourself a reason to go back, make it a game with yourself and test the limits of what you can do to keep the brain pumping out the incredible stories I know you can create. If you are like me and suffer from an extreme case of writer’s block, then I hope this helps you out a little bit. Now get writing!

(Realizing now that me writing this editorial is really just a long winded way to ignore writing my thesis, points for being self-aware.)