Hi, Fivers:
Read! Write! Share good words!
Susanna and the Team at Five Minutes
Weekly Five
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Goodbye March
Thank you again to our March readers Melissa Flores Anderson, Sara Bednark, Tenley Cederholm, Sarah Hare, David Margolin, Jenn McKee, Nina Miller, and Elita Suratman. They read 62 pieces! (Our editorial team is busy at work on February!)
Hello April
Finnian Burnett (“Birthday Call”, “Just a Haircut”) lives in British Columbia, where they write stories, teach writing, and try to conjure literary magic—and maybe a well-placed metaphor. When not writing, they're usually wandering in the fields, muttering about point of view and narrative distance like a queer ghost of an 18th century literature professor.
Paula Finn’s (“This Fish”) poetry has most recently appeared in Tupelo Quarterly; Spoon River Review; and Comstock Review. She is the author of the chapbook Eating History. Her poems were featured in the award-winning dramatic oratorio Triangle: From the Fire, written in commemoration of the historic Triangle Shirtwaist Fire. Website: www.paulafinnpoetry.com/.
Dave Godin (“Daily Ritual”), Wisconsin-born and retired from corporate life and the U.S. Air Force, spends his days writing his memoir, volunteering, walking his dog, Jake, and driving his wife, Lisa, to distraction. Five Minutes published Dave’s essay titled “Daily Ritual.” Jake says Dave has been impossible to live with ever since.
Abdulrahim Jamil (“Minivan”) is a man with a trove of half-finished writing projects, an incurable obsession with mystery, and a weakness for beautiful sunsets.
Kimberley Lovato (“73 Cents”) is a freelance writer whose work has appeared in Five Minutes, Travel + Leisure, Off Assignment, Virtuoso, The Magazine, The Saturday Evening Post, and The Best Women’s Travel Writing, among others. She’s also the author of Pisa Loves Bella, a children’s book that celebrates travel and kindness. www.kimberleylovato.com
Kate Meen lives in Salem, Massachusetts. She enjoys reading books of any genre, though always appreciates a good fantasy novel. She is also fond of writing, knitting, and drawing. She hopes to one day be a journalist. Kate is the newsletter editor for Five Minutes and is interning for April.
Amanda Roth (“Before Sunrise”) is a writer, folklorist, and multimedia artist living near the Salish Sea. A Pushcart and Best of the Net nominee, her writing is published or forthcoming in West Branch, Okay Donkey, HAD, Portland Review, South Carolina Review, and elsewhere. www.helloamandaroth.com
As always, Founding Reader Bobbi Lerman, Managing Editor Maria S. Picone, and Editor Susanna Baird are reading.
High Fives
Congratulations …
— to Shama for publishing “Pigeon Flying” with The Pierian
— to Ian Li for publishing “The Memory Technician” with Small Wonders
— to Kathy Curto for publishing “A Review of Linda Lamenza's Feast of Seven Fishes” with Milk Journal
—to Tammy Inman for publishing New England Brunch
Head to our Contributor Updates page to share your good news. If we missed shouting out a piece of your good news, please remind us.
Submissions Spotlight: Your Life Is A Trip
Your Life Is A Trip publishes singular travel stories told from the first person point of view. Your Life Is A Trip has “become the #1 website for experiential storytelling and narrative travel,” with a dedication to publishing a range of stories inspiring a variety of emotions. To submit, go here.
Visit past Submissions Spotlights for more inspo. Know a journal Newsletter Editor Kate should highlight? Email susanna@fiveminutelit.com, subject line “Submissions Spotlight Idea.” Must publish nonfiction.
Prompts
Inspired by our March pieces.
dropped • hail • trampoline • pretty • data • shiver • gum • order • headlights • purge • shedding • skittish • math • the last days • explaining the world • every morning • shy • outcast
Lines & Links
Every first line from March:
December 8, 2020. —“The Best Day” by Isabella Tasca
The sky is green and roaring like a freight train, almost louder than the siren, as a patter of hail pummels the siding. — “Alone Together” by Tammy Komoff
Backyard, trampoline, large heavy raindrops drip down my face, I spit them off to breathe. — “Suspended” by Bec Renton
In high school, I dated a girl I didn’t really like because she was pretty. — “Red Light” by Kirby Olson
"People with POTS don't run," says the cardiologist as she reviews the data from my running watch. — “Run With POTS” by Christine Reed
A shiver wakes me up. — “The Stranger” by Shama
Shaking on the stone slab she has been ordered to sit on, her eyes catch mine. — “Save the Dog” by Debbie Violet
We watched the bouncing headlights as they crawled across the frozen arctic landscape. — “Arctic Terror” by Bradford D. Smith
Today I’m ready to purge my closet. — “Comfort Wear” by Karen Zey
It’s 6:30 p.m. — “Fur-Som Prison” by Billie-Leigh Burns
We sat down at a Nakseongdae restaurant, mixing soju with beer. — “Nakseongdae” by Peixuan Xie
I was riding the bus home when I heard students talking about math. — “Maybe I” by Renz Chester R. Gumaru
The house is cold, always. — “Armageddon” by Darci Schummer
“All ladies like getting flowers,” she had told him, as if explaining the world to him. — “Birthday Flowers” by Louise Kuhlman
This morning, the warmth of tea drifted through the kitchen, soft as dawn. — “Morning Cup” by Bahrulhadi Nursyamsul
I was walking in the park looking for the next good photo. — “A Shy Photo” by Omar Bougacha
I wanted to stop by the funeral, see off Uncle Paul. — “The Visitation” by Kat Marie Yoas
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