Hot Metal Bridge

Each #fiction piece reaches beyond the personal to reveal characters by and through particular, peculiar moments of history. They dare to confront, by varying degrees, the politics of our world. Each takes a discreet form, but are all beautifully wrought. hotmetalbridge.org/?issue=20

A new season of [in brackets] starts today! We're kicking off this season with critic and essayist @Wesley_Morris. Tune in on Spotify, iTunes, or Soundcloud. tinyurl.com/yy8ksjvq

"Now was a time, she reasoned, of curious surprises—of Belgian licorice and snappy radio shows, of shysters and oboists. Later, she would have her books and elephant tea. Later would be another kind of time." --Bustling City by @amymwright #fiction hotmetalbridge.org/bustling-…

So now he was driving, listening to the background invade his attention and snapping his concentration, wet sap, it was just about to completely take him on, when bam! --Tungsten, Tennessee by Jason Clearfield #fiction hotmetalbridge.org/tungsten-…

🚨 Submissions are now open! Calling all #writers and #artists: send us your #nonfiction #fiction #poetry #art and #photography! Submissions are easily made via @submittable: hotmetalbridge.submittable.c…

I know the gate latched shut behind us. I get to the bridge and shy. Throw my rider. If you were my rider, where would you have me take you? --How I Crossed by @ColleenCoyne #poetry #poem hotmetalbridge.org/crossed/

If you cantilever a lemon-yellow eighth-note, say, out over a half-note pause of pale violet, you get the feeling that something which had long been left undone, some burden you were born with, has been erased. The Invention of Music by Jean-Paul Pecqueur hotmetalbridge.org/the-inven…

“Step lightly!” they called to one another, “you can break your neck on these things!” But they couldn’t help themselves from rushing up, their hearts leaping, to the heavy wooden doors. --Top of the Stairs by @YardenneG #fiction hotmetalbridge.org/top-of-th…

In Gianna De Persiis Vona’s “Bobby Singer,” we see the unlikely pairing of two seemingly polar-opposite young boys who have more in common than they think. #fiction #shortstory hotmetalbridge.org/bobby-sin…

When the newscaster says “possible influenza outbreak,” and “quarantine” in the same sentence, my wife hides her concern in the pages of a book— tonight it’s John Donne. —None Can Die by Matthew Olzmann #poetry #poem hotmetalbridge.org/none-can-…

Fire can fulfill many needs. A shelter can protect you from sun, insects, wind, rain, snow, hot or cold temperatures, & enemy observation. Water is one of the most urgent needs in a survival situation. After water, man’s most urgent requirement is food. hotmetalbridge.org/the-essen…

In a past life I am a hero, not a heroine. Naturally, I want to be Alexander and Lawrence and even Byron. Sweep over the civilized, storm the sands. Fight in a foreign land & write an epic about my conquests. Men Set Out To Be Heroes by Deborah Flanagan hotmetalbridge.org/men-set-o…

Real life isn’t all about frolicking in idea fields. 🌱 --The Greatest Threat by @JoannaFuhrman hotmetalbridge.org/the-great…