Category: Side A

“A Day at the Beach,” a poem for Side A by Nicole Callihan

A Day at the Beach The nurse says I’ll likely feel okay, a little tired, very warm. Like you’ve spent a day at the beach, she says. But it’s winter in New York. After treatment, I eat two street tacos on a cold wet corner, walk to Chinatown, pay cash for burn cream. There’s a…
New Poetry for Side A: “into the looking glass” by Sarah Aziz

into the looking glass and stumbling into you, father-land. your breath lances through me like a friday afternoon scolding.she traces my crooked nose, and cuts her fingertip on the wanton marblesswishing in your mouth. I understand you, which is to say, I am you: swaddledin a dream of pink, a moth eating into a pair…
Side A Hybrid Piece: “Early People” by Jeffrey Hermann

Early People Early people looked at stars and just had no idea. Then someone had an idea. They drew it on a cave wall with a burnt stick. Meanwhile, I’m eating Sun Chips from a machine. If I had to explain the world to paleolithic humans I’d take them someplace quiet and wait for an…
“Play Thief,” a Side A poem by Adam Stutz

Play Thief I catch the poison too early this morningcatch the eroticism of sloth a voluptuous fog sweeping in dousing narratives absence tense pressed into relief like a dysfunctional search engine pronoun I correct the overcorrections + keep correctingcorresponding to faulty focus pressing on lenseslike I should be elsewhere I slap on labels to…
Fiction for Side A: “Thirty-Nine Bye-Byes” by Martin Kleinman

Thirty-Nine Bye-Byes 39. “You should see him.” 2. The phone call came while I was stuck in traffic on the Central Park transverse, the Met’s Temple of Dendur off to my right. A nurse from my father’s hospital equivocated her way through the call. My dad had been in failing health. “Where are you now?” she…
Side A Visual Poetry: “Autoimmunity” by Allison Thung

*Ed.’s Note: click images to view larger sizes.[1] Mini-interview with Allison Thung HFR: Can you share a moment that has shaped you as a writer (or continues to)? AT: A moment that particularly stands out to me is when I stumbled into the world of contemporary literary journals, discovered a category of publications (present company…
Side A Poem: “Every Minute Is a Minute” by John Leo

Every Minute Is a Minute The invoice is ready for review.Download and attach the backup documents.Add the 14% fuel charge, plus energy feeequal to 10% of transportation costs.Initial and date. The invoice is readyfor review by a third party. In the den, you have received a request for bibliographicalinformation. Review the requested resource.Apply the article…
Side A Visual Poetry: “bye, see you soon” by Jonathan Memmert

bye, see you soon bye,see yousoon maybebefore you knowit one of us will run across each others pathsanother day another nighttime, is any of it guaranteed?next time, old phrase built to lastthe trick is not to let it get to you toomuch as we exist in a work in progressa sleight of hand each unfolding…
“White Girls with Cornrows,” a Side A short story by Brent Joseph Johnson

White Girls with Cornrows I first came across Amber and Ashley while I was working at Ego’s maybe six or seven years ago. Both as the doorguy and the barback. At the time I wasn’t at a good place in my life and I eventually had to quit because of how shitty it all got…