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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies

@assayjournal.bsky.social
1.3K followers 107 following 551 posts

Assay publishes the best critical, pedagogical, and craft-conversational work exploring everything #nonfiction Posts by Jay Kibble and @karenbabine

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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 16h
Hey, hey, it's Submission Saturday! Assay is looking for your nonfiction scholarship, informal analysis, and nonfiction pedagogy--as well as even more informal submissions for our Substack series. For more information, visit our website! buff.ly/9fikydq
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 09/10/2026
As we continue our celebration of our new fall issue, Richard A. Decker's Process as Processing: An Analysis of Illustration and AI Use in Vauhini Vara’s “Ghosts” is a thought-provoking consideration of a thorny question. Read more at buff.ly/tjwiUfE
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 08/10/2026
We love a good essay on the essay, don't you? If you haven't seen Micah McCrary's "This Essay is a Dress," check it out! More at buff.ly/RS9ht8O.
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
Read more at buff.ly/6aeLt1V
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Samantha Edmonds, "I Create as I Speak: Myth-Making in Creative Nonfiction" (Assay 13.1)
ASSAY: A JOURNAL OF NONFICTION STUDIES 13.1
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 07/10/2026
Samantha Edmonds, in "I Create as I Speak: Myth-Making in Creative Nonfiction," argues that "mythopoeia—though most associated with speculative and fantasy genres—is not in itself a genre at all; it is a technique, and thus can be applied to any category of writing, including creative nonfiction."
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 06/10/2026
Today we're highlighting David Berridge's terrific "Again, but Different, and Again: A Pedagogy of Excess in The Writing Life of Annie Dillard," a timely spotlight of the late Annie Dillard. Read more at buff.ly/RS9ht8O!
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
New on Proctoring the Essay this week, John spends time with the mighty Cheryl Strayed. Read more at buff.ly/KRJHtvV
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 05/10/2026
Fresh from our new fall issue, Joanna Eleftheriou's marvelous interview with Heidi Czerwiec, co-editor of the almost-hot-off-the-press Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing the Lyric Essay! Read more at buff.ly/RS9ht8O!
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 04/10/2026
Hello, Substack Sunday! Are you subscribed to Assay's Substack yet? We've recently migrated here from Wordpress for all our between the issues content, from John Proctor's new series on Best American Essays to our long running series My Favorite Essay to Teach and The Backlist, and more. Join us!
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 03/10/2026
It's Submission Saturday! We're looking for scholarship, informal analysis, and pedagogy for our spring issue and beyond. Send your work today! More details at buff.ly/tjwiUfE.
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 02/10/2026
The first piece in Assay's brand new fall issue is Tim Bascom's fantastic "Picturing the Perfect Essay: A Visual Guide," the most delightful visual exploration of essays we know of. #AssayJournal #EssaysThatMatter #CreativeNonfiction
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
We're excited to have a fresh, bright issue for you! For Fall 2026 we're delighted to publish David Berridge and Richard A. Becker's terrific nonfiction pedagogy. Head to assayjournal.com to check out the latest issue! ✨
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Sun's out, new Assay's out ☀️ Here's the last preview of our Fall 2026 issue, featuring Micah McCrary's great essay on the essay and three magnificent new additions to the Assay Interview Project! Head to our website at assayjournal.com for the new issue! ✨
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Visit our website at assayjournal.com to check out the latest issue!
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ASSAY: A JOURNAL OF NONFICTION STUDIES
Publishing the best nonfiction scholarship and pedagogy.
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Don't you just love fall? Goodbye heat domes, hello cozy season--and hello new Assay! We're excited to have a fresh issue to share today! For Fall 2026 we're delighted to publish the likes of Tim Bascom, Samantha Edmonds, Janelle Lynch, Robert Root, and Benjamin Wielechowski in our articles.
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 01/10/2026
Happy Fall! The shiny new issue of Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies is hot off the presses and smelling of apple cider and maple leaves! Grab some hot chocolate and a cozy blanket, and check out the delightful new nonfiction scholarship and pedagogy we have for you!
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 26/06/2026
Submissions are open at @pleiadesmagazine for poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction and translation! Check out their full guidelines at Duosuma. buff.ly/XnEcFxk 🖼️ from Pleiades #FriendsOfAssay #WritingCommunity #AssayJournal #OpenSubmissions #OpenCall
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 19/06/2026
@triohousepress let's go ✨👨‍💻 #FriendsOfAssay #OpenReading #OpenCall #Submissions #CreativeWriting
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
#WritingCommunity #CreativeNonfiction #Essaying #AssayJournal #throwback
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
"A funny thing happened on the way to the Global Village..." Miles Harvey argues that in the Information Age, all writers are travel writers. What can 19th-century philosopher William James teach us about navigating our modern narrative fault lines? Find out in Assay 2.2: buff.ly/skpZa7f
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
Read how scholars continue to unpack her brilliant craft here: buff.ly/cx42BXK 🎨 American Libraries Magazine #MarjaneSatrapi #Persepolis #GraphicMemoir #CreativeNonfiction #AssayJournal #NonfictionStudies #LiteraryLegacy
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
We are continually honored to see her lines analyzed and taught within our pages, serving as a cornerstone of literary citizenship.
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
Her work amazed scholars, teachers, and readers alike and taught how the image-text space can heal fractures between history and the self.
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
By weaving together the visual language of comics with the intimacy of the personal essay, she dismantled decades of narratives surrounding the Islamic Revolution.
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
We are grieving the immense loss of Marjane Satrapi today. Our hearts go out to her loved ones. 🕊️🧵 Satrapi's blockbuster "Persepolis" fractured traditional binary narratives of history. She taught us how to look at the gaps, the margins, and the complex truths of exile.
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
Read: buff.ly/RNvs6Sv Photo by Europeana on Unsplash #NonfictionStudies #CraftOfWriting #LyricEssay #WritingCommunity #PaulGruchow #BrianTurner #AssayArchive #AssayJournal #MentalHealth
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
"Art is not nature and shouldn't try to imitate it." Doug Carlson explores why Paul Gruchow and Brian Turner turned to abstract shapes to map the realities of depression and combat survival in Assay 1.2. A brilliant look at tactile space and reader participation in the memoir form. 🧵
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 13/05/2026
We're focusing on flash interviews today! Take a glance at these wonderful tidbits from @amymonticello in this 2021 To Wit interview. Read here: buff.ly/cetW7Og #AssayJournal #AssayInterviewProject #ToWit #FlashInterviews #AmyMonticello #throwback
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
Photo by Izzy E on Unsplash #AssayJournal NonfictionStudies #CreativeNonfiction #DocumentaryPoetics #FilmStudies #StorytellingCraft #CorinnaCook #DanielJanke #HowPeopleGotFire
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 12/05/2026
How do we document the intangible? In a piece for Assay 4.2, Corinna Cook dives deep into Daniel Janke’s film How People Got Fire, exploring the fascinating intersection of animation, oral history, and documentary poetics. Read the full analysis here: buff.ly/P7XxIkx
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 06/05/2026
Feeling Human Again: Toward a Pedagogy of Radical Empathy by Stephanie Geudet is a pedagogy piece from Assay issue 2.2. Guedet explores how sharing personal narratives in the classroom can cultivate deep, transformative empathy among students. Read ➡️ buff.ly/xjnP9E4 #Assay #FreeResources
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
Photo by Zdeněk Macháček on Unsplash #AssayJournal #ZoeStark #BrianDoyle #JoyasVoladoras #rhythm #form #EssaysThatMatter #nonfiction #CNF
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
A hummingbird’s heart beats ten times a second. A blue whale’s heart is the size of a room. And the essay? The essay is the vessel that holds it all. 🪺 In her latest piece, Zoë Stark examines the beginning and the finality of the end. Step into the slipstream here: buff.ly/vPENH9f
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 24/04/2026
#AssayJournal #WritingExercise #CreativeNonfiction #WritingCraft #JillChristman #CNF #WritingCommunity #CloseObservation #EssayWriting Photo by Mandy Bourke on Unsplash
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 24/04/2026
Writer’s block? Stop brainstorming and start looking. 🔍 In Assay 12.2, Jill Christman teaches the "Writing the Tooth" method. It’s 30 minutes, no internet, just one object--and how she went from writing an essay about money to writing the raw, beautiful truth about motherhood. 🦷✨ 🔗 buff.ly/jPMz08K
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
Photo by Finding Dan | Dan Grinwis on Unsplash #AssayJournal #Memoir #WritingCommunity #AgingWell #LifeWriting #CreativeNonfiction #Spring2026 #LynnZBloom
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 22/04/2026
"Old age is not a dead end. It is a territory." 🗺️ In "Mapping the Surprising Territory of Old Age," Lynn Z. Bloom sits down with several memoirists to map the complex, surprising, and often uncharted landscapes of aging. Dive in here: buff.ly/3nqUyKb
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
#JillKolongowski #BrookeChampagne #NicoleGraevLipson #AmyMonticello #BethAnnFennelly #nonfiction #anger #rage #craft #crafttools #teachingresources
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 21/04/2026
"writing rage is joyful, right, instinctual, unadulterated, and most of all, corrective." ⚡️ What does it mean for women, in particular, or other marginalized groups, to embrace anger in their craft? What's the generative potential? Come find out & rage with us: buff.ly/v8upg3W #AssayJournal
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
Our therapist: And what do we do when we're feeling overwhelmed by everything? Us: Read another essay! Therapist: *puts down spray bottle* that's...that's actually not a bad idea
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
Photo by Evie S. on Unsplash Interview by @juliemariewade #AssayJournal #SamuelAce #AssayInterviewProject #JulieMarieWade #memory #place #lyric #essay #memoir #collage
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
"I find genre categories impossibly narrow," says author Samuel Ace in today's interview spotlight. Part essay, part memoir, and part collage, "I want to start by saying" is "a constellation of memory, personal and place-based histories..." Read the excellent interview here: buff.ly/Mo83kxO
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
#AssayJournal #KeeneShort #WritingBluesky #Nonfiction #Poetics #Essay Photo by Susan Wilkinson on Unsplash
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 16/04/2026
Can erasure be a form of truth-telling? What is found in the space where words used to be? 🤔 Short examines Erin Dorney’s work in our latest issue to uncover an "ontology of ambivalence"—where the gaps in the text become the most vital parts of the essay. Dive into this study ⬇️ buff.ly/7zGLYhX
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 15/04/2026
#AssayJournal #NonfictionStudies #DavidLazar #QueerTheory #CreativeNonfiction #WritingCraft #TheEssay #GenderStudies #LiteraryTheory #Queer #LGBTQIA #genre 📸 by Moreno Matković on Unsplash
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 15/04/2026
In Assay 12.2, David Lazar (@davidlazarwriter) explores the "indissolubly linked" roots of genre and gender. Lazar argues that the essay, much like queer identity, thrives on resistance to stability, categories, and normative standards. 🏳️‍🌈✨ 🔗 Read the full article here: buff.ly/RKuAVbT
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Assay: A Journal of Nonfiction Studies @assayjournal.bsky.social · 14/04/2026
Alright Bluesky--what's your absolute FAVORITE essay to teach/read and why? Curious minds want to know!
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