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Kristen

@kristenleigh.bsky.social
1.1K followers 361 following 1.4K posts

Reader. Writer. Dancer. Mom. She/Her. Writing about grief and landscape, Mahler and octopuses, echoes and Texas. Co-founder of slips slips literary journal. bio.site/kristenly

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Reposted by Kristen
Prisonculture @prisonculture.bsky.social · 6h
we do not have to live this way.
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 28/09/2026
youtu.be/3_dpJv_DfdU?...
youtu.be
Remedios Varo: The Painter of Magic | Louisiana Channel
YouTube video by Louisiana Channel
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Kawai 加鬼 Shen 👻 @kawaishen.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
Emerging from a cursed late summer with the latest pick from The Unseen Book Club podcast and a rando dissertation I just learned about from scrolling bsky
Cover of Emile Habiby's The Secret Life of Saeed the Pessoptimist. Translators' names are not printed on the cover but they are Salma K. Jayyusi and Trevor LeGassick.Cover of Elad Alyagon's Inked: Tattooed Soldiers and the Song Empire's Penal-Military Complex which presumably is derived from the dissertation, "Inked: Song Soldiers, Military Tattoos, and the Remaking of the Chinese Lower Class, 960-1279."
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Moby Dick @mobydickatsea.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
I am the architect, not the builder.
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Red Sauce @redsauceamerica.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
I spoke with Andrew Young, founder of @nycpizzaweek.bsky.social about the event launching this weekend. www.redsauceamerica.com/blog/pizza-a...
redsauceamerica.com
Pizza and the City: Maybe It’s The Friends We Make Along the Way, a Conversation with Andrew Young, Founder of New York City Pizza Week - Red Sauce America
Andrew Young accidentally launched pizza crawls in New York City. Then he had an idea: NYC Pizza Week. He spent the last 10 months creating a two week-long event that launches this week. We talked wit...
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
My youngest child is 21 today.
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
I've been remiss in posting writing prompts lately so here's the one I wrote for today's workshop. This is the generative prompt. There is also a revision prompt created by Samuel Johnson, adopted by the one and only Annie Dillard (who we lost this week RIP), who taught it in her writing workshop
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Puff the Magic Hater @mskellymhayes.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
This video is amazing.
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
30+ years after publication I’m finally reading The English Patient. It is in present tense so I’m not late or early. The story is now. Coming Through Slaughter is a book I read and read and read and carry around and just read it read it read it so I figured I’d try another Ondaatje.
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 13/09/2026
Now on view: Rafael Rios “Family” at BYREDO, curated by Kimberly Drew 62 Wooster Street September 10–30, 2026
somethingisaw.substack.com
Now on view: Rafael Rios “Family”
at BYREDO, curated by Kimberly Drew
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
"I confess, saturating myself in the video like this feels a little uncommitted. Is there something too easy about video? As a form of attention? I don’t have to work for it." Oh, yes, Anne Carson...On Rosalía www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
lrb.co.uk
Anne Carson · On Rosalía
We require heroism of our entertainers. We want them sacrificing themselves to a certain ultimate degree of input. No...
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 05/09/2026
Breaks my heart, every time
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
"Like many mysteries, you mustn’t touch it." Excellent piece on swimming and writing and being a real human being by Elizabeth McCracken: Elizabeth McCracken on Savoring the Mystery of Writing lithub.com/elizabeth-mc...
lithub.com
Elizabeth McCracken on Savoring the Mystery of Writing
This first appeared in Lit Hub’s Craft of Writing newsletter—sign up here. It’s dark when I set out. When I’m nearly there I think, I don’t want to do this. The next five minutes are varieties of I…
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
If I get my writing done today I’m going to check this out this afternoon: Martha Graham: The Mother of Psychological Dance at the NYPL for the Performing Arts www.nypl.org/events/exhib...
nypl.org
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Tade "Will Eat Your Heart in the Marketplace" Thompson @tadethompson.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
No context comic panel.
Multiple copies of Reed Richards, all with backpacks, in the sky.

He says: The sky is filled...with me!
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
If you’re in NYC and have an interest in the history of information technologies, @jeffisawesome.bsky.social is teaching a continuing ed course at SVA this fall. Check it out, seats available and begins 9/29: sva.edu/academics/co...
sva.edu
The History of Information as Creative Catalyst | Sep 29 - Dec 1, 2026 | 6:30-9:30 PM | Continuing Education | School of Visual Arts | SVA NYC
This course is designed to enhance your creative practice by exploring the evolution of information technologies and their impact on society, from prehistori...
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tru @thetrudz.photo · 19/08/2026
Read this painful piece about an artist who couldn’t afford to keep his storage unit in NYC, so it was auctioned. Someone bought it and sold his art off as incomplete parts. An additional trauma for artists beyond what’s normally lost via economic suffering. hyperallergic.com/when-artists...
“When Artists Lose Their Archives” by Damien Davis via Hyperallergic. Article (via Hyperallergic) excerpts (2) read: 

“There is a particular kind of shame that comes with losing your own work. Not the spectacular kind. Not the kind that arrives with a public failure or a dramatic ending. This shame is quieter. It settles in the body. It convinces you not to tell anyone. It suggests that if you were more responsible, more successful, more organized, this would not have happened. It tells you that asking for help would only confirm what you already fear, that you were never supposed to need it in the first place.”

“This was not just the loss of objects. It was the loss of authorship, sequencing, and context. Works that were never meant to exist independently were broken apart and reintroduced to the world as aesthetic fragments. My archive had become modular in the most violent sense. Not by choice, but by necessity and market indifference.”
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LONAWEEN 🎃👻 @lonababy.blacksky.app · 01/08/2026
August, please be kind to us ✨
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 01/08/2026
Hundreds of never-before-seen ancient ‘earthworks’ discovered in the Amazon Many of these structures date to around C.E. 100–300, during the time of the Aquiry civilization, and may have been used for ceremonial purposes
scientificamerican.com
Hundreds of never-before-seen ancient ‘earthworks’ discovered in the Amazon
Many of these structures date to around C.E. 100–300, during the time of the Aquiry civilization, and may have been used for ceremonial purposes
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Ordinary Notes @hystericalblkns.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
362/530. Let’s please make the rest tonight. Every bit helps.
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Ordinary Notes @hystericalblkns.bsky.social · 31/07/2026
We can raise the remainder of this for Ahmed. 1019/1334 by the end of Friday. 315 to go Ahmed fled genocide only to face state violence. Every day, from governments and beyond. This is his only lifeline. We've exhausted everything. Please help him eat & stay housed. chuffed.org/project/ahmedf
chuffed.org
Help survivor Ahmed get back on his feet
Ahmed is my best friend and colleague, and I am running this campaign on his behalf. Ahmed F is an art therapist, educator, and student. Since being displaced from Gaza in 2024, he's been striving to ...
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Rachel Gunter, Ph.D. 🗃️ @phdrachel.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
Please give this page a follow! It's a public history project by debbielinsleyliles.bsky.social mapping the migration of enslaved people into TX in the 19th century. & if you know anything about the Civil War, you know that's a lot of enslaved people especially from 1860-65, as slavery spread west 🗃️
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slips slips @slipsslips.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
As a longtime theater critic and librettist, it's no surprise @davidcote.bsky.social is attracted to the messy tangibility of slips slips—as with the stage, you can expect to get your hands dirty if you want to engage. Check out his profile in our newsletter: slipsslips.substack.com/p/contributo...
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Thao Votang @votang.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
Two years ago, my first book came out! 🎉 It feels like another lifetime, but I'm trying to remember it and not let it become an accomplishment that fades in importance due to time. Happy pub day LLIDJF! 💗
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Lisa Thornton @thorntonforreal.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
Up to my old tricks of considering a workshop, shuddering at the price, and copying the reading list instead. This also works for MFA programs. The poor man's education.
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
Making gussets and darts to fit this bespoke sconce diffuser. Restoration really does sit at the intersection of all forms of craft work.
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jentrification ♎ @jentrification.com · 22/07/2026
Angely and Alexka Jerez Medina are twins, but ICE is holding them in separate detention camps in Texas and New Mexico. (petition link in article)
outliermedia.org
🚨 Detroit teens still stuck in ICE detention
Two Detroit teens are being held in immigration detention as approval rates plummet for asylum seekers.
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 22/07/2026
Last night I had a dream that I caught four tiny octopuses. One was a mother and the other three were her babies. They were all white and did not change color. We (me and someone?) called them ghost octopuses and I wanted to take photos of them. I also found a tiny kitten. Her name was Maggie.
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Prisonculture @prisonculture.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
If you write, it's a gift to be read. No one has to give a shit. It's a gift.
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slips slips @slipsslips.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
This week’s profile flashback features NYC-based writer/photographer Lynne Burns, whose use of slips slips as an excuse to reach out to old friends demonstrates how printed paper still has the power to keep us all connected. slipsslips.substack.com/publish/post... (Photo credit: Herb Atkins)
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Brian Goldstone @brian-goldstone.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
Marvin's family has now created a GofundMe to help with funeral expenses and to support Natasha and the kids in the difficult days ahead. If you're able to contribute or share the fundraiser, I'd be deeply grateful.
gofundme.com
Donate to Support for Marvin Johnson Sr.'s Family and Honor his Legacy, organized by Erica Day Ruffin
It is with broken hearts that we share the unexpected passi… Erica Day Ruffin needs your support for Support for Marvin Johnson Sr.'s Family and Honor his Legacy
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Milestones: A Miles Davis Archive @milestones-archive.bsky.social · 18/07/2025
Released this day, 1960: 𝙎𝙠𝙚𝙩𝙘𝙝𝙚𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙎𝙥𝙖𝙞𝙣 (Columbia CL 1480 [mono]). Recorded November 20, 1959 and March 10, 1960 with the Gil Evans Orchestra. The album is produced by Teo Macero. #jazz #jazzsky #milesdavis
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
It’s July so reading Moby Dick again. It’s an indulgence to reread something when there are so many wonderful books waiting for me to pick up for the first time. Next on my list is David Abrams’ The Spell of the Sensuous. What are you all reading this summer?
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New York Amsterdam News @nyamnews.bsky.social · 18/07/2026
Free Shakespeare alert: Classical Theatre of Harlem's 'Othello' is running in Marcus Garvey Park through July 26, starring James Udom in the title role. See more: bit.ly/3T2XJZf  #Othello #ClassicalTheatreOfHarlem #FreeTheater #Harlem
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Ryan Boyd @ryanboyd.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
We (faculty at USC) took on an institutional behemoth with all the money and clout on earth, and we WON. We won our union. We're the biggest private-university faculty union in US history. Trying to make people care about this, challenge level IMPOSSIBLE
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
Sharing some links to poems by the late, wonderful emerging poet Regina Berg: www.sybiljournal.com/work-2/2025/...
sybiljournal.com
'Ladder for Booker T. (in chaos),' by Regina Berg — Sybil
wrenching myself over the backs my ancestors offer me, all for a chance to prove that I have nothing to prove.
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Michael Kusek @michaelkusek.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
Today the first copies of my magazine are making it out into the world. This morning Different Leaf took over the W 12th Street windows at the legendary NYC magazine store, Casa Magazines. Today New York and over the next few weeks it will be available around the world.
a view of the window at a magazine store with multiple copies of one issue and a decal of two men (artists Bob Faust and Nick Cave) sitting next to each other.a view of another window at a magazine store with multiple copies of one issue and a decal of a man playing a guitar in a blue lace outfit and a pink cape (Broadway legend André de Shields)a street view showing both windows at the magazine store, Casa Magazines.
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 13/07/2026
NYC needs a pro-growth maritime policy “a waterfront that works for all.” An agency can be created by changing the City charter. Follow this link to add your voice in support of this cause.
portsidenewyork.org
ACT BY END OF 7/13: testify to COGE, call for a City agency for maritime — PortSide NewYork
NYC needs a pro-growth maritime policy “ a waterfront that works for all. ”  A way to get that is create a new City agency for maritime. An agency can be created by changing the City charter. May...
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 12/07/2026
Just saw Obsession. I’m not a horror fan but the storytelling and performances were stellar. Sinners, Weapons, now Obsession are changing my mind about the genre.
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Solomon @solomonrmissouri.com · 12/07/2026
Do not be found in the camps of the ungodly
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 12/07/2026
Also, this documentary about Tim Foster, a dancer and artist who hand paints all of the pointe shoes for the New York City Ballet, is a tender homage to an artist whose life has been in the service of his artform: youtu.be/OhAsMMXwvRs?...
youtu.be
This Artist Paints Thousands of Shoes for NYC Ballet
YouTube video by Joshua Charow
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 12/07/2026
Also sharing this link to an eight-episode series on the podcast Passages about Toni Morrison and her work, hosted by Namwali Serpell. pod.link/1896274410
pod.link
PASSAGES: On Morrison
Listen to PASSAGES: On Morrison wherever you get your podcasts!
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 12/07/2026
I haven’t read this because I’m one of the someones this article is about, but sharing because PEOPLE NEED TO KNOW how to support the someones like us. How to show up for someone who’s grieving the loss of a child. www.nytimes.com/2026/07/08/p...
nytimes.com
Ask Me About My Dead Son (Gift Article)
How to show up for someone who’s grieving the loss of a child.
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Prisonculture @prisonculture.bsky.social · 12/07/2026
Take your cue from the fascist in chief who is not sad at all and continues to only think of himself. He isn't mourning that man at all.
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Gillian Brockell @gillianbrockell.com · 12/07/2026
“If people wanted you to write warmly about them, they should have behaved better.” —Anne Lamott
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Dexter Patterson aka Wisco Birder @wiscobirder.bsky.social · 11/07/2026
Who wants to help me find the Common Yellowthroat Warbler? You Ready? Let’s GO!!! #WiscoBirder 📷👐🏾🫶🏾🪶
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ash 🏳️‍⚧️ @rollingfor20.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Here is a verified gofundme for his family: gofund.me/bf251d4ee
gofund.me
Donate to In Loving Memory of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, 52 Years Old, organized by LULAC Institute, Inc.
On the morning of July 7, 2026, Lorenzo Salgado Araujo was ta… LULAC Institute, Inc. needs your support for In Loving Memory of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, 52 Years Old
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slips slips @slipsslips.bsky.social · 09/07/2026
Upcoming event: We're partnering with the Flatbush branch of @bklynlibrary.bsky.social on something reckless and exciting: Creating and printing a creative newspaper from scratch in 90 minutes! Brooklyn Public Library Flatbush Thu 7/23, 6-7:30pm RSVP: www.bklynlibrary.org/calendar/let...
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Kristen @kristenleigh.bsky.social · 04/07/2026
The most useful and reliable “tech” I own is a pencil.
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