KNEE BRACE PRESS

A place for stories about chronic illness, disability, mental health, and neurodivergence.

depression

  • A Black person with white-rimmed glasses smiles widely with their eyes closed. They are holding their book, DEAR PHILOMENA by Mugabi Byenkya, and are surrounded by a circle of light.

    An interview with Mugabi Byenkya

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    Memoirist and magical realism author Mugabi Byenkya writes for themselves. Or, more accurately, the angsty, confused, Black, Ugandan-Rwandan-Nigerian, disabled, queer, polygender, and neurodivergent little human they used to be and still are.

  • A white woman with short, brown hair in braids smiles at the camera with her mouth closed. She wears circular black glasses and an orange sweatshirt. The background is white.

    I haven’t been sleeping well

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    “I remember what I told myself I’d eat for breakfast the day before/And then remember it’s still sitting right where I left it/Next to my unfinished coffee and my empty day planner.” Poet Emily Brandt details what it’s like to be in the middle of a depressive episode, when sleep alludes even the most exhausted…

  • An interview with Camri Kohler

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    When twenty-three-year-old surly (and slightly tipsy) Frankie finds her hag of a grandmother dead on the sofa, her best friend Ben introduces her to the magical underbelly of Aspen Ridge, Utah. We spoke to debut author Camri Kohler about her horrifying urban fantasy novel, Peachy.

  • A person with long, brown hair, bangs, and black rimmed glasses hides half their face behind a black and brown cat with blue eyes.

    Ghosts

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    “I think about ghosts and love./I think about haunted houses and empty spaces.” So begins AM Rodriguez’s ethereal poem, Ghosts, about the grief that haunts us, the longing we can’t escape, and a morbid curiosity the speaker can’t shake.

  • A white woman with short hair wears round glasses and a black sweater. She gazes at the camera. The photo is in black and white.

    An interview with Amba Elieff

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    Amba Elieff spent most of her life a closet poet. Now, she’s put her work out there for all to see in her debut collection, Maiden, Mother, Crone. We spoke with Elieff about sacred spaces, womanhood, and what it means to be in community with other through her work.

  • Summoning Serotonin

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    Sometimes, all we need is a little help, even if that help comes from an unexpected source. Author Amanda Cessor shares with us a fantastical short story about her very real experience with ADHD, anxiety, and depression.

  • A woman with short, blonde hair and oval glasses smiles at the camera. She is wearing a dark blue sweater, pearl earrings, and a silver necklace. The background is white.

    An interview with Lynn Slaughter

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    All of Lynn Slaughter’s books pack an emotional punch. In It Should Have Been You, the young protagonist grapples with survivor’s guilt after the death of her twin. Leisha’s Song takes a look at the tragic fallout from of an abusive childhood. Deadly Setup features a character dealing with the actions of her mother, who…

  • An interview with Amanda Cessor

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    Twenty-two-year-old Juniper Harlow has always struggled with social anxiety. Oleander Ambrose, her parents’ ward and fellow witch, is an exception to this rule until he returns from a rite of passage older and now seemingly a stranger.