KNEE BRACE PRESS

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

fiction

  • A tabby cat sleeps on a purple shirt. Her paws are tucked under her head. She might just be the cutest cat ever.

    How to Fall in Love

    By

    In her short story, Wiltshire-based writer Jessica Cook relays how to fall in love with someone who will inevitably leave.

  • A black and white photo of a white man in a button-up flannel smiling at the camera. He is sitting outside on a bench. His hair is dark and shoulder-length and he has a short beard.

    Tangerine Strands

    By

    “And outside of this customary exchange, outside of this playground within a playground, Lucretia felt relief, for the little girl and boy had yet again successfully avoided recreating the history that had taken place there.”

  • A white woman with long, dark hair sits outside. She wears a black, long sleeved shirt and a checkered scarf.

    An interview with Elissa Grossell Dickey

    By

    The author of The Speed of Light, spoke to us about writing a main character with MS, being a journalist, and the line between independence and refusing to accept help.

  • A pale, blonde person wearing red lipstick, orange-rimmed glasses, and a blue sweater with white clouds on it. She is standing against the backdrop of several pieces of art.

    Eppi Girl

    By

    In her short story for Knee Brace Press, Zianna Ruiha introduces us to Eppi Girl, a disabled people pleaser who wants nothing more than to tell her coworkers that her body is none of their business.

  • A white woman with dark hair tied back into a bun. She wears a blue dress with a black belt. She is speaking or singing in front of a music stang.

    Suicide Simulation

    By

    Imagine a world where suicide can be simulated through virtual reality. This is the context of Ericka Russell’s short story, Suicide Simulation, and the basis for the ethics the main character must grapple with.

  • A tabby cat sleeps on a purple shirt. Her paws are tucked under her head. She might just be the cutest cat ever.

    Spoons

    By

    EJ Croll’s speculative short story, Spoons, is about their own experience of chronic fatigue, chronic pain, and the frustration of living with these limitations.

  • Searching for Bunker Norms

    By

    It’s the end of the world. Then again, we Spoonies have always been able to adapt. While the non-disabled, richest one percent were hidden underground in bunkers during the catastrophe, a network spearheaded by a disabled woman had secretly gathered to protect the most disregarded of the population.

  • To Thrive in Darkness

    By

    “We were friendly with the dark.” So begins Jamieson Wolf’s To Thrive in Darkness, a short story where the characters live in a fictional labyrinth, but the narrator’s experiences with disability are strikingly similar to Wolf’s own experiences with multiple sclerosis and cerebral palsy.

  • Summoning Serotonin

    By

    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.