KNEE BRACE PRESS

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

The Magazine

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  • To Thrive in Darkness

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    “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.

  • Try to Understand

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    So often, neurodivergent folks have to mask who they are in order to fit in. In her poem Try to Understand, poet and author Clara Olivo touches on how she hid her inner self in order to appear neurotypical, to the point she began to believe it was necessary.

  • 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.

  • Neurodivergent

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    Author Julián Esteban Torres López wrote this piece, Neurodivergent, intending it to be an auditory experience. Please feel free to listen to the audio below while reading along to the words below.

  • An interview with Julian R. Vaca

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    In an alternative 1987, a disease ravages human memories. There is no cure, only artificial recall. We spoke with author Julian R. Vaca about his novel, The Memory Index, the sequel of which comes out in April 2023.

  • Resection

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    As a stage IV cancer patient, Pacific Northwestern poet Lara Haynes Freed learned of a new metastasis. Her poem Resection chronicles her experience with her diagnosis. Freed holds an MA in linguistics from the University of Kansas and has been published in multiple literary magazines.

  • A black and white photo depicts a person with a small smile. They are crossing their arms over a black button up with small white dogs. Their hair is short and they wear round glasses.

    Ache Awake

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    Sojourner “Hughes” Davidson’s poem, Ache Awake, deals with the speaker’s chronic pain, migraines, and insomnia. A DMV-based poet writing about the mind and the body, Davidson has previously published two poems in the Guilford College lit mag, The Greenleaf Review.

  • An interview with Clara Olivo

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    Clara Olivo’s The Whisper, The Storm and The Light In Between is a poetic memoir of diasporic despair and delight. An autobiographical reflection of the author’s journey as a queer, neurodivergent, disabled woman of color, Olivo’s collection touches on issues of American exceptionalism, race, miscegenation, and cultural memory. Olive is also a previous Knee Brace…

  • 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.