Ashley Bethard

What happens when we ask why?

on July 22, 2020July 22, 2020 By Ashley Bethard

Humans spend so much time creating narratives, wanting to string together disparate events into something concrete, something patterned. Story: we crave it. We weave a tale out of bits of information. It’s a kind of electrifying alchemy, to feel as though you’re inside your own real-world choose-your-own-adventure. Does the story we build make us feel important? Does it make us feel like we’re in control? Does it give us a sense of confidence, teach us how to navigate the world better?

my first quaranzine: Singular Thought

on April 12, 2020April 12, 2020 By Ashley Bethard

If this time in self-isolation has taught me anything, it’s that life is too short not to make the art you want to make, regardless of skill level and polish, and that you should just put it out there. Put it out there, flaws and all. What I like about zines is that they embrace [...]

Self-care in hard times

on March 16, 2020March 16, 2020 By Ashley Bethard

All weekend – the slowest, most anxiety-ridden weekend I’ve had in a long, long time – I kept telling myself I’d use some of the extra time to write. And every time I started thinking through one of the essays I was working on, my mind would check out. I don’t feel like writing about that [...]

I have a new essay out in the world!

on February 24, 2020February 24, 2020 By Ashley Bethard

"What happens when we juxtapose? Do the unrelated become related based on their placement? Do they share energy, tossing it back and forth, creating a link where one didn’t exist before? I sat at the bottom of the stairs for a while and stared at my hands. I couldn’t remember the last time he told [...]

11 books I read and loved in 2019

on December 19, 2019December 19, 2019 By Ashley Bethard

I love sharing what I love. It should come as no surprise that I relish the thought of books-as-medicine, and if you've got an ill of the heart, I've got a reading recommendation to treat you. To clarify, that is less about appropriating a metaphor and more toward speaking about the power of books in [...]

Essays I read and loved in 2019, vol. 1

on December 17, 2019December 17, 2019 By Ashley Bethard 1 Comment

This year, I immersed myself in reading essays. Not enough, of course (because my self-critic is always screeching "never enough!"), but the good news is I've stayed consistent about it. I created a Twitter thread of 10 of my favorite essays I've read this year, with the understanding that no, it's not an all-encompassing list, [...]

Everything goes.

on December 10, 2019December 10, 2019 By Ashley Bethard 1 Comment

Right now I am re-reading Joan Didion's "Play It As It Lays," a novel she wrote in 1970, and one I return to every year or every other year. One thing that fascinates me this time around is how masterful she is at structure. I think it's something I missed before, how deliberate she was. [...]

If you want overly-personal letters from me …

on August 3, 2018March 6, 2019 By Ashley Bethard 3 Comments

... sign up for my TinyLetter. It's called "hello, dearest," and it's really just a way for me to practice essaying in the form of letter-writing, which is one of my favorite mediums. I'll send you love letters about writing, art, creativity, life, grief, joy and all the bits of ephemera in between. >> Sign [...]

“My little flower, where are you going?”

on February 26, 2018February 26, 2018 By Ashley Bethard

That’s the name of this painting my brother did. I found it this weekend, in a box of art supplies my mother salvaged from his apartment. The title is written on the back, along with his signed name. It’s a nod to the Italian song “Piccolo Fiore” by Vittorio Merlo, a rough English translation of [...]

I have a new essay up at one of my dream pubs

on February 15, 2018March 6, 2019 By Ashley Bethard 2 Comments

Let me get this out of the way: I'm really not a cool kid, so I'm just going to let the awkward fangirl in me hang out. I love Catapult literary magazine, and pretty much all of the work they're doing, honestly. The writing is diverse, engaging, and spans a variety of perspectives and topics. [...]