This book began as a poem I couldn’t finish. I wrote the first lines in the back of a classroom at my first #writing craft talk seven years ago. I couldn’t finish the poem, because…
“The 17th Day” Wins 2023 John Burroughs Nature Essay Award
Gobsmacked by this fun news! Excerpt from the announcement on Terrain.org: “The 17th Day” by Christina Rivera, which was published on January 1, 2022 in Terrain.org, has been selected as the 2023 John Burroughs Nature Essay…
That One Time I Went Viral on Twitter
Nothing like 10 thousand people making you feel good about being a notable loser! ❤️💀 Who knew Twitter could be so nice?! #eatingpopsicles
“Two Breaths” published in The Kenyon Review July/August ’22 Issue
My essay TWO BREATHS has found such a beautiful home and community in the pages of the newest @kenyonreview (July/August ’22) in an issue dedicated to climate themes and “Angry Mamas.” The piece shares space with so…
“The Smooth Sides of Darkness” published @ The Fourth River
My 😍 agent (@juliestevensonpfarr ) thought my book was missing a chapter about the foundation of my love for the #ocean and I wrote this (soft, lyrical) #essay in response. This week, @thefourthriver published the piece and I do believe the theme…
MY OCEANS book (draft) Finalist for The Siskiyou Prize for New Environmental Literature
The Siskiyou Prize for New Environmental Literature this year opened up submissions to unpublished manuscripts. I submitted. And a REAL (awesome) HUMAN (Deb Olin Unferth @debolinunferth )—or maybe multiple judges on a panel, I don’t…
John Burroughs Nature Essay Award Nomination
A fun little something to celebrate while I’m sitting in quarantine with (mild) covid and not checking a single item off my task list. 🙂 Image: Terrain.org nominations for the #johnburroughs Nature Essay Award 2022. Wait, I…
The 17th Day: Two Mammals Swimming in a Toxic World (Published at Terrain.org)
Excited (and a bit terrified) to share this deeply personal essay published at the wonderful at Terrain.org today. I know I am not the only one whose heart drowned in the the story of Tahlequah,…
The Endling: Facing Extinction Denial in the Eyes of the Last Vaquita @ Orion Magazine
To avoid awakening only after what we love is pronounced dead, we need to sit up. To sit upright and shake our pain awake—
until it hurts us into action.
Essay on Navigating Motherhood & Climate Grief published on HuffPost Personal
This paragraph from my HuffPost piece was cut to meet word count, so I’m reinserting it here, because I can do that. 😊 Also, super honored by the fantastic accompanying art made by @mariamedem (thank you!): “My…
“Red Talisman” published on RiverTeeth’s Beautiful Things
After enjoying “Beautiful Things” in my inbox for years, it’s a sweet honor to have a piece of my own flash, “Red Talisman” find a snug home @riverteeth_ ❤️ . . #published #flashnonfiction #beautifulthings
Newly Rep’d by Julie Stevenson of MMQLIT
Important update to my wall. I’m officially represented by @juliestevensonpfarr @mmqlit . A few months ago I found a letter in a collapsing cardboard box that my mother had shipped to me after cleaning out…
“Oncoming” Essay, published @Catapult Magazine
I have an essay published this week on Catapult about my grief for the ecological future of my children, and how I comprehend my fear of the slow-moving disaster via the acute trauma of a…
Book Project Excerpt, “Hooded,” Published on Atticus Review
I should just come out and say this: I have a book project. Here’s an excerpt, titled Hooded and published on Atticus Review. Thank you for reading! (Ps. If you have feedback, send it…
“Feral” Wins First Place in Pacific Literary Review’s Creative Nonfiction Contest
I racked up 80+ litmag rejections in 2019. But something funny happened in 2020, and I just received three essay publication acceptances in one week. Here’s the first one. They say never write about dead…
#literarythingsmykidssay
I’ve been posting these on my Instagram feed, but wanted to make a home for the whole collection of #literarythingsmykidssay on seekingsol.com too…
Door Closed, Door Open: Notes on Literary Friendship & Residency — A Guest Blog Post on LightHouseWriters.org
Had a good deal of fun working with Courtney Zenner on this guest blog post for LightHouseWriters.org on the topic of our shared writing residency experience. Head on over to read it! Door Closed, Door…
tips for mamas at writing residency
It’s my last day of seven spent in the bliss of writing residency at the Wellstone Center. I’m not ready to fold my sweaters into my bag quite yet, but I do want to wrap up a short list of tips for mamas at writing residency (or any parent about to to downshift via writing retreat)…
“Four Circles” Published in Bat City Review Issue #14
It took me three years to write this personal essay. And I’m still in shock seeing my name in print in the table of contents of a literary journal. But mostly I’m feeling overwhelmed with…
Tips for Packing/Travelling/Living Abroad with Kids
Hey folks! Good news. #1. My first essay is being published. In print. In a literary journal. It took me two years of writing workshops to get this essay to publication, so I’m allowing myself…
Tips for Camping with Kids
My daughter is two and right as she’s being tucked into bed, she often ends the day with a hopeful: “Can we go camping tomorrow?” Chuckle-worthy for sure, but my husband and I did the…
An Introvert’s Step-by-Step Guide to Her 40th Birthday Party
An Introvert’s Step-by-Step Guide to Her 40-th Birthday Party Step 1: Get it Straight. By birthday party, an introvert means being alone. That is the only way she authentically parties. By introvert, a girl could…
mahalo Hawaii
(Can’t believe I forgot to post this 9-months ago. I guess that’s the way life goes these days. But without further ado, these gratitudes are still deserved and owed…) ********** Sitting on my little porch…
The gene of being.
(Thank you @Susie for the prompt.) Riva, dear Riva, Sweet, fierce, gorgeous heart and girl of 20-months of life. Can you feel our faces following yours? Your mama-moon and father-sun faces orbiting your every step,…
a shimmering sand canvas
Sister wives, Yep, I’m going to steal that apt title right hear and now. As what we have in common seems, pound for pound, more than a man, and at least as strong as a…
cheat sheet to the best child-friendly beaches on the Big Island
The lady in the jeep next to ours took one look at our littles crawling out of the car and said, “Will you please tell me the other best beaches for kids around here?” Easy….
Why Hawaii is ripe for travels with littles…
We all know why Hawaii is adult-friendly. But as we discovered with serious delight, the Big Island is also considerably keiki (Hawaiian for “little one”) friendly. Game-changer. Here’s the how and why: The island culture is relaxed….
ten reasons to do a family gap year “trial lap”
(In case you needed any?) For those that don’t know, I’m currently on work sabbatical on the big island of Hawaii dong what I have coined our family gap year trial lap. The idea was…
tips for travelling internationally with a baby
This post for all the former-free-bird mommas out there. The ones that prided themselves on traveling on a shoestring and day-bag. Mommas who sang in the silence of their own, simple, presence. Mommas who marveled the…
mama vs. the ocean
We had to pick a few family goals when designing our family gap year trial run. And one of the primary reasons we landed on the big island of Hawaii was to offer our kids…
reads: books that make me feel human (and more)
Category: Makes You Feel Human The Sun Magazine. If you consider yourself any kind of reader or writer – you MUST, must, must order The Sun Magazine. A monthly edition of advertisement-free and DELICIOUS photography,…
*updated* packing list: minimal, high-quality, active, techie, and mom-friendly.
: : : Packing List, for 1 Single Traveler Wondering how to pack everything you need into one carry-on? Some people find this process stressful, but I rather enjoy the challenge and simplicity of sorting…
travel disclaimer: read this before you travel
Should one decide to drop ones current life, in pursuit of something unknown, and specifically in foreign lands for variable amounts of time — it should be warned than any of the following may result,…