WNMU Humanities Department

Our writing students did great work putting this issue together. We're so proud of them!

The Spring 2026 Issue is live! Ten years of Twisted Vine and our tenth issue. A perfect 10/10. Read it here: https://twistedvine.wnmu.edu/

Cover Art: №39 by Anastasia Ulianytska

Humanities Professor Heather Frankland is one of the authors of a new poetry book with fellow poets Beate Sigriddaughter, Elise Stuart and Susan Melinda Moree. They'll be doing a reading April 10th at 3:00 p.m. at Silver City Public Library. The book is available through this link:

CACTI FUR COLLECTIVE Volume 1: Heather Frankland, Susan Melinda Morée, Beate Sigriddaughter, Elise Stuart CACTI FUR COLLECTIVE Volume 1: Heather Frankland, Susan Melinda Morée, Beate Sigriddaughter, Elise Stuart

Check out the article about Professor Heather Frankland's Winter Poetry Challenge.

Poetry challenge expands to Mining District - Silvercity Daily Press By MARCELA JOHNSON Daily Press Staff The winter poetry challenge hosted by the county’s poet laureate and the Silver City Public Library has expanded to the Mining District in its second year. This year the Bayard Public Library will host the challenge, which runs from Jan. 12 to Feb. 28, alongsid...

Excerpt from second place Prose winner, Katie Ortiz y Pino, for her story A LIFETIME OF CHANGE: JULIE DUNLEAVY REFLECTS ON 81 YEARS OF LOVE, ART AND RESILIENCE:

The small white stucco house in Albuquerque’s Nob Hill District feels alive with color and light. Sunlight floods the dining room, bouncing off the wood floors that glisten beneath it. Crystals hang in the window, casting delicate rainbows across the room. At the center, a giant easel holds a half-finished painting with bold splashes of dark red, brown, and black that contrast with the serene warmth of the space.

At 81, Julie Dunleavy has lived through eras of tremendous societal change. Standing at a petite 5’2” with a sturdy frame, her movements are slower after multiple knee surgeries. As she shuffles across the room, she groans softly but laughs it off.

"Getting old isn’t for the faint of heart," she jokes, flashing a warm smile that reveals her strength beneath her small stature.

Excerpt from first place Prose winner, Anais Orantez Middleton, from her story WHAT DOESN'T KILL YOU WILL PROBABLY KILL YOU:

Laura woke up feeling ... uncomfortable – to say the least. Charlie was damn near lying over her whole face, she was still in her jeans, and all the lights were on. The clock marked 7:34M. She never made it to bed last night.
Sleeping was hard. All the time. Sleeping shouldn’t be hard. Laura recalled trying to get up, but the couch pulled her in with the promise of safety. The lights were on, the TV was on, and Charlie was right in her lap. The light from the hallway shined brightly into the living area, but it did not whisper the same comfort as the voices that came through the screen. Another cup of coffee and some more TV and she would be fine.

Excerpt from second place Poetry winner, Natalee Drissell.
From MY UNEARTHLY ADOLESCENCE

In the folds of the fabric of reality I carved my initials with pieces of shattered starlight;
The forms of existence hold traces of my teenage graphite.
In my desperation I strove to drink the creamy light of the galaxy,
but I was too afraid of its endless milky waves.

Excerpt from first place Poetry Winner, Arielle Certosimo.
From YEAR OF THE DRAGON

Journey through darkness
Gathering limbs of Juniper
Instinct initiated

Embers embracing amber golden hope
Always living
Always dying
Just like me