Freelance piece in Literary Traveler

August 27, 2022 by Brooke Black

Every aspiring writer knows that the encouraging rejection is the first step on the road to success.

Excerpt from Lucky in Adventure Cyclist!

August 25, 2022 by Brooke Black

“Mile 5000.” This story is the first time I’ve been published in print media since grad school. Feels good to be back!

uncaged

February 20, 2021 by Brooke Black in writing

This behavior — stereotypic behavior, it’s called — is a natural reaction to an unnatural situation. The cage is to blame.

the storm

March 17, 2020 by Brooke Black in writing

I grabbed hold of the wall and held it still enough to peer through the bug netting, and that’s when the pieces clicked into place: A massive cloudbank was charging over the lake, and the trees were bowed over in the roaring wind.

the serial killer

February 04, 2020 by Brooke Black in writing

I fall into a restless sleep…

…and wake up at 2 a.m. to the sound of a dentist’s drill outside my tent.

dam

November 05, 2019 by Brooke Black in writing

If I could cross here, I had 20 miles to go. But if I couldn’t, I’d have to backtrack 11 miles just to get to the next river crossing — not to mention the climb back up the steep, winding hill I had just descended.

"bridge closed"

October 29, 2019 by Brooke Black in writing

Construction signs tend not to apply to bicycles, I thought smugly, and approached the cluster of guys in fluorescent vests.

traveling alone

September 24, 2019 by Brooke Black in writing

The first time I traveled alone was when I was 20. I had a volunteer gig teaching English in Slovakia and Hungary for three weeks each, and I decided to take a couple weeks before that to bounce around Western Europe.