Meaningmaking

13 April 2026

Creation is an act of survival and my heart is fucking beating, baby. I’m elbows deep in a scene that made the man standing next to me on the train politely cough and look away. Sorry that I rejected gratitude journaling in favor of writing two fictional characters facefucking in my notes app, my heart is beating so very fast. If I don’t write the debauchery the way I want it written, no one will. I’ll survive because I alone have the words to express my thoughts. Every new sentence smells like electricity. My heart is pounding. Don’t you dare doubt it.

about the author

Erica Leslie Weidner is based, in New Jersey, and based in New Jersey. She is the editor-in-chief of underscore_magazine, the author of identity sbagliato (2026, Troublemaker Firestarter), and the coolest librarian.