LatinX Audio Lit Mag

The characters in Amalgam come to Albert Street Tacos y Desayunos from different immigrant experiences. Listen to Selene talk about why she chose the characters she did, but be warned, you might leave hungry. You can find a full transcript of this interview at http://latinxlitmag.com starting Tuesday October 12th.

Selene Lacayo is a writer and translator living in the Greater Philadelphia Area. She was the 2018 Judge's Choice Runner-Up for the Write Michigan Short Story Contest. Her essays have been published by InCulture Magazine, Americans Resisting Overseas, and the COVID-19 Community Stories of the Grand Rapids Public Museum. Most recently, her short story Amalgam formed part of The Best Short Stories of Philadelphia published in 2021 and her interview with Silvia Moreno-Garcia on her novel Velvet Was the Night was featured in Electric Literature. She is currently working on a memoir centered around the themes of belonging, identity and motherhood.

You can follow her work at https://www.selenelacayo.com

"The solitude was something that Andrés liked most about his job at the parking garage. Is not that he wasn’t grateful to have a place to live but sharing a two-bedroom apartment with nine other men never allowed time for his thoughts to grow." Listen to Selene Lacayo read her story of food, family, and the immigrant experience in Philadelphia. 

"...you have to help me. You just have to. They’ll ask a million questions. My mom won’t let me speak, even after I explain that I’m all covered up." Familial expectations and personal ambitions collide in this intense story by Camila Santos. You can find a full transcript of the story on latinxlitmag.com starting Tuesday October 5th.

Camila Santos was named a Center for Fiction Emerging Writer Fellow in 2020. Her work has appeared or is upcoming in Newtown Literary, Columbia Journal, Minola Review and the New York Times. Her work in Portuguese can be found in Ruído Manifesto and is forthcoming in Coletânea de Poesia - Mulherio das Letras, EUA. She is currently working on her first novel and a collection of short stories.

Camila delves into the historical roots for this piece, talking about dollar dances, taxi dancers, and the immigrant women behind it all. You can follow Camila on Instagram at @camilawrites, and on her website at camilamsantos.com. You can find a full transcript of this episode at latinxxlitmag.com starting Tuesday October 5th.

Nancy talks about not holding back, working for NASA, and how a tale by Vladimir Nabokov ended up in a story of hope and grief. You can find the full transcript for this interview on Latinxlitmag.com starting Wednesday September 29th. Follow Nancy at estapluma.com. 

"My name is Cielo Salas, and I am writing to say that I am not sorry." So begins Nancy's story of love, loss, and finding hope on the other side of grief. 

In this episode we hear Julieta talk about how she created The Midwife/La Partera, and get a glimpse at some of her other work. A full transcript of the episode will be available on latinxxlitmag.com starting Wednesday September 22.

Julieta Corpus is a bilingual poet from Mexico whose work has been included in The Thing Itself, and the Texas Poetry Calendar. Her latest literary contribution, Borderland Mujeres, is a collaboration with poet Katie Hoerth and visual artist Corinne McCorkmack Whittenmore. It will be available in the Fall 2021 from Texas A&M Press. You can find news about Julieta's poetry and classes at https://www.facebook.com/julie.corpus.7. 

Julieta takes us to Rio Bravo, Tamaulipas, 1967. Find out more about Julieta on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/julie.corpus.7.  The full transcript of the story is below:

La Partera (The Midwife)

Rio Bravo, Tamaulipas, 1967

by Julieta Corpus

They come for me at dusk: Two

Impatient-looking women who need me

To deliver Julia’s third child.

I go unwillingly, feeling exhausted

After performing a ritual for the

Recently departed.

It has been a long day of physical &

Mental fatigue. Traces of dried sage still

Emanate from skin and clothes. All day,

Sinners and saints wanting something

From me: Good luck spells, cleansing rituals,

Love potions, and healing herbs.

My lips can almost taste the strong

Shot of tequila I just poured, but

They’ve come for me.

I have pulled Julia's previous two children

Into existence. Sadly, her second child’s stay

On this plane was too brief. Ever since,

Julia’s heart has been an open

Wound.

Tonight, following her sisters through

Darkened streets, beneath a thundering

September sky, I pray this baby is not

Cursed. The spirits have warned me

About a terrible storm bearing a

Woman’s name, Beulah.

When we arrive, Julia is making tea.

“Baby’s taking her time," She says. After a

Thorough examination, I agree with her.

Somewhere around her second

Cup of chamomile, Julia goes into labor.

Heavy rain pounds the tin roof, drowning

Her screams. A few minutes before midnight,

A baby girl lies in her arms, her hungry lips

Seek sustenance.

“Will her name be Beulah?” I ask.

“No,” Julia, replies, “Her name will be

Julieta.”

Under my breath, a blessing of protection.

Introducing LatinX Audio Lit Mag! First full episode drops September 20th with a poem by Julieta Corpus.