writing life – Page 13 – Andrew Careaga

Friday Five: writer and Major 7th editor Kirsti MacKenzie

‘Innovating within structure is the great genius pop artists have in common.’

Content warning: interview contains language some readers may find offensive.

“There’s a specific kind of masochism in picking an industry built on rejection,” says Viv, one of the main characters in Kirsti MacKenzie‘s debut novel Better to Beg (Sweet Trash Press, November 2025). It sounds like something a writer might say as they hope against hope that their works will be picked up by literary magazines or agents in their quest for a bit of fame, if not fortune.

Kirsti MacKenzie

Viv and her partner in music, the British expat Hux, are also on a quest for fame. The two form the fictional indie band The Deserters, and they are riding the crest of underground popularity, thanks to music bloggers and file-sharing services. They embark on a cross-country rock’n’roll/road trip fueled by enough dope to make Hunter S. Thompson consider rehab. Learn more about the novel and Kirsti in this excellent interview on X-R-A-Y Literary Magazine.

A writer from northern Ontario, Kirsti also creates superb short fiction (see this page for four years’ worth of stories) and is the founder and editor of Major 7th Magazine, a literary mixtape composed of short pieces related to specific songs. Read on for more about that litmag, Kirsti’s debut novel, and her thoughts on writing.

New ‘Holiday Horror’ fiction: ‘To Grandmother’s House’

A rare (for me) bit of horror writing. Warning: This is not Hallmark Movie material.

Not long ago, in an effort to drag myself out of my writing rut, I decided to write some short stories to fit themed submission calls. One of those calls came from Spillwords. For their annual Haunted Holidays” feature, Spillwords‘ editors were seeking writings that “embrace the dark side of the winter holiday season, and all that’s lurking in the shadows of Christmas merriment.” So I wrote a short story specifically for this call. I was happy to learn earlier this week that the editors had accepted it, and it is featured on the litmag’s website today.

Content warning: If you’re more into sweet and sappy holiday fare, or Hallmark Movie holiday romances, you might want to give this one a pass. But if you crave a bit of psychological tension and yuletide horror, then by all mean, give “To Grandmother’s House” a read.

Image via Spillwords.

Friday Five: Z.H. Gill, editor of Burial Magazine

‘I want the fancies and the unclean to coexist at Burial because I like a lot of different kinds of writing.’

Content warning: strong language that some readers may find offensive.

On this, the day after Z.H. Gill‘s least favorite holiday (as he himself acknowledges), I am filled with gratitude to introduce you to Z.H., the founder and editor of a relatively new online literary journal, Burial Magazine.

Z.H. Gill

It’s been fewer than six months since Burial arrived on the literary scene like a thunderbolt hurled from Mount Olympus, erupting in a strange purple glow marked with white text of startling, brash, and often stunning, often unconventional prose and poetry. With its text-heavy, minimalist design and powerful writing, Burial is a distinctive niche in the world of online literary magazines.

When Z.H. isn’t working on Burial, Z.H. is working on his own writing and filmmaking. Based in East Hollywood, California, where he lives with Hans the Cat, Z.H.’s writing appears in X-R-A-Y, Minor Literature[s], Pithead Chapel, Vol. 1 Brooklyn, and elsewhere.

Friday Five: inspirational quotes for writers and other humans

Are you stuck in a rut? Need some motivation and inspiration? Maybe this a great list of quotations from notable writers, artists, filmmakers, and others can help. This list comes from the good people at MoonLit Getaway literary magazine. Here are five of my favorites from that list (although I could have listed many more).

Don’t risk missing 100 percent of the shots you don’t take. Give this list a read.

Flashback fiction: ‘Lower Strata’

Revisiting a short story published a year ago today.

One year ago today, my short story “Lower Strata” was published by the literary magazine Spillwords.

This story was based on something I’d started about 25 years ago. It is influenced a bit by my years working in the restaurant business. Over the summer of 2024, I pulled it out of the dusty digital files and reworked it a few times before sending it to Spillwords.