Tessera

@bestofthenet.bsky.social

https://linktr.ee/bestofthenet2006

Each week, BotN randomly selects a journal from the previous year's Participating Journals list to highlight on social media. Check out @chestnutreview.bsky.social

2026 Participating Journal Spotlight

Chestnut Review

Best of the Net Anthology

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · 2d ago

Check out one of our 2026 Poetry Selections, “They Say the Rice Won’t Grow Without Blood” by Sreeja Naskar (@southbroadwaypress.bsky.social), selected by Cyrus Cassells on bestofthenetanthology.com/2026-2/2026-poetry/they-say-the-rice-wont-grow-without-blood/ #bestofthenetanthology #poetry

THEY SAY THE RICE WON’T GROW WITHOUT BLOOD
Sreeja Naskar (South Broadway Press)

“this is history, they say.
(they mean:)
the textbooks that forget us —
the flags stitched with the tongues we lost —
the songs we were too tired to sing.”

@bestofnetanthology

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · last wk.

Each week, BotN randomly selects a journal from the previous year's Participating Journals list to highlight on social media. Check out @shopoetryjournal.bsky.social

2026 Participating Journal Spotlight

Shō Poetry Journal

Best of the Net Anthology

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · last wk.

Check out one of our 2026 Fiction Selections, “Year of the Rat” by @kirakh.bsky.social (Cutleaf Journal), selected by Andrew Porter on bestofthenetanthology.com/2026-2/2026-fiction/year-of-the-rat/ #bestofthenetanthology #fiction #finalist

YEAR OF THE RAT
“The boys are all Year of the Dog and sometimes they really act like it. They follow us around, watching and wanting. Naomi and I are rats. We googled it once and apparently it means we are ambitious, charming and—when it comes to money—complete psychos. We’re into all that stuff: Chinese zodiac, horoscopes, Myers-Briggs, What-Movie-Character-Are-You. It helps to draw lines between people, to find out where they split.”
Kira K. Homsher (Cutleaf Journal)
@bestofnetanthology

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · 2w ago

Each week, BotN randomly selects a journal from the previous year's Participating Journals list to highlight on social media. Visit them at @turningleafjournal.bsky.social

2026 Participating Journal Spotlight

The Turning Leaf Journal

Best of the Net Anthology

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · 2w ago

Check out one of our 2026 Art Selections, “Court Order” by Shaunté Glover (@haydensferryreview.bsky.social), selected by Octavio Quintanilla on bestofthenetanthology.com/2026-2/2026-art/court-order/ #bestofthenetanthology #art #finalist

COURT ORDER
Shaunté Glover (Hayden’s Ferry Review)
@bestofnetanthology

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · 3w ago

Each week, BotN randomly selects a journal from the previous year's Participating Journals list to highlight on social media. Visit them at enbylife.net

2026 Participating journal spotlight
#enbylife Journal

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · 3w ago

Check out one of our 2026 Fiction Selections, “The Harvest” by Katie Field (@sotospeakjournal.bsky.social), selected by Andrew Porter on bestofthenetanthology.com/2026-2/2026-fiction/the-harvest/ #bestofthenetanthology #fictionwriting #finalist

THE HARVEST
“ He is a fraternity, he is the internet, he is the president. I am aware that I have until the end of this speech before I will be expected to eat the bleeding fungus. We are going on a trip, he shouts, to a chorus of cheers. A vice closes around my lungs. Time elapses, and the sinister cowboy stares at me. I am afraid of this man and his blow torch, and of the other men wearing long robes whose eyes scan the crowd like state troopers at a protest. But what if they’re right? What if I could find my place here? What if instead of facing the cactus of each queer day, I woke up certain?

@bestofnetanthology
Katie Field (So to Speak Journal)

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · 4w ago

Each week, BotN randomly selects a journal from the previous year's Participating Journals list to highlight on social media. Visit them at dishsoap-quarterly.com #magazine #literarymagazine #spotlight

2026 participating journal spotlight: Dishsoap

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · last mo.

Check out one of our 2026 Nonfiction Selections, “Never Sick” by Miye Sugino (@adroitjournal.bsky.social ), selected by Lily Hoàng on bestofthenetanthology.com/2026-2/2026-nonfiction/never-sick/ #bestofthenetanthology #nonfictionwriting #finalist

NEVER SICK
Miye Sugino (The Adroit Journal)

“I realize then that Halmeoni believes that dying is a kind of moving. An easy transit: earth to heaven, body to spirit. But how did she remain grateful? It seemed radical to me, even transcendent. How did she resist the instinct of defeat, eyes dispassionate and open?
How do you move forward if you have no place to move from?“

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · last mo.

Our 2027 Best of the Net nominations are now open until September 30th! For more information on how to submit, go to bestofthenetanthology.com/submissions/ or use the link in our bio. We look forward to seeing your nominations! #bestofthenet #writingcommunity

2027 best of the best anthology
Nominations are open
Deadline: September 30th

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · last mo.

Check out one of our 2026 Poetry Selections, “Aphrodite as a Fat Woman” by Elizabeth Higgins (Redivider), selected by Cyrus Cassells on bestofthenetanthology.com/2026-2/2026-poetry/aphrodite-as-a-fat-woman/ #bestofthenetanthology #poetrywriting #finalist

APHRODITE AS A FAT WOMAN

“There’s snickering because the idea is absurd,
the comedic formula familiar: fat woman
thinks she’s a goddess.
We search her eyes for irony, for apology,
but there isn’t any.”
Elizabeth Higgins (Redivider)

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · last mo.

Announcing our 2027 Creative Nonfiction judge for the Best of the Net Anthology: Mitchell S. Jackson! Check out all our judges at bestofthenetanthology.com/2027-judges/

Creative Nonfiction Judge
Mitchell S. Jackson
Best of the Net Anthology

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · last mo.

Announcing our 2027 Poetry Judge for the Best of the Net Anthology: Diane Seuss! Check out all our judges at bestofthenetanthology.com/2027-judges/

Poetry Judge
Diane Seuss
Best of the Net Anthology

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · last mo.

Announcing our 2027 Art judge for the Best of the Net Anthology: Leticia Sánchez Toledo. Check out all our judges at bestofthenetanthology.com/2027-judges/

Art Judge
Leticia Sánchez Toledo
Best of the Net Anthology

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · last mo.

Announcing our 2027 Fiction judge for the Best of the Net Anthology: @deeshaphilyaw.bsky.social! Check out all our judges at bestofthenetanthology.com/2027-judges/

Deesha Philyaw
FICTION JUDGE
Best of the Net Anthology

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Each week, BotN randomly selects a journal from the previous year's Participating Journals list to highlight on social media. Visit Midwest Weird at midwestweird.com #magazine #literarymagazine #spotlight

2026 Participating Journal Spotlight

Midwest Weird

An Audio Literary Magazine

Best of the Net Anthology

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Check out one of our 2026 Nonfiction Selections, “Body Topography” by Camille LeFevre (The Dodge), selected by Lily Hoàng on bestofthenetanthology.com/2026-2/2026-nonfiction/body-topography/ #bestofthenetanthology #nonfictionwriting #finalist

BODY TOPOGRAPHY
“My fingertip traces the fibrous ridges of cactus netting. My fingertip finds the faded patch on my calf, a white indentation with a scar the length of a prickly pear spine. A place of encounter. Of bodies intersecting. The desert of my youth has long lived in my mind, its structural systems inherent to my body. This was its first mark making to my flesh.”
Camille LeFevre (The Dodge)

Exposition Review @expositionreview.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Special shoutout to Jaqi Howard, whose comic CLOVER was selected for inclusion in @bestofthenet.bsky.social! Help us celebrate and read the pieces here: tinyurl.com/ExpoSpringLitNoms.

“Spring” Literary Prize Nominations - Exposition Review

At Exposition Review, our mission is to continue to create opportunities for our ever-growing community of talented writers and artists to share their voices and grow their platforms. This is why ever...

tinyurl.com

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Each week, BotN randomly selects a journal from the previous year's Participating Journals list to highlight on social media. Check out Strange Hymnal at strangehymnal.com #magazine #literarymagazine #spotlight

Strange Hymnal 2026 participating journal spotlight
Best of the Net Anthology

Exposition Review @expositionreview.bsky.social · 2mo ago

The comics section of A DECADE OF ART features @bestofthenet.bsky.social winners Jaqi Howard & @altmanill0.bsky.social & more by @jessyrandall.bsky.social @shawnwrites.bsky.social @whitneycook.bsky.social @fregadiperri.bsky.social @davidlasky.bsky.social: expositionreview.com/expo-present....

A Decade of Art: Comics - Exposition Review

Visit the Other Galleries Painting | Photography | Mixed Media | Illustration | Street Art Return to Lobby

expositionreview.com

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Check out one of our 2026 Art Selections, “Circular Panel” by Sarah Chess (Notch Magazine), selected by Octavio Quintanilla on bestofthenetanthology.com/2026-2/2026-art/circular-panel/ #bestofthenetanthology #artpiece #finalist

Circular Panel
Sarah Chess (Notch Magazine)
Best of the Net Anthology

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · 2mo ago

The B’K Magazine is an art and literature magazine prioritizing and paying traditionally marginalized creators, but open to all. Each week, BotN randomly selects a journal from the previous year's Participating Journals list to highlight on social media. #magazine #literarymagazine #spotlight

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Check out one of our 2026 Fiction Selections, “The Sisters” by @angieellis.bsky.social (The Masters Review), selected by Andrew Porter on bestofthenetanthology.com/2026-2/2026-fiction/the-sisters/ #bestofthenetanthology #fictionwriting #finalist

THE SISTERS
“They pay no mind and soon dream peacefully to the rabbits’ revelries. But when the squeals turn to shrieks, they are woken. A hint of smoke tinges the air. People acrossthe mountain lift their heads from their pillows or set down their books. They rise to their feet and listen on their porches. In the dark, the sisters rush down to the west field, their nightgowns swishing, their bare feet crushing dead grass. A great bonfire shootsorange ashes up into the sky, and the dark figure of their father swings a club to the ground like a madman.“
Angie Ellis (The Masters Review)

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Identity Theory is an online literary magazine and cultural hub that has been publishing original writing, interviews, and other forms of creative expression since July 2000. Each week, BotN randomly selects a journal from the previous year's Participating Journals list to highlight.

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · 2mo ago

Check out one of our 2026 Poetry Selections, "Revision" by B. Do (The Cincinnati Review), selected by Cyrus Cassells on bestofthenetanthology.com/2026-2/2026-poetry/revision/ #bestofthenetanthology #poetrywriting #finalist

REVISION
“After they had me, my mother and father ended up not getting better after all they had inherited from the American War; if anything, they would only get worse and worse in their resentment and bitterness, their anger and sorrow, their accumulated hurt and their capacity to inflict it. No, the truth is that my mother and father were gentle, loving people, until the day they quietly passed in their old age. In truth, I became a poet because of all this, all the ways in which I have been destroyed. No, the truth, also, is that I became a poet because of all this, all the ways in which I have been loved.”
B. Do (The Cincinnati Review)

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Check out one of our 2026 Nonfiction Selections, "Reduction" by Carrie George (Crayfish Magazine), selected by Lily Hoàng on bestofthenetanthology.com/2026-2/2026-nonfiction/reduction/ #bestofthenetanthology #nonfictionwriting #finalist

REDUCTION
“Before surgery, my breasts were mine. My breasts weighing down my body, which has been mine since its pushing into the world, bloody, crying, and hungry. My breasts were mine when my friend’s mother bought me a striped black and white bra for my ninth birthday. They were mine when the boys spent lunch hour ranking the seventh-grade girls’ tits over tater tots. They were mine when the boys in Drama Club called them “bahongas” and jiggled them in their hands...They were mine in other hands. They were mine in unwanted hands. They were mine even when they were made to belong to the world while they swelled out of my chest, inseparable from my living.”
Carrie George (Crayfish Magazine)

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Check out one of our 2026 Fiction Selections, "The Great Renunciation" by @laurenbarbato.bsky.social (American Literary Review), selected by Andrew Porter on bestofthenetanthology.com/2026-2/2026-fiction/the-great-renunciation/ #bestofthenetanthology #poetrywriting #finalist

THE GREAT RENUNCIATION
“When Lian was ready, dressed in that gauzy ruffle-neck blouse, her synthetic black waves pinned behind her ears, her faux side-swept bangs freshly sprayed, and that plastic baggie hidden inside her front pocket, I guided her outside to our covered front porch. I lit a menthol and watched her wander down the block, fidget with her wallet keychain, and step toe-to-heel onto the city bus. She wobbled down the rubber aisle before choosing a seat in the last row of the bus. You do not have to be good, I reminded myself, wiping the bob’s wispy bangs away from my eyes.”
Lauren Barbato (American Literary Review)

@bestofthenet.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Check out one of our 2026 Poetry Selections, "The Ubiquitous Garden" by Laura Da’ (A Dozen Nothing), selected by Cyrus Cassells on bestofthenetanthology.com/2026-2/2026-poetry/the-ubiquitous-garden/ #bestofthenetanthology #poetrywriting #finalist

The Ubiquitous Garden
“I hear the childhood
birdsong we used to mimic in the strawberry fields
so it must be the cross-quarter day between
the equinoxes. What sort of sweetness
will you bring when you arrive and will you
be carrying a bright torch?”
Laura Da’ (A Dozen Nothing)

Darren C. Demaree @darrencdemaree.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Many thanks to the editors of Literary Underground for including five Emily as poems on their site today. theliteraryunderground.org/blog/2026/05...

5 poems by Darren C. Demaree - The Literary Underground

Emily as a Play of Light Possessed by the porch she’s sitting on, discovered linear by Ohio’s version of the sun, Emily is asleep in the chair she bought that matches her eyes when they’re open. Some ...

theliteraryunderground.org