Tessera

I was 28, broke, injured, freshly single, and estranged from my family. Somehow 9/11 made all of it worse — and also, eventually, better. If you're reading along on the journey of my memoir, the next piece is now live. penspalsprose.substack.com

Pens, Pals, & Prose with Kacy Zurkus | Substack

A place for thoughtful prose and sharp insights, designed for readers who value depth and connection over constant noise and mindless scrolling. Click to read Pens, Pals, & Prose with Kacy Zurkus, a S...

penspalsprose.substack.com

I started teaching weeks before the #September11 attack. In the summer of 2002, I was 28 when I took a solo XC #roadtrip, the story of which became my #memoir, Found in US. I'll be dropping excerpts on #Substack. #anxiety #identity #Americanhistory open.substack.com/pub/penspals...

Just One

An excerpt from my memoir, Finding My Way Home

open.substack.com

There's a difference between awareness, education, and training. Parents need to understand what AI is and how their kids are using it. Read more and share your thoughts www.penspalsprose.com/blogs/our-ki... #AI #teens #technology #parenting #teaching #K12 #techinschools

Our Kids Are Already Living in the AI Era. Are We Paying Attention? — Pens Pals, and Prose: A Writer's Community

A new survey reveals how teens are quietly building their understanding of the world through AI tools their parents don't recognize, don't use, and by their own admission, don't understand.

penspalsprose.com

A really beautiful piece, Love in the Shelter, by Nancy Shekter-Porat #onbeingjewishnow #war open.substack.com/pub/onbeingj...

Love in the Shelter

Caring for my husband in wartime

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Reading @jacindaardern.bsky.social A Different Kind of Power and thinking about what it means to lead through crisis, as a #mother and as a #human being. Just wrote about seeing her speak live. www.penspalsprose.com/blogs/the-leader-in-the-room-seeing-jacinda-ardern-speak-live #leadership

What Seeing Jacinda Ardern Speak Taught Me About A Different Kind of Power — Pens Pals, and Prose: A Writer's Community

Seeing Jacinda Ardern speak live was unforgettable. A personal reflection on her leadership, her book A Different Kind of Power, and why it matters.

penspalsprose.com

Deepfakes target minors and are a growing crisis inside our schools. My piece in @thefulcrum-us.bsky.social breaks down what schools should do now, and why AI companies can't wait. Thoughts? 🔗 thefulcrum.us/media-techno... #AIPolicy #Deepfakes #TakeItDownAct #TechAccountability #DigitalSafety

Deepfakes: The New Face of Cyberbullying and Why Parents, Schools, and Lawmakers Must Act

As a former teacher who worked in a high school when Snapchat was born, I witnessed the birth of sexting and its impact on teens. I recall asking a parent whether he was checking his daughter’s phone ...

thefulcrum.us

Schools buried tips. Companies profited. Teenage girls paid the price. I wrote about the deepfake crisis and what has to change. #deepfake #ai #teens #cyberbullying #sexism www.penspalsprose.com/blogs/ai-dee...

AI Deepfakes Are Targeting Teenage Girls. Schools and Lawmakers Must Act Now. — Pens Pals, and Prose: A Writer's Community

A federal lawsuit against Elon Musk's xAI puts a spotlight on the growing crisis of AI-generated deepfakes targeting teenage girls. From Lancaster County to South Carolina, schools are failing victims...

penspalsprose.com

I've been thinking about surveillance apps. What the research actually says might change how you approach your kid's screen time. #ParentingTeens #ScreenTime #OnlineSafety #DigitalParenting www.penspalsprose.com/blogs/the-watching-problem-what-research-says-about-surveillance-apps-and-your-kids

The Watching Problem: What Research Says About Surveillance Apps and Your Kids — Pens Pals, and Prose: A Writer's Community

Learn why parental control and surveillance apps may undermine teen safety. Research-backed insights on protecting kids online through trust and communication.

penspalsprose.com

The classroom taught me a lot about kids and myself. Vulnerability exists in the digital age. It just looks different. #Teaching #Vulnerability #DigitalAge #Education #PersonalGrowth #TeacherLife penspalsprose.com/musings/what-years-of-teaching-taught-me-about-vulnerability-in-the-digital-age

What Years of Teaching Taught Me About Vulnerability in the Digital Age — Pens Pals, and Prose: A Writer's Community

I stood in front of my classroom for nearly two decades. During the first several years of my teaching, I’d watch nervous freshmen file into my English classroom, armed with the same defense mechanism...

penspalsprose.com

Kacy Zurkus @ksz714.bsky.social · 8mo ago

The best thing I ever did for my writing had nothing to do with writing more. It was finding the right three people to write alongside. Here's how it happened: #WritingCommunity #AmWriting #WritersOfBlueSky #WritingGroup www.penspalsprose.com/musings/why-every-writer-needs-a-writing-group

The Value of a Writing Group: Accountability, Feedback, and Community — Pens Pals, and Prose: A Writer's Community

I started a writing group after a Sue Shapiro class — and it changed my writing life. Here's what I learned about feedback, accountability, and finding your people.

penspalsprose.com

Sharing my latest #personalessay on #healing from #familytrauma medium.com/@kacy_55513/...

Breaking Generational Shame: A Family’s Hidden Tragedy

A personal essay about confronting family violence, alcoholism, and the courage it takes to face generational trauma and break cycles of…

medium.com

Kacy Zurkus @ksz714.bsky.social · 8mo ago

In my latest #substack, I write about the lessons I learned from my grandmother more than a decade after she died. open.substack.com/pub/penspals... #FamilyStories #Grief #Forgiveness #LettingGo #Grandmothers #writers #writingcommunity

LAUGHING MATTERS, and as we head into 2026, I think we will all need to find laughter. You can find it here: lisastlou.substack.com?r=4rkuzp&utm...

LAUGHING MATTERS | Lisa St. Lou | Substack

LAUGHING MATTERS is for people who find that laughing matters...even when it's no laughing matter. Join me in finding humor in navigating midlife, music, memoir, and moving to France for a year. Spoil...

lisastlou.substack.com

Anyone else feeling the #holiday crunch and trying NOT to lean in to the #impulsebuy urges in these final hours? #christmas #gifts open.substack.com/pub/penspals...

The Gift of Presence Over Presents

It's so hard to quiet the fear of not having enough

open.substack.com

My Husband Asked if AI Gives Me Anxiety. I'm More Concerned About Human Apathy #AI #ChatGPT #anxiety #socialmedia #reasonforhope open.substack.com/pub/penspals...

My Husband Asked if AI Gives Me Anxiety. I'm More Concerned About Human Apathy

My fears about the power of AI are not just the ramblings of an anxious mom

open.substack.com

Kacy Zurkus @ksz714.bsky.social · 10mo ago

Aging in the era of #AI and social media isn't easy. I'm far from a luddite, but I can't quite wrap my head around how to share my thoughts with the word. So, I wrote about it in my latest #blog #writing #writerslife #writingcommunity www.penspalsprose.com/musings/3up1...

Why I’ve Gone from Reluctant Social Media Gal t Documenting My Digital Growing Pains — Pens Pals, and Prose: A Writer's Community

There is a specific brand of irony in being a writer who loves words but avoids the places where people actually read them. For a long time, I’ve treated social media like a loud, crowded party I wasn...

penspalsprose.com

It's been too long since my last post, but I felt moved to muse this morning! #workingmoms www.penspalsprose.com/musings/if-im-not-perfect-what-am-i

If I’m Not Perfect, What Am I? — Pens Pals, and Prose: A Writer's Community

Last night I enjoyed dinner with some work friends, one of whom retired about 5 months ago. After seeing the positive impact not working was having on her life, her husband decided to take an early re...

penspalsprose.com

Cynthia Yoder @cynthiayoderauthor.bsky.social · last yr.

My memoir re-launches today under this new cover. I’m glad I was brave to put this out years ago! If I’d write it today, I’d be softer on my dad…we made our amends. But now I write about those conversations separately! Thus is the nature of writing memoir. #memoir #writingcommunity #books

Cover of Crazy Quilt: Pieces of a Mennonite Life showing a barn door and close-up photo of author in wedding dress and white hat.

What an incredible week in #SanFrancisco. Hoping things stay on the upward trajectory. You can read about the big wins in my latest post. #JamieFoxx #MagicJohnson #BryceDallasHoward #RonHoward #Common #writers #writingcommunity www.penspalsprose.com/musings/the-magical-happy-days-that-make-me-cry

The Magical, Happy Days that Make Me Cry — Pens Pals, and Prose: A Writer's Community

It’s been a bit since my last post, but ‘work’ has been busy. I put quotes around work intentionally, not because I haven’t really been working or because I’m being hyperbolic and making excuses. Rath...

penspalsprose.com

Excited to share my piece in @nextavenue.bsky.social went live today. Anyone else #goinggray? www.nextavenue.org/im-done-colo...

I'm Done Coloring My Hair

My family opposes my decision, but I am ready to wear my gray hair with pride

nextavenue.org

There's so much to love about #marathonmonday here in #Boston. #running #writing www.penspalsprose.com/musings/mara...

It’s Marathon Monday in Boston. Cheers to All the Runners — Pens Pals, and Prose: A Writer's Community

Reflections from a runner who’s not supposed to run anymore.

penspalsprose.com

Olivia of Troye @oliviaoftroye.com · last yr.

Sharing my reflections on #writers block. I have so many thoughts swirling about in my head. Yesterday, I told my daughters, "I have a hurricane on top of a tornado, on top of whirlwind going on up there." Slowing that down to put pen to page can be a challenge www.penspalsprose.com/musings/deal...

Dealing with Writer's Block — Pens Pals, and Prose: A Writer's Community

Is writer's block real? Or is it just procrastination in disguise? This article explores the idea of writer's block as a choice, offering insights and practical advice to overcome fear and get to work...

penspalsprose.com

He stood for truth. Trump’s now coming after him. What side of this moment will you be on? I stand with Chris Krebs.

I Stand With Chris Krebs.

Because standing with him is standing for America.

livingitwitholiviatroye.com

Sometimes fear is completely irrational. That's how I felt this morning met with giant bumble bee. www.penspalsprose.com/musings/tiny...

Tiny, Scary Things — Pens Pals, and Prose: A Writer's Community

I walked into my bedroom this morning to find my cat staring up at my armoire. Initially, I thought she was eyeing the diaper hanger bag that is now home to single socks waiting in limbo to see if the...

penspalsprose.com

@golden.house.gov Can you elaborate on the #misinformation about the #SAVEAct? Are you saying that for married women whose names don't match those on their birth certificates WON'T be impacted?

My latest post on #teaching and #poetry #writing #writers #writingcommunity www.penspalsprose.com/musings/memo...

Memories of Happy, Happy Love — Pens Pals, and Prose: A Writer's Community

Though I’ve made it obvious in previous posts that I am not a poet, that doesn’t diminish my love of verse. In fact, I asked one of my daughter’s friends about a book she’s currently reading, and she ...

penspalsprose.com