Angel Marie

Angel Marie is a queer writer whose writing reflects post-modernist writing exemplified in works by Leyna Krow. Their writing blends language inspired by poet Charles Bukowski with dystopian themes explored by George Orwell. From California, they currently live in Chicago, where they attend Columbia College Chicago, pursuing a BA in Fiction Creative Writing. Their writing career began with a publication in a ‘zine’ – titled the "Frances" – where they later served as an assistant editor for four issues. They are a former fiction acquisition assistant editor for the literary magazine "Allium". Their works have been featured in "Allium, A Journal of Poetry & Prose", and online in "Mystic Owl Magazine" and the "Frances".

Writing has consumed my life since I was a young child, first expressing my creativity through hand drawn picture books; upon entering middle school, that advanced to chapter books and poetry. As a result, the act of writing consumes my every day – any chance I have to scribble sentences, poetry or chapter paragraphs down in a nearby notebook or in my online notes app I take, day or night. First and foremost, I have always been a writer; inspired by simplicity such as the color change in leaves to more complex instances such as facing and overcoming PTSD. Currently most of my writing chips away at a novel based 50 years in the future, where a deadly virus has reset society and the government utilizes fear mongering to push the growth of the community in the direction they want rather than what’s best for the people. This theme is explored through the eyes of a coming of age teenager who has returned home post her distant mother’s suicide.

By blending poetic language with longer prose I aim to bring attention to specific subjects that are normally swept under the rug. My writing best aligns with the postmodernism genre, supported by dystopian themes and darker subject matter. These themes include the effects of mental health, the aftermath of abuse/assault and the timelines of systemic toxicity in the public, including spotlighting historical capitalism, communism, and sexism.

I do this by writing these into normalized situations – with intent to make the reader question for themselves why my main characters are going along with the injustice as it happens, similar to historic instances that allowed such issues to take place the first time around. With each new piece I place my readers in first person experiences through the eyes of my speaker, hoping they will witness for themselves the damage of these conditions. I believe by writing about difficult subjects I will shed a light on darker matters that most would prefer to ignore and keep hidden. By facing the uncomfortable, together we can strive for improvement. In the very least, I hope to assure others battling life's demons that they are never alone.

Andy Warhol