M Shelly Conner, Ph.D., is an assistant professor of creative writing at the University of Central Arkansas. She and her wife live on their central Arkansas homestead with their dog Whiskey where she writes about DIY, black queer womanhood, self-sustainable living and their interesting intersections. Her debut novel everyman (Blackstone Publishing) is available for pre-order from all retailers and will be released July 20, 2021.
M Shelly Conner, Ph.D.
I returned to my garden project, open to receiving the life lesson that the land offered a hardheaded homesteader in its refusal to yield to my forceful nature.
As a child living on Chicago’s South Side, I was afraid of water. Then, life plunged me into the deep end to paddle through love, grief, trauma, shame, joy, growth and fear.
