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Crafternoon! Journaling and Telling Your Story

Inspired by the second Virtual Crafternoon! event with Araceli Esparza, poeta and founder of Wisconsin Mujer, this list includes just a small sampling of books by womxn writers at Madison Public Library! 

Crafternoon! was begun by Britney Sinclair in Madison-area homes to create social spaces where Womxn of Color were free to be their authentic selves. Madison Public Library was proud to present Crafternoon! The Art of Cheeseboards with Megan Diaz-Ricks (founder of Alma Board & Box), the first in a virtual series of Crafternoon! events, as an online "safe" social space for Womxn of Color (and allies) to connect, create, and practice self-care in partnership with Bri Creation Station, and with generous in-kind support from the Willy Street Co-op. 

Crafternoon! Journaling for the New Year with Araceli Esparza took place live on January 3, 2020, but you can craft and journal along to the recording on the Library's YouTube channel throughout 2021.

Books by Womxn Writers

Cover of Borderlands/La Frontera: T
Gloria
Anzaldúa
Aunt Lute Books
1999

Rooted in Gloria Anzaldúa's experience as a Chicana, a lesbian, an activist, and a writer, the essays and poems in this volume profoundly challenged, and continue to challenge, how we think about identity. Borderlands / La Frontera remaps our understanding of what a "border" is, presenting it not as a simple divide between here and there, us and them, but as a psychic, social, and cultural terrain that we inhabit, and that inhabits all of us.

Cover of The Yellow House (memoir)
Sarah M.
Broom
Grove Press
2019

A book of great ambition, Sarah M. Broom’s The Yellow House tells a hundred years of her family and their relationship to home in a neglected area of one of America’s most mythologized cities. This is the story of a mother’s struggle against a house's entropy, and that of a prodigal daughter who left home only to reckon with the pull that home exerts

Cover of Big Magic: Creative Living
Elizabeth
Gilbert
Riverhead Books
2015

With profound empathy and radiant generosity, Gilbert offers potent insights into the mysterious nature of inspiration. Asking us to embrace our curiosity and let go of needless suffering, she shows us how to tackle what we most love, and how to face down what we most fear. Balancing between soulful spirituality and cheerful pragmatism, Gilbert encourages us to uncover the "strange jewels" that are hidden within each of us. 

Cover of This Bridge Called My Back
Cherrie
Moraga
State University of New York (SUNY) Press
2015

Through personal essays, criticism, interviews, testimonials, poetry, and visual art, the collection explores, as coeditor Cherrie Moraga writes, "the complex confluence of identities--race, class, gender, and sexuality--systemic to women of color oppression and liberation."

Cover of When my brother was an Azt
Natalie
Diaz
Copper Canyon Press
2012

"I write hungry sentences," Natalie Diaz once explained in an interview, "because they want more and more lyricism and imagery to satisfy them." This debut collection is a fast-paced tour of Mojave life and family narrative: A sister fights for or against a brother on meth, and everyone from Antigone, Houdini, Huitzilopochtli, and Jesus is invoked and invited to hash it out. These darkly humorous poems illuminate far corners of the heart, revealing teeth, tails, and more than a few dreams.

Cover of Crazy Brave (memoir)
Joy
Harjo
2012

In this transcendent memoir, grounded in tribal myth and ancestry, music and poetry, Joy Harjo (Mvskoke) details her journey to becoming a poet. Born in Oklahoma, the end place of the Trail of Tears, Harjo grew up learning to dodge an abusive stepfather by finding shelter in her imagination, a deep spiritual life, and connection with the natural world. Narrating the complexities of betrayal and love, Crazy Brave is a haunting, visionary memoir about family and the breaking apart necessary in finding a voice.

Cover of All About Love: New Vision
bell
hooks
William Morrow
2000

A visionary and accessible book, All About Love offers radical new ways to think about love. Here, hooks, one of our most acute social critics, takes the themes that put her on the map - the relationship between love and sexuality, and the interconnectedness between the public and the private - and challenges the prevailing notion that romantic love is more important than all other bonds.

Cover of The Body Is Not An Apology
Sonia Renee
Taylor
Berrett-Koehler Publishers
2018

World-renowned activist and poet Sonya Renee Taylor invites us to reconnect with the radical origins of our minds and bodies and celebrate our collective, enduring strength. As we awaken to our own indoctrinated body shame, we feel inspired to awaken others and to interrupt the systems that perpetuate body shame and oppression against all bodies. When we act from this truth on a global scale, we usher in the transformative opportunity of radical self-love, which is the opportunity for a more just, equitable, and compassionate world--for us all.

A Selection of Journaling Titles

Cover of Journal It! Perspectives i
Jenny
Doh
Lark Crafts
2012

Journaling and collage come together in Journal It!, where 19 mixed-media artists showcase their signature techniques, tips, and creativity boosters. 

Cover of Make Anything Happen: A Cr
Carrie
Lindsey
Skyhorse Publishing
2018

Everyone wants to accomplish their goals and live the life of which they dream. But in today's busy age, how do we make that happen? This interactive book helps readers live an intentional life by determining their priorities and tapping into their creativity to create beautiful and functional vision boards and manageable action plans to achieve their goals. Through guided worksheets, vision board templates and samples, and planning pages, author Carrie Lindsey inspires readers to get clear on what they really want and then make it happen.

Cover of Journal Sparks: Fire Up Yo
Emily K.
Neuburger
Storey Publishing
2017

Using words, drawing, collage, and observation-based list-making, award-winning author Emily K. Neuburger highlights the many paths into journaling. Her 60 interactive writing prompts and art how-tos help you to expand your imagination and stimulate your creativity. Every spread invites a new approach to filling a page, from making a visual map of a day-in-my-life to turning random splotches into quirky characters for a playful story. ​Its the perfect companion to all those blank books and an ideal launchpad to explore creative self-expression and develop an imaginative voice

Cover of Beyond Bullets: Creative J
Megan
Rutell
Ulysses Press
2017

Going beyond basic tools, this book offers tips, tricks and creative ways to transform your notebook into a treasured life companion, including:. ornamental lettering, personalized habit trackers, colorful calendars, decorative headers, customized productivity lists, inspiring artwork, creative future logs, and unique planning pages.

Cover of Journal Me Organized
Rebecca
Spooner
Get Creative
2018

Add meaning to each day with The Art of Planning, which covers choosing a journal, how and why to plan, different types of planning--including bullet journaling--short-term and long-term goal setting, cross referencing, prioritizing, and time management. Whether organizing the laundry room, planning meals, or saving for a dream vacation, Rebecca Spooner's creative ideas and easy-to-follow instructions will bring your journal pages to life

Cover of Artful Journals
Janet
Takahashi
Lark/Chapelle Book
2007

We all have thoughts, feelings, and experiences that we want to preserve forever—and a journal makes the perfect keepsake. This inspiration-packed guide, with beautiful watercolor art throughout, offers a wealth of creative ideas for creating attractive journals from scratch as well as embellishing store-bought ones.

Cover of Journal Revolution: Rise U
Linda
Woods
North Light Books
2007

Overthrow your inner critic's tyranny of fear and rules, and discover fresh techniques and inspiration to rant, whisper, beg, stomp or sing your truths. Celebrate your rough edges with a revolutionary new approach to art journaling, as you learn to vividly express your uncensored emotions and boldly record your deepest secrets.