Issue 72 / Fall 2019
72 / Games
The power of play
Play is serious business! In Creative Nonfiction #72: “Games,” writers connect with friends, family, and strangers to play Hanabi and hide-and-seek, mah-jongg and make-believe. Online or in-person, they explore other worlds, try on new ways of being, and find unexpected meaning.
Plus: what writers can learn from video game audience research; the importance of rhythm in prose; Procrastination Bingo; and much more.
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What’s the Story #72
"What we do here at Creative Nonfiction is not a game; it's work we take very seriously"The Serious Business of Play
It’s not always easy to tell someone you’re a game scholarSurviving
A child and his grandmother confront mortality with an elaborate dinosaur gameWhispers from the Field
Wandering through gamescapes with ghostsKeeping Score
Coming back to the table, in cards and in marriageNever a Sure Bet
A family passes mah-jongg—and a taste for gambling—down through generationsBeautiful Slop
A writer turns away from her thesis and toward the pool hallAlmost Home
A game offers the opportunity to explore a post-apocalyptic version of homeSpecial Time
Real talk from a mom who doesn’t like playing make-believeHow to Earn the Ending
What writers can learn from video game developersInside Out and Outside In
Exploring the possibilities—and the pitfalls—of immersion projectsAll in the Cards
Mexican Bingo as a source of writing inspirationThey’ve Got Rhythm, How ‘Bout You?
What makes the prose of Virginia Woolf, Norman McLean, Ernest Hemingway, and other greats dance on the page?The Fake MFA Syllabus
Learn from home! For no $$$Procrastination Bingo
How many of these writing-adjacent activities (that aren't actually writing) have you done today?Bold Colors & Orderly Chaos
The "Games" artist on visual storytelling, humor, and the cultural landscape