Metaphor in creative writing helps the mind make sense of the body by speaking directly through the senses.

Ellen Santasiero | October 2025 Photo by Oliver Sjöström: https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-holding-black-backpack-1223649/ "The thrill of our first class was revealing myself and beginning to see myself as a writer before such supportive, talented people.” –2025 Forge student In my twenties, I sailed off the coast of Maine as a student on an intensive Outward Bound course. On the first day, I felt so nervous as we hauled life jackets and oars and kitted out the boats because I didn’t know...

by Irene Cooper photo by Hannah O'Leary The poet Carl Phillips won the 2023 Pulitzer Prize in Poetry for his collection, Then the War....