A haunting Halloween story by Brandi Ocasio—face The Stupid One, The Spoilt One, and The Envious One in a dark, poetic encounter with fear and self.

Let me offer an explanation behind the title of my blog and portfolio `Fairies and Arsenic.ˊ

Let us dive into the rituals of the infamous Blackwood Sisters of Shirley Jacksons Mind and compare them to the remarkable findings of Mary Douglas in Purity and Danger: An Analysis of Concepts of Pollution and Taboo.

An entirely separate critical conversation and understanding into my critical conversation featured in Boulevard Literary Magazine.

This issue includes 2023 Fiction Contest winner Mary Elizabeth Dubois, 2023 Nonfiction Contest winner Phillip Barcio, and 2023 Poetry Contest winner Lucinda Trew. It also features a Boulevard Craft Interview with Chelsea T. Hicks by Daniel J. Musgrave and an essay by Devin Thomas O’Shea, along with new fiction from Cole Chamberlain, Emerson Henry, Zehra Nabi, Jude Whiley, and Anthony Yarbrough, new poetry from Claressinka Anderson, Carrie Beyer, Colby Cotton, Tiara Dinevska-McGuire, Kindall Fred...

by Brandi Ocasio

Persephone was born into this world as a weed growing between the cracks in the pavement. When people first noticed her, neighbors would speak in hushed voices to each other over the fences and hedges, craning their heads. Did you see that weed in the middle of the street? One suburbian blonde whispered to the other. Oh yes, the other shushed, shaking her head, eyeing the weed, her lips pursed in disgust. All the neighbors had seen weeds growing in the cracks, sure, but this on...

You can find Brandi Ocasio's art and writing in this new Connectic*nt zine featuring CT arts, culture, and news! Get a look into the culture around our zine. It’s a glossy, print zine. Muah!

Connectic*nt is a 45+ page zine featuring CT arts, culture, and news! Get a look into the culture around our zine. It’s a glossy, print zine. Muah!

Brandi Ocasio marks 1 of 14 Environmental Fellows representing Bennington College in 2024. Through the Endeavor Foundation Environmental Action Fellowship Program, students are placed into internship positions at nonprofits with a focus on environmental protection and environmental justice. 

In addition to their internships, Fellows develop together as a peer-supported cohort through pre-and post-Fellowship coursework and mentorship, led by Judith Enck, Senior CAPA Fellow, and founder of the Beyond Plastics project. By combining hands-on work experience with education and mentorship,...

You can find samples of Brandi Ocasio's flash fiction in this nifty digital copy of Connectic*nt zine! Get 45+ pages of fantastic content. This issue of Connecticunt is ready to read right now!






A digital copy of our Connectic*nt zine! Get 45+ pages of fantastic content. This issue of Connecticunt is ready to read right now!

A digital copy of our Connectic*nt zine! Get 45+ pages of fantastic content. This issue of Connecticunt is ready to read right now!

A digital copy of our Connectic*nt zine! Get 45+ pages of fantastic conten...

2020 award recipient Brandi Ocasio took full advantage of the various ways that Common Ground seeks to build environmental leaders. As a first year student she traveled with a group of Common Ground students to participate in the Climate March in Washington, DC, making her voice heard as she marched, chanting and singing through the streets of our nation’s capital. She has held various Green Jobs positions, planting trees throughout New Haven, and helping to maintain one of New Haven’s environmental treasures, Edgewood Park. She worked with other Common Ground students over the past three years in a way that exposed literally thousands of New Haven children to our beautiful campus by creating and leading the annual Creepy Town event. As part of their culminating Common Ground experience, all of our students must present and defend an Environmental Leadership portfolio. In her definition of leadership, this student said a leader must create an environment that allows people to grow into better versions of themselves. She is a passionate environmentalist, a social justice warrior, a writer and a scientist, as well as the Valedictorian of her class. We fully expect she will become a brilliant environmental essayist in the tradition of Rachel Carson or Annie Dillard. This year’s recipient of the Joan Gillette Award for Environmental Leadership is Brandi Ocasio. Brandi went on to attend Bennington College in Vermont with a full scholarship, where she was an Environmental Fellow and worked at the League of Women’s Voters.

In our Summer 2023 issue, we have work by fifteen authors: fourteen short stories, including our Flash Fiction Contest winner and honorable mentions, and three pieces of nonfiction.Thank you to Chelsea T. Hicks for judging for us!Ashley Beresch, “Would You Rather“ (Winner) Brenda Yates, “Starting Fresh“ (Honorable Mention) Xochi Cartland, “Response to Amy Hempel“ (Honorable Mention)Clara Roberts, “The Taste of Escape“ Brendan Todt, “When You Feel It,” “We Do Not Love Each Other Exactly” Bibi Ber...