ABOUT
Welcome! My name is Crystal and I’m so glad that you’re here.
A bit about me: I’m a Black woman. I’m a writer and editor. I am very done with the idea that I need to be infallible in order to succeed. Or exist.
Likes: Books, traveling, tea, Malbec, cupcakes. And cake in general. And peach cobbler. Most desserts, really.
Dislikes: Colonialism. Every kind of “supremacy.” People with overflowing carts in the self-checkout line.
A note about the title: Crooked is a reminder that a thing doesn’t have to be perfect in order to be beautiful, valuable. Verse is an homage to my love of poetry because everything is a poem, if you look closely.
So, what will you find here?
ALineMeant
Every line is a story. The lines that have been drawn for us, around us. The lines that we internalize, subconsciously. Our own organic lines, which may appear unrecognizable, threatening. The new lines created from something shattered; the beauty and consequences of breaking established molds.
They are the threads that connect and separate us; from each other and ourselves.
I am intrigued by them. Lifted by them. Broken by them. Enraged by them. I am curious about the ways we interpret and encounter them . . . their shapes and borders, our entry to them and expulsion from them. I am fascinated by their contrasts — how they can be invisible and palpable, tender and terrorizing.
ALineMeant is a creative exploration of the ways lines manifest in our lives. Some lines will be personal, social, cultural, ancestral. Others may be straight, partial, fractured, infinite. Some lines will come from books, music, TV, and films that resonate with me. And some will be random or playful or slightly eccentric because life is A LOT and we could all use a bit of levity.
Why subscribe?
- Because you found your way here 🙏🏾 and creative energy has a magical way of reaching the people it's meant to.
- Because there may be something about the human you are that resonates with the human I am, and there’s beauty in that. And life is too fleeting for us to deny ourselves something beautiful.
- Because memory fatigue is real, and you don't want to worry about whether you missed something because of a pesky AI bot! You'll have new content sent straight to your inbox, every 1st and 3rd Wednesday of the month.
- Because you’re curious about what else is weaving through my being, and you have a spare $7/month that is determined to make something of itself. Paid subscribers will have exclusive access to Dandelions, featuring excerpts from the pages of my notebooks (and some of my most personal writing). I’m a recovering perfectionist, which is why I’m crafting this space to allow myself to come as I am. I hope you’ll join me.
Your subscription and support make this site possible, and allows my work to thrive. If you would like to show some love without subscribing, you can make a donation in any amount here.
Thank you! 💛