VIRGINIA LITERATURE




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Local, Latino and A New Richmond Cosmos

Tucked into the alley behind 2512 West Main Street, a fever dream of the cosmos has taken shape across a brick wall. The mural is the collaborative work of four Latino artists working in and around Richmond: Visibly Hidden, Monolith, Mars, and Sol. A distant Earth...

‘Songs of Truth’ Brings Sojourner Truth to the Hippodrome

Editor's Note: For more on the life and legacy of Sojourner Truth, read Christian Detres' companion essay HERE. This has been an inspirational season for Richmond’s homegrown theatre. We are following up the sold-out run of Witchduck with the mid-project musical...

Northern Lights, Northern Lives: Queer Life Beyond the Lower 48

Northern Lights, Northern Lives: A Spectrum of Gender Across Alaska and the Yukon is a collection of 50 striking photographs of LGBTQ+ people and their allies that is set in the breathtaking landscapes of Alaska and Yukon. The images are accompanied by personal essays...

REVIEW | Ducking Awesome! WitchDuck Is Smart, Sharp, and Ruthless

I am rarely speechless, especially about theatre. Since I don’t get paid if I remain silent, I will make myself criticize a play I don’t feel I have any right to judge. Gotta pay the rent, and all that. I came into this performance of WitchDuck by Cadence and...

After Strong Turnout, Richmond Arts Park Enters Holding Pattern

Under the Manchester Bridge, what had been an idea for years turned into something tangible, at least for a day. Hundreds of people moved through the space as muralists painted, DJs played, and passersby stopped mid-bike ride or walk to figure out what was going on....

The Veiled Mirror Comes With Ghost Stories Included

If you are in the market for a glass eye in the same shade as your lover’s, some elaborate hair jewelry, or even an electric couch to use as a Victorian cure-all, then you need to head over to The Veiled Mirror. This Victorian antique store opened downtown in January,...

Richmond Had a General Strike and a First Friday on the Same Night

It was 72 and breezy. Unseasonably pleasant, almost chilly. VCU students were splayed out on picnic blankets in Monroe Park enjoying soft serve and the sunshine. Citronella and the smell of hot dogs wafted through the air from some folks having a cookout. “High...

The Bully.

Or The First Time I Learned How Fear Works Ed. note: This memory came back to me in the middle of the night, and it felt connected to the way fear shapes people and systems right now. It’s just a moment from childhood that suddenly made a lot more sense as an adult. Every morning I rode the same bus to school, and every morning we had to deal...

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The Bully by R Anthony Harris_RVA Magazine 2025

Writer’s Block | The Poetry of Mary Beth Cox

Writer’s Block is RVA Magazine’s Sunday series highlighting contemporary writers working in Richmond and across the Commonwealth. Each week, we feature original poems, short stories, or essays. Just real voices writing right now. This week we’re featuring two poems by Mary Beth Cox, a former Peace Corps volunteer (1999-2001, Togo) living in...

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Poems-by-Mary-Beth-Cox_photo-Jasmin-Ne_RVA-Magazine-2025

Diamonds Aren’t Forever: Richmond Says Goodbye to The Diamond

Al Campanis was a scout for the Brooklyn and Los Angeles Dodgers in the 1950s and 1960s. He said the hair on his arms only stood up twice in his life. Once when he saw the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel and the other time when he witnessed Sandy Koufax throw a fastball. Years later, baseball pundits called Koufax “The Left Arm of God,” and if God...

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Diamonds Aren't Forever by Ryan Kent_RVA Magazine 2025-01-2

Writer’s Block | Four Poems by Breanna Hoch

A Sunday series from RVA Magazine featuring writers from Richmond and Virginia Writer’s Block is RVA Magazine’s Sunday series highlighting contemporary writers working in Richmond and across the Commonwealth. Each week, we feature original poems, short stories, or essays. Just real voices writing right now. In this week’s collection, Breanna...

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Breanna-Hoch-poetry_RVA-Magazine-2025

Writer’s Block | Hotel Gaslight — Two Pieces by Robert Hoekman Jr.

A Sunday series from RVA Magazine featuring writers from Richmond and Virginia Writer’s Block is RVA Magazine’s Sunday series highlighting contemporary writers working in Richmond and across the Commonwealth. Each week, we feature original poems, short stories, or essays. Just real voices writing right now. This week, we’re featuring two...

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Stories-by-Robert-Hoekman-Jr_cover-art-for-Mend-by-PSYCHOSIS_Richmodn-VA_RVA-Magazine-2025

Writer’s Block | Poems by Kaylee Walton

A Sunday series from RVA Magazine featuring writers from Richmond and VirginiaWriter’s Block is RVA Magazine’s Sunday series highlighting contemporary writers working in Richmond and across the Commonwealth. Each week, we feature original poems, short stories, or essays. Just real voices writing right now. This week, we’re featuring a...

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Kaylee Walton poems_photo by Sara-Kurfess RVA MAgazine 2025

Writer’s Block | Poems from ‘ARTHROPOETRY’ by Noah Strickler

A Sunday series from RVA Magazine featuring writers from Richmond and VirginiaWriter’s Block is RVA Magazine’s Sunday series highlighting contemporary writers working in Richmond and across the Commonwealth. Each week, we feature original poems, short stories, or essays. Just real voices writing right now. This week, we’re featuring three poems...

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Writers-Block-Noah-Strickler_Vidar-Nordli-Mathisen-RVA-Magazine-2025

Because None of This is Important, All of It Is.

Amid feedback loops, flickering lights, and fleeting connections at Get Tight Lounge, a local sound tech finds clarity in the chaos and meaning in the impermanence. by Eric Kalata I had to go across town first, to a different venue, to grab the microphones and monitors that I would need for the night. There were six speakers, and I was to take...

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Eric Kalata writing_photo by R Anthony Harris_RVA Magazine 2025