no      dark was too loud to keep itself shut
but light      this big quiet light      it could swallow us whole

—Andrea Sherwood

In Rivet 14, a wide variety of styles and genres come together to ask questions about truth and power. When truth can only be spoken in the dark, who hears it? When truth is written in the body, who is granted the authority to read it? And when lies flood society, can we fight the tide? These authors’ voices are sometimes funny, sometimes heartbreaking, always powerful. These pieces ask us to do more than bear witness. —Liana Holmberg

Contents

I Didn’t Need a Weatherman by Reg Darling — nonfiction

The Sexton Queen by Andrea Adams— fiction

Blackout by Andrea Sherwood — poetry

The Bottomless Pit in the Back Room of Nick’s Speakeasy by Daniel Galef — fiction

Deadbeat by Sara Moore Wagner — poetry

Two Poems by Emily Stoddard — poetry

Primary Sources by J Reifel— fiction