Waldorf Literary Review

Poetry

worth more than a drop? – check yes or no. Poetry by Jenna Polich

when your maker discards you, / chooses the liquor of life over you / - his own flesh and blood - / how can you believe that you are worth more / than a drop? what happens when you try to feel worthy / in someone else – a companion? / sometimes, you will be accepted and cherished / before

Art

Abyss, Art by Yazmine Perez

Yazmine Perez is a psychology student and multidisciplinary artist whose work explores themes of identity, emotional depth, and the subconscious. Through surreal, symbolic imagery and soft, expressive forms, she blends art and introspection to give voice to inner experiences, inviting viewers into a space of self-reflection and emotional connection?

Book Review

Sophia Terazawa’s "Oracular Maladies": a Book Review by Avery Herker

Sophia Terazawa’s Oracular Maladies is a daring expression through form. This collection of poems was published on March 15, 2025 by Noemi Press, a fresh taste of poetry that is sure to come throughout the rest of the year. Throughout the course of the book, Terazawa explores her relationship

Photography

City Limits, Photography by Arnaldur Stefansson

Arnaldur Stefansson is a senior English & Creative Writing double-major from Reykjavík, Iceland. Arnaldur’s work has been published in The Albion Review, as well as in three previous editions of The Waldorf Literary Review, where he currently serves as Editor-in-Chief.

Poetry

Echoes of Passion, Poetry by Boston Winters

I. A Needle, A Surface, A Break I lay here; my body motionless Tall, pale, sylphlike grass surrounds me Outstretched like hands to the black-lit canopy. A monochromatic Sakura branch Blossoming in the pale light Threading the needle of perspicacity. Don’t lie to me When the bough breaks

Interview

An Interview with Samantha Edmonds, Conducted by Jadyn Collins

J: What’s your writing process? S: My writing process tends to be a little bit chaotic. I usually look for inspiration in like whatever I'm thinking about or like obsessing over. So this could be, you know, like it was out space for this book, obviously, but

Photography

Colours in the Dark, Photography by Abby DeMaris

Abby DeMaris is currently a freshman at Waldorf University and is pursuing an education in Music Education. Between academics and music Abby found a hobby in photography. With being involved in a lot in and out of school the sky is always something Abby looks towards on the way to

Art

Cotton Candy Cigarette, Art by Meredith Mulvany

Meredith Mulvany is a Senior in Theatre and Comm at Waldorf University. Despite not being a writing major, she loves to write stories and poetry in her free time, especially exploring human morality and theological interpretation. She's honored to be accepted into the Lit Review for a fourth

Fall 2026

Thoughtless, Photography by Brooks Miner

Brooks Miner is freshman at Waldorf University going for his bachelor’s degree in communications. He wants to go into film later in life but for now does photography as a hobby.

Interview

An Interview with Bailey Gaylin Moore, Conducted by Braden Kane

What got you into writing? It was the only thing I was naturally good at. Like, I don’t have a cute story like Donald where he was carrying around Karl Marx and wearing a trench coat in middle school. I always wanted to be a marine biologist. And then

Spring 2026 Featured

"A Senior's Spiral" by Jillian Kardoes

August 15th, 2025 Dear Registrar, Despite my better judgement, I have decided to return for my final semester. In fact, I am actually excited to embark on this final chapter before I can fully enter into the real world outside of these walls of never-ending homework. Wish me luck.

Spring 2026 Featured

"Goodbye Sunshine" by Gabrielle Bierly

Over the chain fence A shining sky, more colors then one can count A graveyard dusk lies dull and dense No movement is seen or sensed in the shadow of the mount The sun sets below the trees Shadows grow longer by the second They all wave goodbye sunshine The

Photography Featured

"Just Us" by Arden Phan

Arden Phan is a senior from Waukee, Iowa, studying secondary education with an English/Language Arts endorsement. This marks his fourth year in the Waldorf Literary Review. He’s excited to share his work and to finally uncover the truth: that he is, in fact, the shrimp who fried the

Photography Featured

"Invasive Green" by Grace Kobriger

Grace Kobriger is currently a senior at Waldorf University double majoring in Communications and Creative Writing. Grace plans on continuing to pursue her career as a film director after college and plans to make it into HollyWood. Grace is involved with a lot of things and has many hobbies on

Poetry Featured

"Orange Bloom" by Grace Kobriger

The color orange Do you like the color orange? Growing up, I was never fond of the shade Bright and Bastardly Always watching me from across the room Waiting amongst fleshed fabrics or cold metal Waiting? Waiting for what? To scar me with vivid gleam? So, I too cannot escape

Poetry Featured

"Bird of the Dead" by Avery Herker

Ghosts sing sweet songs and We hear them as chirps and beats Of wings. Mom always Looks out the window and says, “She always looked good in red”. So Cardinals fly off again. Avery Herker is an English and Creative Writing major at Waldorf University. Her dream is to go

Spring 2026 Featured

"Flexing that Moolah" by Arden Phan

Arden Phan is a senior from Waukee, Iowa, studying secondary education with an English/Language Arts endorsement. This marks his fourth year in the Waldorf Literary Review. He’s excited to share his work and to finally uncover the truth: that he is, in fact, the shrimp who fried the

Spring 2026 Featured

"Peace and Quiet" by Skylar Cooper

Skylar Cooper is a senior this year at Waldorf and is in the Pillars Program. She enjoys reading, writing, and spending time with her friends.

Interview Featured

An Interview with Caylin Capra-Thomas, Conducted by Anna McCluskey

What got you into writing? Even though I’m not a fiction writer, I’ve always liked to tell stories and read stories since I’ve been able to talk. There are some old home videos of me in the late eighties in my pajamas on the fireplace treating it

Prose Featured

"How to be Afraid" by Jackson Everist

You are, I assume, familiar with the peculiar human emotion of fear. At this point in your education, you should be well versed in its evolutionary roots in the survival of the homosapien species, as well as the strange obsession with the use of fear for recreation held by many

Spring 2026 Featured

At a Standstill, Poetry by Braden Kane

Summer heat, pressing mosquitoes against my skin as I sit. Nothing buzzes in my head tonight. Just the sizzle of the hotdogs. Braden Kane is a Creative Writing/English major. He loves to write fiction with human characters and to experiment with poetry. He would also love to read, but

Spring 2026 Featured

"The Moon, Sun, Ocean, and Sky" by Meredith Mulvany

The Moon sings-lilting lullabies and softened chimes She lazes and gorges on starlight She giggles and runs her fingertips across the reeds Lightning bugs swarm, kissing her skin She reaches and rouses the Ocean, hidden from the Sun for a moment The Ocean bellows-shifting shanties and operatic sonnets

Photography Featured

"Surrounded" by Arnaldur Stefansson

Arnaldur Stefansson is a senior English & Creative Writing double-major from Reykjavík, Iceland. Arnaldur’s work has been published in The Albion Review, as well as in three previous editions of The Waldorf Literary Review, where he currently serves as Editor-in-Chief.

Spring 2026 Featured

Samantha Edmonds' "A Preponderance of Starry Beings": a Book Review by Isaac Masters

A Preponderance of Starry Beings creates a sense of curiosity that dwells in the cosmos and the important simplicity in the moments we experience with others who are different and similar in equal measures. A thought-provoking attempt to navigate the sensual and personal moments as a woman. What we

Spring 2026 Featured

"a time of crisis" by Jenna Polich

God loves you, but not enough to save you.  -Ethel Cain, “Sun Bleached Flies” the sea reflecting the ashy, gray clouds surrounds me, forever drowning & floundering, awaiting that beautiful gasp of fresh air that will seemingly never come as i sink further, never reaching the surface or the life