The Single Talk
If we are not committed to friendship, if we do not grieve and fight and ask questions alongside them, then we are the church but hardly a community.
Courtney Zonnefeld graduated in 2018 with a degree in writing. She currently lives in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where she works for Eerdmans Books for Young Readers. In her free time, she enjoys reading, baking, and saving up for more herb plants. You can usually find her wandering a farmer’s market, hunting for vintage books, or browsing the tea selection in coffee shops.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Jun 15, 2022 | 2 comments
If we are not committed to friendship, if we do not grieve and fight and ask questions alongside them, then we are the church but hardly a community.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | May 15, 2022 | 2 comments
Whenever I finish typing out a list of any kind, I’m wincing at the realities my commas elide.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Apr 15, 2022 | 1 comment
Some people might dismiss those films as guilty pleasures, the Little Debbie cupcakes of my media diet—simple, sweet, and absolutely atrocious for my health.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Mar 15, 2022 | 0 comments
Growing up is just a matter of noticing the neighbors.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Feb 15, 2022 | 1 comment
I’ve grown to adore the process of crushing ginger, cardamom, and cloves in a mortar and pestle, of boiling the spices until the kitchen smells like heaven.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Jan 15, 2022 | 0 comments
Learning something new often requires a long time where we are the worst in the room. Ugh.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Dec 15, 2021 | 1 comment
If the emotions of the story feel honest and true—even if the specifics of the story are absolutely insane—I’ll be captivated by every moment.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Nov 15, 2021 | 1 comment
I often struggle to admit when I’d rather be anywhere but the kitchen.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Oct 15, 2021 | 0 comments
I identify my mugs by a familiar stain around their edges.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Sep 15, 2021 | 3 comments
But when a place is hardly (if ever) depicted, a place can be stereotyped into invisibility.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Aug 15, 2021 | 4 comments
Reading others’ work and wondering if you could write between the gaps of their legacies.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Jul 15, 2021 | 5 comments
The words didn’t seem so distant from everyday life, from the people who’d small-talk about crops over their coffee.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Jun 15, 2021 | 2 comments
The long-dead Ada does not need to be the only woman we know in STEM.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | May 15, 2021 | 4 comments
When I move the last box out of this place, I will no longer live next to four years of memories.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Apr 15, 2021 | 2 comments
Antonio Vivaldi captured his spring’s breezes in his concertos, and yet I always welcome spring with a wince.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Mar 15, 2021 | 2 comments
The disembodied voice on the end of the line is just doing its job.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Feb 15, 2021 | 5 comments
Why not examine writing’s power through words that can be hummed as well as read?
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Jan 15, 2021 | 2 comments
Praising goodness demands much less than participating in it.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Dec 15, 2020 | 5 comments
We’ve drunk wassail and hot cocoa from festive mugs, and we’ve streamed virtual concerts in gaudy sweaters.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Nov 15, 2020 | 2 comments
When you cook, you play with fire, and (sooner or later) you’ll be playing with carbon too.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Oct 15, 2020 | 4 comments
I’d scour the library then return home with an armload of feminist literary retellings.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Sep 15, 2020 | 3 comments
I didn’t long for the suffering, but a part of me envied the certainty it seemed to produce.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Aug 15, 2020 | 1 comment
For thousands living abroad or in Spain, wondering and waiting, the years dragged on and on.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Jul 15, 2020 | 2 comments
Like most people around the world, I have not attended a live performance in months.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Jun 15, 2020 | 5 comments
I’ve arranged this top ten in a completely subjective, completely nerdy manner: how excited am I to write with it?
by Courtney Zonnefeld | May 15, 2020 | 2 comments
When you work with children’s books, cats are inescapable.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Apr 15, 2020 | 3 comments
After a month of stay-at-home orders, suddenly everyone’s a baker.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Feb 15, 2020 | 2 comments
I remember kids’ delight in the graphic novel section, the way they stacked book after book in their arms. But I also remember parents’ reactions when their kids reached that shelf.
by Courtney Zonnefeld | Jan 15, 2020 | 2 comments
While the myth of the lone genius is dangerous for the successful artist, it is absolutely cruel to the aspiring artist.