Matt Gillick
Publications
ESSAYS
The Invaluable Luxury of a Second Chance Wish Dish
I’ve heard the saying Everyone deserves a second chance about 13 million times over the course of my life. At one point it lost all meaning. This old adage suggests second chances are available to anyone whom might ask for one like they’re on reserve.
The Wish Dish Remembers David Bowie Wish Dish
Crooner, fashion icon, writer, actor, poet, alien. David Bowie’s passing at 69 comes as not only a shock to me but to millions of fans.
We were in the car driving past the hubby buildings of Athens, Georgia and I was scared shitless.
On Alton Sterling Wish Dish
We at The Wish Dish try to be as apolitical as possible. But, when certain issues befall this nation we are compelled to comment.
My buddy Pmang told me I needed to interview this rapper. Told me he was one of the most talented lyricists he’d ever heard. Well, shit. I had to find this guy.
A waxing gibbous moon floated sentinel over a clear, dying orange and ocean sky while two train cars with strobing windows paraded past each other.
Fiction
Swim Practice aaduna
Dad was supposed to pick me up on time but he didn’t. He was late again. He’s always on time right at five. Mom said he sometimes took a long time putting on his green clothes and be late for his flight when he left.
Godspell Jesus Indiana Voice Journal
The wrong part with hearing that he died was that no one called me, no one shot me a text. I saw it on Facebook. An ex-girlfriend of his posted it. It said something like Rest in Peace, Carter Williams. We lived and loved and had a beautiful thing together. Even though we are not together anymore I will always love you. God needed one of his angels a bit early, I suppose.
December, 2016.
Fake Canons on Compo Beach LitCat Magazine
Colin was off the boat and the sun was setting. It was the only boat left in the dockyard and the peninsulas riding along Westport, Norwalk and Stamford were a late winter gold. Colin’s father had driven in the direction of the dying light.
The Ghetto Gulls Quail Bell Magazine
Been a long time since I’d seen Corey and it’d been a while since I’d seen someone spazz out the way his brother did.
Watching Brody The Arrival Magazine
Gavin walked into the house to hear Brody’s barking, howling and hard breathing. He was probably in heat. He wouldn’t be surprised, even for a neutered hound Brody had to be the most affectionate thing in the room.
Soloist Remembers West Virginia Soft Cartel
He took the Peter Pan bus away from the festering gangrene hills. Coal dust wasted away Appalachia.
Salamanca Red Planet Magazine
Suppose this: Instead of delivering schematics for the first practical locomotive railway to the coal boss Charles John Brandling in 1812, John Blenkinsop died suddenly of a brain aneurysm in Middleton Square.
Stamford Poets From Sac Online
Stamford poets rent one-bedroom apartments and host occasional gatherings on Friday evenings for drinks and crackers.
The Riller The Bluntly Magazine
A rusted metal pillar crashed within an abandoned motor speedway. Most of the crowd turned around, startled at the sudden impact.
Early Onset Newfound
Fifteen years had passed since my father never returned to Seat 14, Row A after promising two Camden Yards hot dogs, and now he’s on the phone, out of courtesy, he says, telling me our family possesses a gene that eats away at your vision...
One of Those Sleepover Games Prometheus Dreaming
The idea was you found your porno name by combining the name of your first pet and the street you grew up on.
Roleplaying Adelaide Literary Magazine
The man got in the truck after the driver made the point that he shouldn’t be out in the open when the fog rolled in. They were driving now.
How to Record This Child's Bruises Better Than Starbucks
Speak clearly into the microphone while the evidence is accounted for in this windowless room. The child’s arched brow shelters wide eyes, giving off a surprised look.
Glassy Wilderness House Literary Review
No drip. No hot-panned sizzle in the back of the throat.
Unposted Drafts from My Ex's Profile Flora Fiction
1. Mom caught us fucking the night of my 21st. Well, right after he came. Like she was waiting on cue.
Curling BOMBFIRE
I need to get the hell out of here, they groan to themselves as the C Train rattles dishes in the cabinet.
Her Name was Linda Franklin New Square
The year is 2012 and I’m in a parking lot at the Seven Corners Shopping Center in Fairfax, Virginia. On my car radio, I’d just heard a cheeky news report about the rapture and Mayan calendars predicting our imminent demise without a hint of seriousness.
I'm Only Going to Talk About This Once
Sincerely Magazine: Serendipity
Spring, 2021. Available for purchase.
The Attorney The Manifest-Station
Some Fourth of July, huh? I’m glad you called when you did. My timeshare is only a few houses down…get a towel, man. You’re still dripping.
The Waiting Room heartwood literary magazine
The clock says I’ve been here for two hours. Past the sliding doors leading to the emergency ward, everything is covered in plastic.
Trash Catbird Santa Ana River Review
We were both staring at the kitchen floor when we heard the thud. Two minutes of silence, then the stifled gong of a crash. We ignored it.
Rainy Day; Sun Still Out Sybil Journal
We made our way around the damp corner of an alley called Via Mallzo. A sun shower had just ended. For some reason, we thought sun showers were strange for Rome.
Chionis of Barry's Corner The Sandy River Review
Early this morning—three a.m., to be exact—the bronze statue of Chionis of Sparta that overlooks Barry’s Corner in Allston, Massachusetts steps down from his pedestal.
Can't Make It, Sorry (Not Really) Leon Literary Review
No one said to call off the party, but their messages excusing themselves indicated a get-together wasn’t a good idea.
This week will be the last week, then our little corner of the world will be no longer.
(P) and (Q) Bruiser
Remember to mind your (p)’s and (q)’s: an elementary saying that no one seems to know much about.
Tribesmen of brown, white, black, Blackfoot, Cheyenne, Apache, and other persuasions meet the bulldozers and foaming hounds of Standing Rock, North Dakota while Paul Bunyan watches from a safe distance.
Humphrey Catskill: Undone Hidden Peak Press
Humphrey’s days are spent on park benches, and his nights spent sleeping behind manicured hedgerows. During the winter, he lies under vents tucked behind high-end restaurants that eject hot steam smelling of soggy meat in the dark corners of back alleys.
My First Foreign Language Film Mudroom Magazine
Summer 2000. Richardson, Texas. Visiting Grandpa who, I was told, felt under the weather. My brother and I didn’t know he was on his way out. This July Fourth would be his last.
Your Submission to the Simple Line Overheard Literary Magazine
Dear Mr. Mandrake, We first want to thank you and express our appreciation for your submission to The Simple Line. We would not be the vibrant literary community we are today if it were not for submissions like yours.
Egvard's Dilemma The Militant Grammarian
Former advertising executive Egvard Yohannsen forgets (for the second time this week) the impulse to end his life.
Aboard the S.S. Arabian Nights Twelve Winters Journal
Sandra and Jacob had ordered room service fifteen minutes before the Wi-Fi in their cabin shut off at the worst possible moment.
Trudging to Athenry Flora Fiction
Dawn. A soft day. I’m searching for an impasse on a green road outside Galway in February to make the choice of either/or, but instead, I find a rusted rail track going straight ahead. (Page 69)
Procrastination Notes EGG+FROG
To Avoid Procrastination, Never Have a Romantic Relationship...My girlfriend Flo just left our first-floor apartment at 15 Móinéar Street to clock in at her job as the manager of a boutique fashion retailer in downtown Boston. She does not have a license, so she hailed a car through a rideshare app.
Poetry
The Alembic, 2014.
The Alembic, 2015.
The Bitchin' Kitsch, August 2015.
Former People Magazine, 2015.
Commonline Journal, 2015.
Poetry Super Highway, 2017.
The Metaworker, 2017.
Former People Magazine, 2017.
Boston Accent Lit, 2018.
The Arrival Magazine, 2018.
Lipstick Party Magazine, 2018.
Occulum, 2018.
Golden Walkman Magazine, 2018.
Horny Poetry Review, 2018.
The Bitchin' Kitsch, Fall 2018.
Prometheus Dreaming, 2021.
Land Luck Review, 2022.
Lucky Jefferson, 365 Collection, pg. 10, 2022.
New Square, 2022.
Duck Duck Mongoose Magazine, 2022.
Big Windows Review, 2023.
Currant Jam, 2024.
Reviews
Colson Whitehead’s hero in The Underground Railroad is afraid to take a gamble on so much until she realizes she wouldn’t be risking that much to begin with. Being a slave is not a life anyone would want to live; her livelihood is no livelihood at all.
Rob Davis’ The Can Opener’s Daughter disorients and intrigues, rolling itself into a pent-up coming of age thriller set in a dystopian landscape you’d find in a teenage schizophrenic’s fever dream.
One Question Interview Series
One Question for Tracy O'Neill BookTrib.
On her novel The Hopeful (2015).
One Question for Eric Bennett BookTrib.
On his novel A Big Enough Lie (2015).
One Question for Jennifer Clement BookTrib.
On her book Widow Basquiat: A Love Story (2014).
One Question for Emily Schultz BookTrib.
On her novel The Blondes (2015).
One Question for Sara Nović BookTrib.
On her novel Girl at War (2015).
One Question for Colin Atrophy Hagendorf BookTrib.
On his memoir Slice Harvester: A Memoir in Pizza (2016).
One Question for Yann Martel BookTrib.
On his novel The High Mountains of Portugal (2016).
One Question for Paul Lisicky BookTrib.
On his memoir The Narrow Door (2016).
One Question for Rion Amilcar Scott BookTrib.
On his story collection Insurrections (2016).
One Question for Adam Ehrlich Sachs BookTrib.
On his story collection Inherited Disorders (2016).
One Question for iO Tillett Wright BookTrib.
On his memoir Darling Days (2016).
One Question for Amber Tozer BookTrib.
On her memoir Sober Stick Figure (2016).
One Question for Imbolo Mbue BookTrib.
On her novel Behold the Dreamers (2016).
Other Publications
The Connection, 2013.
The Alembic, 2013
Matt Gillick on Wiz of Awes
Find here a collection of the writer's NBA commentary.
Matt Gillick on Eat This, Not That
Find here a collection of the writer's articles and commentaries.