Picket fences throw long shadows. These four authors gave us stories that delve into the complicated compromises that women often make in motherhood and marriage.

Farah Ahamed

Farah Ahamed

Farah Ahamed grew up in Nairobi and now works in London. She has almost completed the University of East Anglia’s Advanced Creative Writing Diploma under the guidance of Louise Doughty. Her short stories have been published by Kwani?, Fey Publishing, Bridge House Publishers and Fringeworks. In March 2014, her short story was nominated by Kwani? for the Caine Prize for African Writing and she was also selected for a mentorship programme with novelist Courttia Newland. She is Digital Writer in Residence at the Mary Ward Centre in London; her blog which encourages debate and engagement in women and the arts can be found at This Woman’s Work 2014 (http://thiswomanswork2014.tumblr.com/writer).

Tracie Orsi

Tracie Orsi

Tracie Orsi has owned and operated Ragin’ Cajun Restaurant in Belmar, New Jersey since 1992. Her cookbook “Sittin’ Bayou Makes Me Hot!” was released in July 2012. She writes for local publications and is involved with Tourism and the local Arts Council. The past four years she has attended Borderlands Press Writer’s Bootcamp to hone her skills as a writer. She is currently working on three novels in different genres and has written several short stories. She generally writes dark fiction, but like any good storyteller, she’s also good for a lighthearted tale or two. She says, “Life is hard, it’s meant to be. But it sure can be funny sometimes.” She lives in Toms River, New Jersey with her husband Cliff, their white lab Belle, a parrotlet named Kaya, and a few fish in the pond in their backyard.

Vivian Papp

Vivian Papp

Vivian Papp lives in White Plains, NY with her husband and 5 children. She spent quite a few years at home raising her children, until one day she decided to take a few classes at her local community college. This endeavor led to her transferring to and graduating from Columbia University with a BA in English Literature and subsequently receiving her MA in British and American Literature from Hunter College. She has been an adjunct professor of English at Pace University and Westchester Community College. Her area of specialty is 18th Century British Satire and Medieval Women Writers. Her academic work has been presented at numerous conferences and she is currently working on a science fiction novel and on her PhD in Restoration and 18th Century British Literature at Fordham University. In her spare time, she enjoys collecting antique books & watching action films.

Colleen Quinn

Colleen Quinn

Colleen Quinn grew up in upstate New York and was educated at Syracuse University. Her short fiction has appeared in Spinetingler Magazine, The Brooklyn Rail, and Gemini Magazine. She currently resides in Brooklyn, NY, where she works in the advertising industry.

Come hear Vivian Papp and Colleen Quinn discuss “Madness” at NLSP and the NYPL’s panel discussion: Behind the Yellow Wallpaper: Women and Madness in Literature.
Behind the Yellow Wallpaper is available to buy in Paperback and eBook editions.

(Art by Loreal Prystaj)