Spiral Staircase March/April 2022 Issue

About Us: The 2022 Lit Mag Crew

Avani Agrawal is an eighth grader who has lived in Pittsburgh, PA her whole life. She loves writing and can get inspiration for a story super quickly and make up the storyline in just a few minutes! She plays tennis a lot and loves playing her favorite songs on her electric guitar. Something that she misses because of COVID is not being able to visit her family around the world.

Sydney Capel is a twelve, soon to be thirteen- year-old. She enjoys being at the beach with her cousin. She loves to bake while watching Netflix. Her favorite shows are The Office, The Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air, and Young Royals. In her free time, she likes to listen to music, shop, and walk on Walnut Street. Though Sydney is a social butterfly, she strongly dislikes when people talk over her. Her favorite movie series is Marvel because it brought her closer with her dad.

Mahika Chopra is a sixth grader who enjoys reading, writing, baking, playing the piano, and more. You can always find her and her family traveling to new locations around the world. Mahika loves eating and making food, from cakes to pasta. She spends a lot of time with her family in the kitchen, talking and eating. Her favorite things to write are poetry and short stories.

Ahmed Elsayed is an extremely curious and funny African-American thirteen year old boy. He enjoys watching and playing basketball, and his favorite team is the Milwaukee Bucks. When he is not playing basketball or doing homework, he enjoys playing games on his Nintendo Switch and watching tv shows and movies. He loves his family and really cherishes the experiences he has with them when he visits Sudan every summer. He has a strong passion for literature and enjoys writing essays and poems. He is thrilled to join The Spiral Staircase this spring and looks forward to having a great time!

Eva Friedlander is a Greek, Venezuelan, and American twelve-year-old seventh grader who enjoys spending time outdoors with a good book. She loves to write poetry and short stories and spend time with her two cats, Athena and Higgins. When Eva’s not listening to music or doing some sort of artistic endeavor, she’s enjoying some tea and oatmeal cookies. So essentially, she loves grandma food. Eva lives to debate and takes any chance to start a debate. She also loves to act and sing. Eva adores Lit Mag and all of the memories that she makes here.

Evan Fularz is an eighth-grade boy who attends Shady Side Academy Middle School. He loves cute animals and creates art all the time. Evan dreams of one day having a big house and lots of cars. His preferred genre is historical fiction, and he finds graphic novels fun. He finds happiness in spending time with family and loves to go bike riding. His hobbies are archery and art. When Evan grows up, he wants to be a famous architect and artist. He also wants to stretch his writing and artistic horizons.

Amalia Guttridge is a sixth grader who spends most of her time either practicing front tucks on the floor, competing in gymnastics, skiing with her family, or playing basketball. When she is not playing sports, Amalia bakes cookies, cupcakes, and cakes. She finds pleasure in reading and writing. She has two cats, a hamster, and about thirty fish. Fun fact- only one fish lives inside!

Faiza Krishnarao is a soon-to-be fourteen-year-old who lives in Pittsburgh. She was born in India and moved to the U.S. when she was six. When she’s not reading, baking, and cooking, she is playing tennis. One of the things Faiza missed the most during the pandemic was not being able to travel as she loves visiting new places. One of Faiza’s favorite things is the Marvel Universe; she is a huge fan of the franchise and loves watching the movies and discussing the various easter eggs.

Pilar Placci is an all-out crazy and smart sixth grade student. Her passion for nature is deep-seated, and she loves the wild. She usually sits by her grandparents' pond and just listens to the quiet. She hates flying, but she loves the end of the flight and experiencing new destinations. At school, she is known for doodling and drawing in all her classes. Pilar uses a lot of paper, and her room is full of notebooks scattered everywhere. She is excited to bring her imagination and talents to Lit Mag this spring!

Breslyn Plesh Stock-Bratina loves sitting outside and watching a waterfall or a babbling brook. She has three siblings and a wonderfully cuddly, hundred pound Rottweiler named Millie. Breslyn loves baking and experimenting with chocolate and sprinkles. She also has a big dream of living in Alaska with an Alaskan Malamute and her sister.

Joseph Snyder is a seventh grade student who was born in Kansas City, Missouri. His mother was born and raised in Azerbaijan. He speaks Azerbaijani and English, and he is learning Chinese. When he is not watching a movie, he is listening to a podcast. He does gymnastics and practices piano on a daily basis. Joseph also enjoys watching movies and reading books. His favorite artist is Taylor Swift. He is a cook, a brother, and a student.

Özge Ada Uzman is a seventh grade Turkish-American girl. Her passions for drawing and writing have been growing every day since her first year alive, as well as her love for books, especially the dystopian and fantasy genres. She loves to look between the lines and has a great interest in psychology, reflected in her works of writing, which she hopes to further evolve during this Lit Mag season. The many hours she dedicates to her robotics team, the YinzGirlz, are filled with an insane, chaotic energy, making it surprising that they actually get work done. Her excitement for The Spiral Staircase is immeasurable.

Chloe Wang is a 13 year-old girl who loves reading (especially romance novels!!!). When at home, she will normally read for at least 30 minutes a day. She also enjoys listening to relaxing music while studying chess. She has a 3 year old cat named Ava that jumps on her homework every single time she tries to do her homework. Please do not talk about video games with her because she hates them so much!!!

Chloe Will is a seventh grader who adores writing, and this is her second year as part of the Lit Mag crew. Whenever she finishes her homework, she starts knitting and experimenting with patterns. Her favorite seasons are spring and fall, even though they are the shortest seasons. She is constantly with a jacket or a sweater because she is constantly cold. During winter, she can be seen in a cocoon of blankets with a book in hand.

Bio illustrations by Evan Fularz, Pilar Placci, Caroline Ray, and Özge Uzman

Mrs. Cannon has been eagerly awaiting spring term and the return of The Spiral Staircase! As a Form 1 English teacher, she loves concise wording, correctly placed commas, and evocative verbs. Storytelling fascinates her- why we do it, how we do it, and how it sustains us. Her favorite books are equal parts zany and philosophical. When not teaching or curled up with a good book, she loves playing board games and taking walks with her family.

Mr. Jenkins joins the staff of The Spiral Staircase this year to support the Middle School’s many creators. He particularly enjoys challenging young artists to take their graphic work to another level through careful analysis and technical risk taking. Outside of school, Mr. Jenkins usually explores his creativity through miniature painting, with and without his talented daughter.

Why Lit Mag?

by Eva Friedlander and Özge Uzman

Why? Why do we have Lit Mag? That’s a very good question…

The Literary Magazine is anything you want it to be.

It can be an escape from reality, whether into a magical, fantastical world, or to one that mirrors your own. Readers and writers alike fall into these worlds. Worlds of pirates, robots, mysterious prophecies, the unknown, murders, fires, romance between classmates, and many more worlds waiting restlessly to be explored by you.

It can be a spotlight on youths' creativity and ideas, giving us students the space to create and share. Expanding our minds and challenging ourselves and the way we see the world around us.

It can also a safe space to share our artistic talents and grow as creators. Letting our pens, pencils, keyboards, and paintbrushes guide us through this confusing time called middle school.

The Spiral Staircase conveys this and more to all those around us. Thank you for joining us.