Gray Chapman

Atlanta

Writer at Freelance

Freelance writer in Atlanta. She/her. [email protected]

Articles

What It Really Means To Be A Cycle Breaker

1 month ago | romper.com | Gray Chapman

"We see you, cycle breakers."I encounter this phrase regularly on TikTok and instagram and I am, without a doubt, the target audience. Like so much modern-day online parenting content, at its best the term inspires solidarity and a shared vulnerability. Coming from actual mental health professionals, the term is useful. And the work is difficult. After enough use, though, the meaning gets warped. The term is inevitably flattened.
Taking Breaks from the News is Not a Moral Failure

1 month ago | mysweetdumbbrain.substack.com | Katie Hawkins-Gaar |Gray Chapman |Jessica Valenti |Caitlin Dewey

As I approach 40, I’m embarking on a year-long project to reflect on the lessons I’ve learned in four decades of life. This is lesson #34. You can read the full series here. Saturday morning, still groggy from a bad-news hangover — this time from watching maddening footage of President Trump and Vice President Vance berating Ukraine’s President Zelenskyy in the Oval Office — I started a garden in my backyard. First, my daughter and I fitted together the boards to form a raised bed.
A North Carolina Basket Maker Turns Kudzu into Works of Art

1 month ago | gardenandgun.com | Gray Chapman |Helen Ellis |Gabriela Gomez-Misserian

Arts & Culture In an open-air studio, one artist transforms tangles of invasive plants into functional objects Every morning, Delia Fian awakens to the sound of birdsong. As the dawn illuminates the valley below her home in the mountains bordering North Carolina’s Nantahala National Forest, Fian builds a fire and boils the water she brought up from the nearby spring the night before.
Samara Davis Makes It All Possible

Oct 30, 2024 | imbibemagazine.com | Gray Chapman

Samara Davis has wielded her influence and expertise from bourbon tastings to boardrooms. She’s coached major corporations in fostering more inclusive work environments, mentored Black startup founders, and guided spirits brands in having more genuine conversations with their Black consumers. But before all of that, she was an art history major who almost got in serious trouble for wallpapering her dorm room in Absolut ads.
No water, power or formula: moms struggle to feed babies after Hurricane Helene

Oct 11, 2024 | theguardian.com | Gray Chapman

In the days leading up to Hurricane Helene’s arrival in North Carolina, Ziska Maria tried to stock up on her 5-month-old son’s formula in nearby stores, but none had it. “We were like, ‘okay, we’ll just get it after [the storm],’” says Maria, who lives in Black Mountain with her partner, three-year-old and infant. But after the morning of 27 September, the family quickly realized they wouldn’t be making grocery runs anytime soon.
A Picnic on the Floor

Sep 23, 2024 | thisneedshotsauce.substack.com | Abigail Koffler |Michelle Teheux |Gray Chapman |Khushbu Shah

How’s your fall so far? The light is different, the sun sets before 7 (help), and it’s peak light jacket weather. I spent half of this weekend laying low after my Covid booster (get yours, Walgreens has a ton of slots). While I could have skipped the headache, it was a perfect excuse to have a very lazy Saturday and I felt better by the late afternoon (so about 24 hours after my shot).
Full Court Press — THE BITTER SOUTHERNER

Sep 10, 2024 | bittersoutherner.com | Gray Chapman

For years, right-wing extremists have abused the courts to reshape American policy. Democracy Forward, a legal organization led by Skye Perryman, has stepped up to fight back for abortion access, labor rights, freedom of speech, and basic democratic freedoms in courtrooms across the country. They say there’s no community too small to be worth fighting for.
Lisk Feng | Communication Arts

Jun 16, 2024 | commarts.com | Gray Chapman

In her illustrations, Lisk Feng has transported readers to arid deserts and lush jungles, the depths of the ocean and the peak of Mount Everest. With an eye for fluid movement and cinematic color, she invites readers into another world, be it the intimacy of a cozy kitchen or the grandeur of the galaxy.
Advocates - THE BITTER SOUTHERNER

Apr 16, 2024 | bittersoutherner.com | Gray Chapman

A queer Black activist and abortion doula from Albany, Georgia. A white business consultant and mother of four with deep New Orleans roots. On paper, Park Cannon and Aimee Adatto Freeman don’t appear to have much in common. But in state capitols 500 miles apart, both are working to make pregnancy and birth a little safer in their states, which are home to some of the worst maternal mortality rates and strictest abortion laws in the country. Embed Block Add an embed URL or code.
Class Act

Nov 17, 2023 | graychapman.substack.com | Gray Chapman

In August, four-and-a-half months postpartum with my second child, having mostly passed through the deepest part of the newborn fog but still fumbling through something shrouded (maybe more like a light mist?), I signed up for an online writing course.