New Short Story, Sleepwalking Too Close to the Fire published in Heavy Feather Review, and a story nominated for 2026 Best Small Fictions
- Danila Botha Vernon
- Nov 17, 2025
- 1 min read
I'm really excited to have a new short story, Sleepwalking Too Close to the Fire in one of my favourite American literary magazines, Heavy Feather Review 🧡🧡📚🎉 Thank you so much to the wonderful editors.
This story combines so many subjects I find deeply interesting; postpartum depression and psychosis, the wellness industry, the Jewish violinist Alma Rose, artistic identity versus being a mother and more.
Sleepwalking Too Close to the Fire is actually the title story of my new collection, and I can't wait to share it with all of you soon. I love writing short fiction so much, it's hard for me to overstate my passion for it, and how grateful I feel to get to write it.
You can read Sleepwalking Too Close to the Fire in full here:
I'm also thrilled to have a short story from this upcoming collection, Roses or Herpes, nominated for Best Small Fictions 2026 by Dipity Magazine, thank you so much to the editors. for their enthusiasm and support. I love writing short stories so much, and like all the stories from my upcoming collection, there was so much rewriting and editing (and rejection, which is so often part of the process, but it makes moments like this more amazing)
I'm also really excited that the story is also featured in Dead Mule: The School of Southern Literature this month. I'm really love Dead Mule, and Southern Literature, and I was honoured to work with their wonderful editor, and to have this piece featured there. Thank you so, so much again
I can't wait to share this entire collection with you <3
"The title of your new story, 'Sleepwalking Too Close to the Fire,' is so evocative it perfectly captures that feeling of drifting through life while on the edge of something intense. It actually reminded me of my final year in university when I felt like I was sleepwalking through my own schedule because I was so burnt out from overextending myself. I was juggling two part-time jobs and a full load of courses, and I got so overwhelmed that I actually spent a whole evening researching an online class taking service just to see if I could buy myself some sleep. Reading about your creative process and seeing your work published in the Heavy Feather Review is a great reminder that even during those 'burnt out'…
I really enjoyed reading about your Sleepwalking Too Close to the Fire publication. It’s clear how much care went into each sentence, and the dreamlike tension you create stuck with me. It even made me laugh, remembering a week I was so buried in deadlines that I wished someone could take my class online for me just to steal an hour to savour stories like this!
Congrats on the new publication! There’s something so captivating about the title "Sleepwalking Too Close to the Fire" it really captures that feeling of navigating a delicate situation. It actually brings back memories of my final year at uni, where I felt like I was sleepwalking through my own mountain of deadlines. I was so exhausted from the creative process that I couldn't even see the errors in my own work anymore, so I looked for a cheap assignment editing service just to help me catch the things I was missing. It’s funny how, whether it's a short story or a heavy essay, sometimes you just need a fresh pair of eyes to make sure you haven’t strayed too close to…