Line of Type

By Jacob Straub

El Carmel, Barcelona. Jacob Straub

Birds waiting out a summer's shower 

Perch on horizontal lines and cower 

Before the gray the sky may bode 

Black bodies arraign in dotted code 

A fleeting truth of ciphered power 

But only so an hour. 

Then the storm will have been weathered 

These glyphs returned to birds, and feathered 

Wings have spread, the scrambled flock flown on 

Each typeset line of birds, their message gone.

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Jakob Straub is a writer, developmental editor, and literary ghost. His favorite books have pages all empty—until he taints them. He writes creative fiction in English and German, often about people who can’t quite say what they mean and definitely can’t afford to fail. His work explores themes of grief, underdog identity, and the quiet absurdity of everyday life. His short fiction and poetry have appeared in Flowers & Serpents (New Niu Press) and the Daniil Pashkoff Prize collection.

When not writing, he helps other writers shape their manuscripts and occasionally publishes on storytelling, narrative structure, and the practical nightmare of sustaining a creative career. Originally from Lake Constance, Germany, Jakob has lived in Berlin and Barcelona and is now based in the Pacific Northwest.