Hello Mountain and Valley Mamas,

What if someone finally asked what motherhood really feels like out here?

I’m collecting stories from rural mothers — the ones raising kids in the quiet, the chaos, and the wide-open in-between. Mothers navigating difference, disability, and exceptionality — the kind of path you don’t read about in glossy magazines. It’s the one I walk, too.

You don’t need to be a writer or an artist. You just need to be you. Talk it, sketch it, sing it, cry it, email it at midnight — whatever form your truth takes. Your pace. Your time.

Out here, there are hundreds of women juggling solo lives, shaky systems, and kids who rewrite every rule in the book. Their stories rarely get told. Yours matters. Together, we’ll gather them — one conversation at a time. These stories will grow into a manuscript, maybe more: art, sound, a mural, a movement.

100 Women | 100 Oceans surfaces in 2026. But it starts now, in the quiet ripple of your yes. If this call stirs something in you — even just curiosity — reach out.

Come as you are. Sweatpants, sequins, or somewhere in between. Bring your story, your art, or just your silence. We’ll sit. We’ll listen. And maybe, together, we’ll change how the world hears mothers.​

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Carina Costom
Carina Costom

About Me

Frequently Asked Questions

PROJECT PART ONE

The Timeline

Fall 2025 to Fall 2026 to complete:

   ▣  100 interviews
   ▣  100 written and visual artistic responses.
   ▣  A first draft of a manuscript.

The Steps

Step 1: We Talk

We’ll find a good time to connect. You can ask anything. If it feels right, we’ll go over a simple consent form—something you can take your time with. I’ll send back any notes we make for your feedback. You’re welcome to choose a different name if that feels safer.

Step 2: Reflect

I’ll create something in response—maybe a poem, an image, or a feeling turned into art. You’re welcome to see it, or not. There’s no pressure.

Step 3: We See What Emerges

You may be invited to join others in gentle gatherings—one-on-one or in small circles. This part is wide open. You can offer ideas, or simply witness. Your presence is enough.

Optional: Express Yourself

If it calls you, you’re invited to create something too—words, images, whatever feels true. You can keep it just for you, or share it. Entirely your choice.

RULE NUMBER ONE: There are no rules.
RULE NUMBER TWO: Ignore rule number one. Here's why.

MAKE PEACE

make peace
with all the women you once were.
lay flowers at their feet.
offer them incense and honey and forgiveness.
honor them
and give them your silence.
listen.
bless them
and let them be.
for they are the bones of the temple you
sit in now.
for they are the rivers of wisdom
leading you toward the sea.

I have been a thousand different women.

- Emory Hall

www.emoryhall.com

Sponsors

It is with deep appreciation and gratitude that I thank my generous arts grant writing mentor, Zaynab—performance poet, storyteller, and artist—for her unwavering encouragement and creative spark. I’m equally grateful to Jai Sequoia, whose clarity, skill, and patience continue to shape both print and web with care. And to Mackenzie—thank you for sponsoring the first round of outreach postcards with such generosity of spirit. This project is stronger because of your presence.

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