Animals are a part of our daily lives--from the critters that wander about your neighborhood to the exotic creatures you've only experienced through a television or phone screen. Some animals live alongside us; others are kept at a safe distance. Both are valuable to the ecosystem, to people, and to one another.

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Catty. Dogged. Serpentine. Sheepish. Mousy. Eagle-eyed. Doe-eyed. Cocky. Fishy. Wolfish. Sluggish. Slothful. Harebrained. Pigheaded. Batty. Foxy. Swan-like. Asinine. These aren't simply descriptive words; they're ways of relaying our human experiences through the lens of the creatures around us. Whether or not you choose to share your space with a furry, scaly, or slimy friend, animals influence our ways of thinking, seeing, and being--and that's what we want you to focus on when it comes to this approaching issue of Heart on Our Sleeves Press.

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Write about an animal that you'd give your life for. Write about an animal that would take your life with no hesitation. Write about the animal within: the instincts that guide you; the desires for sustenance, survival, or self-gratification; territorial conflicts, social hierarchies, fight or flight. If it's animal-related, it's allowed.

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And so, I release you into the wild. Run with the wolves--or go at a snail's pace. Every perspective rounds out our understanding of the wider world around us, after all.