Writing shaped Ashley Ford's life since childhood, when she confided secrets to her journal and clung to the emotional letters her father sent from prison, where he was serving a 30-year sentence for rape. Now a professional writer, Ford offers her brief but spectacular take on striving to become “a person who forgives.”

What’s the value of asking questions to which we don’t know the answer? Poet Franny Choi’s “Introduction to Quantum Theory” does just that, and she calls it “one of the scariest things” she’s ever written. Choi offers her brief but spectacular take on imagining alternate realities.

As a college athlete, Laura Dunn was sexually assaulted by two male teammates. Her subsequent experience with campus, criminal and civil authorities failing to take action motivated her to become a lawyer and found SurvJustice, a nonprofit organization that helps victims of sexual violence seek justice. She offers her brief but spectacular take on turning trauma into action.

PJ Morton is the keyboardist for the band Maroon 5. Growing up the son of a preacher in New Orleans, Morton had early and formative experiences with music. He has now released a solo album, collaborated with music idol Stevie Wonder and been nominated for a Grammy Award. This is his brief but spectacular take on finding inspiration in honesty and songwriting “selfishly.”