Writing Between Two Homelands: Fiction at the Crossroads of Israel and America with Joan Leegant, Maya Arad and Sarah Breger—in celebration of Moment’s Karma Short Fiction contest winners
Joan Leegant and Maya Arad explore the complexities of living between cultures. The post Writing Between Two Homelands: Fiction at the Crossroads of Israel and America with Joan Leegant, Maya Arad and Sarah Breger—in celebration of Moment’s Karma Short Fiction contest winners appeared first on Moment Magazine.
Black News 
For decades, American Jewish writers have grappled with Israel as both an idea and a place, using fiction to examine identity, belonging, politics and faith. At the same time, a newer and strikingly different trend has emerged: Israeli authors writing fiction about life in the United States. The result is a rich and expanding body of literature that reflects the evolving relationship between two Jewish centers—and the personal stories that unfold between them.
Moment-Karma Short Fiction Contest judge Joan Leegant, author of Displaced Persons, and a two-time contest winner, and Maya Arad, Israeli author of Happy New Years, explore the complexities of living between cultures. Leegant and Arad discuss how fiction captures the tensions, misunderstandings and moments of connection that arise when American and Israeli worlds meet. In conversation with Moment editor Sarah Breger.
This special literary event also celebrates the winners of the 2025 Moment Magazine-Karma Foundation Short Fiction Contest.
First-place: “Niagara Falls” by Miryam Sivan
Second-place: “A Hot October Day” by Harris Kauffman
The post Writing Between Two Homelands: Fiction at the Crossroads of Israel and America with Joan Leegant, Maya Arad and Sarah Breger—in celebration of Moment’s Karma Short Fiction contest winners appeared first on Moment Magazine.
