The Sadness Survey contest is now closed, but feel free to answer the questions anyway.

What we want to know is, Why are you so sad? Take a seat by the Christmas tree and tear open the wrapping of your darkest secrets. This Sadness Survey is in honor of Recommended Reading’s upcoming Christmas issue, “We Were Down” by Jason Porter. The author of the saddest survey—judged by Mr. Porter—wins a free phone session with a certified life coach and a bottle of gin from the NY Distilling Company. With your permission, we’ll also feature some of our favorite answers on Electric Literature’s blog.