"Scenes from the Literary Blacklist;" Former Guernica Editor interviewed; in praise of self-publishing; "The Worst Magazine in America;" publishing from prison; small press updates; and more
Kudos to Lyle C. May for broaching the subject of incarcerated writers. Those we've published in the past contacted us by snail mail because email is not available to them. It requires extra work on the part of the editor(s), but can sometimes be very worth the trouble. In one anthology we did of "Outsiders" we pdf'd the hand-written submission and put it in the book like that because there was an element of art to it. Then came the "don't you know what this guy is IN for" email complaints. Another aspect of this sometimes fraught source of talent.
I don't think most editors would go through the bother. Here's where I would usually go off into one of my anti-elitist-sheltered-life-snob rants but I've been criticized for foul language so I'll just keep my fucking mouth shut.
When "The New Yorker" published Amanda Gorman's awful poem, I was pretty certain identity had trumped literary quality, probably not for the first or last time.
I agree with Robsinson’s point. But it applies to a number of reputable publications. I recently read an NYT article that misquotes an NYT article from 50 years ago because the writer wanted to tell an identity-based.story instead of noting that the original article disagreed with how he portrayed it. As a result of this and other”flubs,” i barely trust anyone’s literature review sections.
Ironically, I could barely get through Robinson’s article and just skimmed it.
The posts from the editor of ELJ Editions are both touching and inspiring. Brava to her! I sincerely hope that the editions survive.
Kudos to Lyle C. May for broaching the subject of incarcerated writers. Those we've published in the past contacted us by snail mail because email is not available to them. It requires extra work on the part of the editor(s), but can sometimes be very worth the trouble. In one anthology we did of "Outsiders" we pdf'd the hand-written submission and put it in the book like that because there was an element of art to it. Then came the "don't you know what this guy is IN for" email complaints. Another aspect of this sometimes fraught source of talent.
I don't think most editors would go through the bother. Here's where I would usually go off into one of my anti-elitist-sheltered-life-snob rants but I've been criticized for foul language so I'll just keep my fucking mouth shut.
When "The New Yorker" published Amanda Gorman's awful poem, I was pretty certain identity had trumped literary quality, probably not for the first or last time.
Excellent, thought-provoking material as usual, Becky! 🙏
Robinson is...a fine one to talk. He's hardly a shining example of accuracy in journalism.
I agree with Robsinson’s point. But it applies to a number of reputable publications. I recently read an NYT article that misquotes an NYT article from 50 years ago because the writer wanted to tell an identity-based.story instead of noting that the original article disagreed with how he portrayed it. As a result of this and other”flubs,” i barely trust anyone’s literature review sections.
Ironically, I could barely get through Robinson’s article and just skimmed it.