"Where Language Has Steel." A Chat with Delilah Silberman, Managing Editor of Bennington Review
"A Bennington Review story is one that is surprising..."
Ahoy! I come with this month’s final editor interview, freshly wrapped.
Today I chatted with Delilah Silberman, Managing Editor of Bennington Review.
Bennington Review is a national biannual print journal of innovative, intelligent, and moving poetry, fiction, creative nonfiction, and film writing, housed at Bennington College.
We intend to reinforce the value of the bound print journal as an intimate, curated cultural space in which a reader can encounter and experience new work with a degree of immersion not wholly possible through other media. We hope to bring together writing that is as playful as it is probing, that simultaneously makes lasting intellectual and emotional connections with a reader. Bennington Review aims to contribute distinctive style and substance to the national literary conversation through publishing sharp, unexpected, original poetry and prose from a geographically broad and culturally rich spectrum of prominent, up-and-coming, and new voices.
If this magazine’s about statement sounds like it includes many forms and styles— “playful…probing…intellectual…emotional”—that’s because it does. (Their guidelines also encourage work that is “simultaneously graceful and reckless.”) Delilah described the journal as being open to “a wide range of work.” A traditional rhyming poem is as likely to find a home here as an experimental erasure poem. You may find a sonnet here, an amusing personal essay, a conventional character-driven short story or a work of flash fiction three sentences long.
The editors here are mostly students at Bennington College, all with eclectic tastes and very open minds. While some writers may worry about their work being screened by young readers, Delilah assured us that age bias is not an issue here. Students at Bennington can be “pretty experimental” and “pretty out there.” (Knowing several Bennington grads myself, I can attest that this is true!)
The commonality across accepted works, Delilah explained, are elements of surprise and a strong emphasis on language. Since many editors cite “surprise” as important features of work they accept, I asked Delilah if she could unpack this term a bit. She cited poems that lead the reader into unexpected places, a sense of feeling “defamiliarized” through a work, and likened the best works to stand-up comedy—something you’ve heard before but never heard expressed in a particular way.
Each issue of Bennington Review has a theme. These are not stated themes to which submitters should match their work. Rather, the themes form over the course of accepting work and the issue is coming together. Don’t worry—work is never rejected because it doesn’t match a theme. Excellence is always paramount. Past themes include “the health of the sick,” “family gathering,” “staying alive,” and more.
Bennington Review is one of the nation’s top journals and winner of multiple awards. What accounts for the magazine’s prestige and success? Delilah described a magazine that is genuinely open to publishing new writers alongside established ones. (A recent issue featured work by a never-before-published high school student.) The magazine also nominates works for awards and anthologies.
What else should writers know to increase their chances of getting an acceptance here? What are common reasons work is rejected? What else accounts for this magazine’s tremendous success?
For all that and more, you will have to tune in!
Bennington Review is published twice a year in print, with a few pieces also published online. They are open for submissions in poetry, fiction and nonfiction now until March 15th. Submission fee is $3. Payment is $25 - $250, depending on length and genre.
Also: If you ordered the most recent issue of Bennington Review, they are set to be mailed today and you should receive it soon!
To everyone who came out to participate in our chat, thank you for joining! Your faces are the bold burst of sunshine on my overcast winter morning.
And, of course, thank you to Delilah for taking the time to take us behind the scenes of another lovely little magazine!
This one is for paying subscribers only. A subscription also gets you full access to this site, all future interviews, lit mag discounts, and more. Your support is appreciated!