New Lit on the Block :: Swamp Biscuits and Tea
Swamp Biscuits and Tea, a new quarterly online magazine, publishes magic realism, literary fiction, slipstream, noir, surrealist, bizarre, weird tale, experimental, science fiction, absurdist, mystery, hard-boiled, quirky, fantasy, and cross-genre. Editor Henry Sane says, “there’s no deep or exciting story behind the name.” He and Co-Editor Joseph German tried to come up with something that “would capture a certain style—a certain mental image, something that would get people interested and get their imaginations flowing while at the same time exuding our aesthetic of strangeness and wonder.”
Sane says that readers can expect to find “good, imaginative fiction.” He says, “Nearly every story we publish will offer some speculative element, whether subtle or outlandish. So if you like weird—whether it’s hidden comfortably in the shadows of a familiar environment, or springing at you like a tentacle-haired wildebeest robot—we think we’ll have something to satisfy your cravings. One of our goals is also to offer readers a series of unforgettable tales, which may be because they are either strange, beautiful, or just too damn engrossing to put down.”
“Joseph and I have always liked the same kind of stuff,” says Sane, “whether it be in art, music, film or literature. Naturally, after many years of profoundly weird conversations, we decided it was time to collaborate on some kind of creative project. As to the nature of the project, that was still uncertain. That is, until one day when inspiration struck me, telling me to create a fiction magazine. ‘We’ll get to name it, design it, and read stories to create our own style,’ I said. ‘Brilliant,’ said Joseph. Since that fateful day, the idea hasn’t lost even an ounce of momentum.”
And if that momentum continues, Sane says that they will consider an annual print issue, cataloguing the best stories of the past year’s worth of issues. “One hope is that we’ll eventually be able to move into full print publication, with eBook, Kindle, etc. as additional options for readers,” he says. “If things go swimmingly, we hope we can one day pay our contributors, and (fingers crossed) make this our livelihood.”
The first issue of Swamp Biscuits and Tea features Alex Aro, C. E. Hyun, Beth Spencer, Marc Lowe, and Adam C. Richardson. Submissions are accepted year-round through email.
