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NewPages Blog

At the NewPages Blog readers and writers can catch up with their favorite literary and alternative magazines, independent and university presses, creative writing programs, and writing and literary events. Find new books, new issue announcements, contest winners, and so much more!

A Beautiful Mess

Guest Post by Natalie Hess.

The concept of Erin Morgenstern’s The Starless Sea is so unique and different. It follows Zachary Ezra Rawlins who discovers some strange books and a mysterious painted door. He must protect the books and learn about them, while also fulfilling his destiny in the strange place beyond the door. Beyond that, it’s honestly difficult to even figure out what else went on in this story. There are so many layers, and stories within the story that are all connected in some way. It is mind-blowing and so much fun.

The fact that this story is really confusing is part of what makes it so enjoyable. Nothing makes sense about the world beyond the painted door, but whatever is going on is absolutely beautiful. None of the characters seeming to know what’s going on just makes it even better.

This is certainly a roller coaster of a story. If you like to know what’s going on in a book, then I don’t think you would enjoy this. But if you like being left with more questions than answers, and reading about a beautiful mess of fantastical elements, this is definitely the book for you!

The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern. Anchor Books, August 2020.

Reviewer bio: I’m Natalie Hess and I’m simply a high school student who LOVES reading everything from scifi to romance to nonfiction and everything in between. I also love sharing my thoughts and I hope you enjoy!

Buy this book from our affiliate Bookshop.org.

ICYMI :: AzonaL Issue 2 Virtual Launch Reading

Online literary magazine AzonaL is devoted to poetry in translation. They have made it their mission to push “forth writing that must be seen, now—in translation, which is itself creation.”

Their second issue launched earlier this year with a reading that spanned February 15 and 16 and featured several contributors. If you missed the launch and reading, you can view it online.

Plus, don’t forget to read their second issue featuring poetry by Marie-Claire Bancquart (translated by Claire Elder and Marie Moulin-Salles), Zita Izsó (translated by Agnes Marton), Iulia Militaru (translated by Claudia Serea), Yan An (translated by Chen Du and Sisheng Chen), and more.

The Tiger Moth Review – Issue 6

Issue 6 is our largest issue yet, with works that honor wild plants and flowers in the poems of Meenakshi Palaniappan and Maria Nemy Lou Rocio, as well as the photography of Heather Teo. We enter forests with Tanvi Dutta Gupta and Zen Teh, we marvel at the moon’s music and magic with Sofia Wutong Rain and Lauren Bolger. We navigate sorrow and loss with Thomas Bacon and we grow old with Cassandra J. O’Loughlin. The bilingual poems of Fran Fernández Arce and Joshua Ip take us to the fields and rivers of language and dreams, while Danielle Fleming dreams her speaker into memory, tree, and elephant song. Plus more at The Tiger Moth Review website.

Sky Island Journal – No 17

Sky Island Journal’s stunning 17th issue features poetry, flash fiction, and creative nonfiction from contributors around the globe. Accomplished, well-established authors are published—side by side—with fresh, emerging voices. Readers are provided with a powerful, focused literary experience that transports them: one that challenges them intellectually and moves them emotionally. Always free to access, and always free from advertising, discover what over 90,000 readers in 145 countries already know; the finest new writing is here, at your fingertips.

Ruminate – Summer 2021

Our summer issue includes many examples of lives forged by experience. The characters in these poems and stories are shaped and revealed by what they endure. There is heat and pressure in Alex Pickens’ “Derecho.” Shamarang Silas’s poem “The Weight of Trains,” inquires, “What is worship if not the desire to offer yourself to the fire / & everything you have ever loved?” Find out more at the Ruminate website.

New England Review – Vol 42 No 2

New fiction and essays range across the US—driving, riverboating, skateboarding—and reckon with both the tragic and the mundane. This issue also brings a distinct Slavic and post-Soviet presence, both through works in translation and original writing by contemporary Anglophones. Poetry by Kaveh Akbar, Ellen Bass, Christopher DeWeese, Marilyn Hacker, Rachel Hadas, Dana Levin, Ada Limón, Wayne Miller, Eric Pankey, G. C. Waldrep, and more. See even more contributors at the New England Review website.

The Courtship of Winds – Summer 2021

This is a large issue, which seems fitting as we climb out of the Covid existence we’ve all been living—hopefully. So let the number, variety, and breadth of voices here signal a steady return to health, here at home and abroad. We continue to publish both young writers, just starting out—as young as 16 in this issue! — as well as well-established writers/creative artists with impressive resumes.

Contest :: Driftwood’s 2021 Adrift Contests End This Week!

photo of Xu Xi and Traci BrimhallDeadline: July 15, 2021
The deadline is almost here! Xu Xi is this year’s Adrift Short Story Contest Guest Judge. The winning story receives $500, ten copies of the issue in which their story appears, and a featured interview. Runner-ups receive $200, five copies, and a featured interview. All stories read for the contest are considered for publication, which means your likelihood of publication and placing in the contest is much higher. For our 2019 contest, we selected three stories to publish. Traci Brimhall heads up the Adrift Chapbook Contest this year! This contest winner will be awarded $500, a royalties contract, twenty copies of their chapbook, and an interview to be published alongside their chapbook. www.driftwoodpress.net

Change Seven – Summer 2021

It’s our hope this issue of Change Seven will offer readers solace. In addition to the wonderful essays, stories, and poems you’ve come to expect from the magazine, this issue features a sparkling conversation with Deesha Philyaw and Crystal Wilkinson, and stunning visual art from Boon LEE, Shelby McIntosh and george l stein. Fiction by Christopher Acker, Lauren Dennis, Mike Herndon, Kerry Langan, and more.

At The Festival Review: Rachel Lynn on Songwriting and Activism

Visit The Festival Review for The Inkhorn, home of weekly online exclusives. There, you can find a recently published interview with singer-songwriter Rachel Lynn. The interview discusses her song “She Tried to Drown me” and activism. Half of the proceeds of “She Tried to Drown Me” will be donated to the Audre Lorde Project.

Interviewer: The last time we spoke, you said you weren’t interested in promoting, or even creating, during the pandemic. What’s changed?

Rachel Lynn: We’ve been sitting on this release since the beginning of the quarantine. It was supposed to have been released in early June. The content was already created. This is a project I’ve had for a while, and I’ve been ready to move forward creatively. But I didn’t want to take up space. I still don’t want to take up too much space. One of the things I realize is that the fight for racial justice has to be woven into our lives. I thought, if I do this release and donate to an organization that is fighting for Black Trans lives, that is one way to incorporate the fight into my life.

I put out a song one year ago about veganism and animal rights, another system of oppression. And all the proceeds from that song were donated to Mercy for Animals. I definitely feel like it’s one way I can connect art and my work to activism and social justice. I am kind of a broke artist and this is a way I can make a donation, by linking it to the sales of this project. I probably won’t be doing anything new though, like creating new content.

You can find the full interview and links to Rachel Lynn’s music at The Festival Review‘s website.

Pangyrus “Get an Author Discovered” Nominations

screenshot of online literary magazine Pangyrus' logoOnline and print literary magazine Pangyrus offers a unique feature on their website – a nomination form. This nomination is not for any kind of award, but away for you to bring attention to an under-appreciated author.

Since “[s]ubmissions systems often discourage exactly the writers we should be hearing more from,” Pangyrus has opened up a nomination system. You go their site and tell them about a writer who deserved a wider audience and how to get in touch with them. Pangyrus will then extend an invitation to that writer to submit to their journal. They do not guarantee publication for these submissions, but they will give them their full attention.

“[I]t sends a message: someone who knows their work cares about its fate.”

Off the Coast Interviews Fiona Sze-Lorrain

abstract painting of differing blue shades covering a wooden frameOnline literary magazine Off the Coast features a regular interview series where they correspond with a writer about their latest book. In the Summer 2021 issue, you will find an interview with Fiona Sze-Lorrain. Her book Rain in Plural has been shortlisted for the 2021 Derek Walcott Prize for Poetry.

Interviewer A.E. Talbot discusses poetic lineage, the writing process (“I don’t have a writing process, in part since I fear it may encourage me into romanticizing or fetishizing the act of writing.”), Sze-Lorrain’s roles as both poet and translator (” I work more at being a human being”), and more.

They also talk about Sze-Lorrain’s collaboration with composter Peter Child and her thoughts on “underrated” poets. You can also read three poems by Sze-Lorrain in this issue.

Too bad that the mainstream media and publishing cares more for the “show” than poetry, thought, and reflection.

Check out the full interview.

BLR’s Picks

Did you know Bellevue Literary Review has an “Our Picks” section? Here, the editors have compiled the pieces of writing that have stuck with them and remain vivid years later. They say, “These stories, essays, and poems are particularly engaging and thought-provoking—the writing smart and alive—and deserving of another turn in the spotlight.”

The picks are introduced by the editor who explains what it is that spoke to them, and the pieces are linked in full. If you want to read the whole issue, no worries—the issue numbers are given as well.

At Chinese Literature Today: An Interview with Liu Cixin

On the Chinese Literature Today website, find an interview with Liu Cixin by Okuma Yuichiro translated by John Broach. In this interview, the two discuss Liu Cixin’s The Three-Body Problem trilogy and how it connects to China’s past as well as the present day approach to COVID-19.

Okuma Yuichiro: Isn’t humanity being threatened by an unknown virus similar to aliens using communication as an attempt to invade Earth?

Liu Cixin: [ . . . ] From a broader perspective, the pandemic has revealed a non-linear historical model: history can change directions at any moment. This unpredictable state of the future gives sci-fi fiction a vast imaginary space and many potential narratives.

We should anticipate possible crises, for example, what would happen if there is a breakthrough in Artificial Intelligence that makes AI smarter than humans? How do we deal with a situation in which medical advancements allow people to escape their limited lifespan and live forever? The problem is that no one person or country is truly thinking through these issues. Only sci-fi fiction sometimes mulls over these potential crises.

The interview ends with a message, Cixin saying, “But again, if we want to survive we have to change, this is, I hope, what readers can get from my work.” Stop by CLT‘s website to check out the full interview.

Oddly Normal

Magazine Review by Katy Haas.

Visiting trampset‘s website, I had a problem. A good problem. I suddenly had five tabs of fiction open the moment I got there, unable to decide where to start. I wanted to read everything! I blew through the short fiction, enjoying each one, especially Kyle Seibel’s “The Two Women.”

This story is told as if the narrator is writing a letter to their ex-partner, Liz. There is an urgency to connect with Liz and get down the details of a strange day, a fever dream of a day with odd details that also somehow seem incredibly real in their zaniness. The narrator is approached by two women, one offering help and one asking for help. These women and the narrator’s neighbor all appear as odd characters, and the story is told with a humorous voice, but is still filled with heart. The silliness gives the narrator a realization: “[ . . . ] my brain is buzzing because I’m starting to feel like the rest of my life, the life I’m living without you, will be a series of events that make less and less sense until I will be completely untethered from the planet.” With this, the strangeness becomes normal—who hasn’t felt lost and untethered after a big loss?

There is no shortage of good reads at trampset, but if you’re unsure of where to start, give “The Two Women” a try.

“The Two Women” by Kyle Seibel. trampset, June 2021.

Conjuring the Past

Guest Post by Chloe Yelena Miller.

I continue to return to Melanie Figg’s poetry collection, Trace, published right before the pandemic. She writes stories of women through art, personal histories, and nature. In six sections, the reader is invited to listen, look, and act on behalf of ourselves and others.

The opening poem, “The Measure of Things,” ends with, “But here is the wide / open field: you promised / not to tell because you loved him.” Throughout the collection, Figg undoes this promise and “tell[s]” through the poems. While sometimes the reader is only given a suggestion of what happened through the effects or moment, the stories are given light through the specificity and emotion of written images.

Trace conjures the past, women’s truths, and readers’ necessary actions. During the (recorded and available) virtual Gaithersburg Book Festival in 2020, Figg read and shared images related to and complementing the poems. In that reading, she shares the poem “The Trace of Nothing” which ends, “remember? / This is how I conjure / you, this is how we talk.” The image of the woman against the wall, painted as the wall, is striking and builds on the written poem.

The intimacy of Trace is palpable in the telling of mental illness and abuse. In part 4 of “Untitled: after Doris Salcedo,” Figg writes, “She tells you her art will take / responsibility for your grief & you surrender—[ . . . ]” Like the artist in the poem, Figg also does this for the women in the poems and the readers, too. These poems are architectural, load-bearing walls for the women in the poems and Figg’s readers.

Trace by Melanie Figg. New Rivers Press, 2019.

Reviewer bio: Chloe Yelena Miller is a writer and teacher living in Washington, D.C.

Buy this book from our affiliate Bookshop.org.

Call :: The Chestnut Review Always Open to Stubborn Artists

Chestnut Review (“for stubborn artists”) invites submissions year round of poetry, fiction, nonfiction, art, and photography. We offer free submissions for poetry (3 poems), flash fiction (<1000 words), and art/photography (20 images); $5 submissions for fiction/nonfiction (<5k words), or 4-6 poems. Published artists receive $100 and a copy of the annual anthology of four issues (released each summer). Notification in <30 days or submission fee refunded. We appreciate stories in every genre we publish. All issues free online which illustrates what we have liked, but we are always ready to be surprised by the new! Currently reading for the Winter issue: chestnutreview.com.

A Treasure Trove for Writers

South 85 Journal‘s blog is a treasure trove for writers. The blog offers writing prompts, interviews with writers, and plenty of helpful articles about the craft. Recent posts include discussions of autoethnography in creative nonfiction, anthropomorphism in writing, the usefulness of prompts, and tips to stay motivated.

The blog is actively updated between issues, so you have plenty to keep you busy and inspired before the Fall/Winter 2021 issue is released later this year. Sign up for blog updates via the form at their website’s footer so you never miss out.

Two Hawks Quarterly Spring 2021 Issue

Screenshot of Two Hawks Quarterly's Spring 2021 IssueTwo Hawks Quarterly publishes fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, genre X, and art digitally twice a year. They feature work that is exquisitely crafted, takes chances, and has something original to say, and especially love fiction that reaches beyond the standard tropes and diverse voices.

The Spring 2021 issue features poetry by Gale Acuff, Beth Boylan, R. Bratten Weiss, Sandy Coomer, David Breeden, April Christiansen, Joshua Kulseth, John Leonard, Noël Bella Merriam, James Miller, John Morrison, Thomas Patterson, Claire Scott, Jacalyn Shelley, Debbie Trantow, and A.M. Wild.

In prose, we have creative nonfiction by Janelle Cordero, Gail Hosking, and Merve Oncu with fiction by Trevor Crown, Sam Nelson, and Greta Wu. You can also feast your eyes on the artwork of Brenda Azucena, Lisa Braden, Steven Ostrowski, Devin Schneider, and Merve Öncü.

Mud Season Review Issue 56

Screenshot of Mud Season Review Issue 56If you aren’t already aware, online literary magazine Mud Season Review publishes one story, one substantial poem or portfolio of poems, one essay or work of narrative nonfiction, and visual art bimonthly. This journal is run by members of the Burlington Writers Workshop.

On June 20, they released Issue 56. This issue features artwork by GJ Gillespie, poetry by Mary Beth Becker-Lauth, fiction by Marilyn Hope, and creative nonfiction by Guy Choate.

And while you’re on their site, don’t forget to check out their recent interviews with authors and artists featured in Issue 55: Talbot Hook, photographer Mane Hovhannisyan, Gwen Hart, and Rachele Salvini.

Take a Second Look with One

Sometimes good writing needs a second look, and online literary magazine One agrees with that statement. The “Second Look” section on their website gives writers room to take a second look at their favorite poems and discuss what they enjoy about the work.

For Issue 23, the latest issue, Simon Anton Diego Baena takes a look at Federico Garcia Lorca’s “The City That Does Not Sleep (Nightsong of Brooklyn Bridge).” He gives a little background about the piece and the poet, and then breaks it down. Readers can also see the piece performed by Grainne Delaney with an embedded YouTube video by Jesus Queijas.

And that’s just the latest issue—there are plenty of other writers giving second looks in this section of One‘s website, offering readers a great way to learn with a mini, easily digestible poetry lesson.

ICYMI :: Posit Issue 27

Screenshot of Posit Issue 27

Sure, it’s been about two months since it’s release, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t check it out if you haven’t yet! Posit Issue 27 features poetry and prose by V. Joshua Adams, Michael Brosnan, Gabe Durham, Joey Hedger, Kylie Hough, Patrick Kindig, Peter Leight, Elizabeth Robinson, Zach Savich, Edwin Torres, and Lucy Zhang.

You’ll also find Text+Image by Janis Butler Holm and Gina Osterloh as well as Nance Van Winckel. This issue features visual art by Christina Haglid, Dee Shapiro, and Hester Simpson.

Published three times a year, Posit is currently open to submissions of videos and animations of no more than 3 minutes as well as visual art and photography (no fee to submit!).

Reunion Online 2021 Features

While you await the release of Reunion: The Dallas Review‘s 2021 issue, don’t forget about Reunion Online. There they feature a new piece from talented writers each month.

In May they featured Kevin Brown’s “A Good Story to Tell”; in April Teresa Sutton’s “Venus Wishing for More than a Half Shell”; and in both February and March they featured Ra’Niqua Lee’s “What Cures Us (Part One) and (Part Two).

If you haven’t done so already, grab a copy of Volume 10, 2020, too.

They will reopen to submissions on October 1. All submissions are considered for print publication as well as online publication.

‘Ancient Promises’

Guest Post by Neelima K E.

Jaishree Misra’s Ancient Promises can easily serve as a beginner’s guide to arranged marriages in India. The patrilocal toxicity of Indian domestic framework permeates the novel’s narrative and can be nauseating. Janu, the protagonist is a survivor and in a way the novel is her coming of age story. She makes mistakes, gets out, and finds purpose and will to live again all along the course of the narrative.

The Malayalam phrase ‘manam pole mangalyam’ frames the myth of an ideal marriage where love and affection dance to the tunes of matchmaking aunties and uncles from every nook and corner. The novel attempts to place familial loyalty, affection, and virtue in this mire of duty and stifling morality. Every action has its consequence and Janu learns to fight for her share of happiness in this world of do’s and do not’s.

Within the complicated narrative, the novel conceives a string of unanswered questions. Fate and predestiny elude the protagonist as she struggles to find her place moving against the tide in unforeseen circumstances. Is it wrong to covet pleasure and love outside a frigid marriage? What is it that connects two hitherto strange individuals in a supposedly sacred ritual? The fine lines between love, affection, and commitment makes for an interesting read.

The reader will be moved to tears, choking in helpless agony time and again as the protagonist is loved and betrayed repeatedly. The light at the end of the tunnel couldn’t have come sooner for Janaki and the novel remains a gaping wound for many a day forward, reminding the reader to never give in.

Ancient Promises by Jaishree Misra. Penguin Books, January 2000.

Reviewer bio: I am an Indian girl in love with words. People and life in general fascinate me and I look forward to publishing my books someday.

The Fiddlehead YouTube Channel

screenshot of The Fiddlehead's YouTube channel

Do you love being able to see writers reading their work? Did you know that literary magazine The Fiddlehead has its own YouTube channel where it uploads authors reading their work?

They do! There you can watch readings by acclaimed up-and-coming and established Canadian writers. Their last featured reading is of Lee Maracle who shared two of her poems “Belly Bulging” and “Old Tapes.” Swing by the channel to see more readings with Nicole Breit, Barbara Pelman, Margo Wheaton, Susan Musgrave, and more.

In other news, their 2021 Fiction Contest just opened to submissions last month. Deadline to enter is September 1. This year’s judge is Yasuko Thanh.

Southern Humanities Review – 54.2

The latest issue of Southern Humanities features poetry by Hala Alyan, Anne Barngrover, Jordan Escobar, Rhienna Renée Guedry, Sjohnna Mccray, Immanuel Mifsud, Anna Newman, Kimberly Ramos, Karen Rigby, Brett Shaw, Travis Tate, and Ruth Ward; fiction by Ser Álida, Leslie Blanco, Benjamin Murray, and Glen Pourciau; and nonfiction by Myronn Hardy and Ian Spangler. Find more info at the Southern Humanities Review website.

Poetry – July August 2021

In this issue of Poetry, enjoy poetry by L. Lamar Wilson, Aliyah Cotton, Joann Balingit, Debora Kuan, Kimberly Casey, Jacqueline Allen Trimble, Pablo Otavalo, Elizabeth Bradfield, Nabila Lovelace, Hyejung Kook, Kwoya Fagin Maples, Crystal Simone Smith, Laura Secord, Jason Méndez, Charlotte Pence, Janice Lobo Sapigao, Alina Stefanescu, Beth Ann Fennelly, Josh Alex Baker, Sofia M. Starnes, Voice Porter, and more.

Jewish Fiction . net – Summer 2020

Thrilled to announce the new summer issue of Jewish Fiction .net! A gift to imbibe this summer along with your favourite cool drink: 10 beautiful stories, originally written in Hebrew, Yiddish, and English. We invite you also to join Jewish Fiction .net on July 13 for an online program in celebration of our 10th anniversary year: “Jewish Fiction Written in 16 Languages: Stories as Reflections of Jewish Life Across Time and Place.”

december – 32.1

Volume 32.1 is here! Hot off the press, and filled with beautiful poems, stories, essays, and art. Poetry by Mary Ardery, Joshua Boettiger, Tianna Bratcher, Dana Curtis, Kenneth Jakubas, Naomi Ling, Sara Mae, Myles Taylor, and more; fiction by Jeremy Griffin, Greg Johnson, and Candice May; and nonfiction by Gary Fincke, Ainsley McWha, and others. See more contributors at the december website.

Contest :: Under 2 Weeks Left to Enter 2021 Francine Ringold Awards for New Writers

Screenshot of Nimrod's flier for the 2021 Francine Ringold Awards for New Writers
click image to open full-size flier

Deadline: July 15, 2021
The submission period for Nimrod’s Francine Ringold Awards for New Writers ends on July 15. The Ringold Awards offer prizes of $500 and publication for fiction and poetry. They are open only to writers with no more than two previous publication credits in their genre. For poetry, submit up to five pages; for fiction, one short story, 5,000 words maximum. The contest is open internationally. All finalists will also be published and paid at our normal rates. Manuscripts may be mailed or submitted online: nimrodjournal.submittable.com/submit. Each entry must be accompanied by a $12 entry fee. Email [email protected] or visit artsandsciences.utulsa.edu/nimrod/ for complete rules.

The Malahat Review’s 2021 Open Season Awards Winners

The winners of the 2021 Open Season Awards are in the Spring 2021 issue of The Malahat Review. This year’s judges were Rebecca Salazar for poetry, Philip Huynh for fiction, and Lishai Peel for creative nonfiction.

Fiction
“Crossing” by Zilla Jones

Creative Nonfiction
“Mondegreen Girls” by Tanis MacDonald

Poetry
“Merchant Vessels” by Matthew Hollet

Check in with The Malahat Review in August when this contest opens for submissions again.

2020 Allen Ginsberg Poetry Award Winners

Grab a copy of Paterson Literary Review to check out the writers who placed in the 2020 Allen Ginsberg Poetry Award.

First Prize
“To My Husband, Driving into Bad Weather” by Sara Henning
“What I Wanted When I Was Twelve” by Ray Petersen

Second Prize
“Augury” by Mary Crosby
“The Truth about Cats” by Jason Craig Poole

Third Prize
“I Worry about Atatiana Jefferson’s Nephew” by Rachelle Parker

Honorable mentions and editor’s choice pieces are also included in the issue.

Creative Nonfiction Updated Subscription Options

With the launch of the new website, Creative Nonfiction has moved the majority of its archived content online (that’s more than 27 years worth!). With this, they now offer more ways to subscribe and access the content from past issues of their journal, True Story, online exclusives, and their Sunday Short Reads.

For just $4/month or $39/year, you can become a Digital Subscriber and get access to new issues, the entire archive, and all web exclusives. You are able to access this digital content across all of your devices and subscription is setup for automatic renewals so you never miss out.

If you still love holding the printed page in your hands, you can become a Print & Digital Subscriber for $6/month or $59/year. You get everything digital subscribers get plus four issues a year mailed directly to your home.

Interested in purchasing merchandise or joining their online classes? Supporting Subscribers ($10/month or $99/year) get all the benefits of the first two subscription options plus a 10% discount on programs and merchandise. Oh…and did I mention priority registration for online courses as well as early access to events?

Speaking of their online courses, there are still a few slots available for their summer classes!

The final subscription option contains all the benefits of the previous subscriptions and adds on a charitable donation to Creative Nonfiction in the amount of $10/month ($120/year) and your name listed as a donor in the print magazine as well as online. The cost of this is $25/month or $249/year.

So if you aren’t subscribed to this powerhouse for creative nonfiction, join them today!

Lalitamba Changes its Name

Screenshot of Lalitamba's website

Literary magazine Lalitamba has announced a name change. The journal was inspired by a devotional pilgrimage through India where they went village to village seeking to alleviate sorrows that come with poverty, illness, and loss of hope.

The original name came from a bhahan song “Lalitamba, Lalitamba” which means Divine Mother. The new name The GANGA REVIEW honors the sacred river that is an emanation of Divine Mother.

Back in March they announced their 2021 issue is at the printers and they were waiting on proofs which can take several weeks, so it will hopefully be on its way to subscribers soon if all goes well.

A fun fact. Did you know that for every issue purchased, a tree is planted?

Contest :: 2021 Tom Howard/Margaret Reid Poetry Contest

drawn lion head on peach colored backgroundDeadline: September 30, 2021
19th year, sponsored by Winning Writers. Win $3,000 for a poem in any style and $3,000 for a poem that rhymes or has a traditional style. Total prizes: $8,000. The top two winners will also receive two-year gift certificates from our co-sponsor, Duotrope (a $100 value). Both published and unpublished work accepted. Winning entries published online. Submit two poems for one $15 entry fee. Length limit: 250 lines per poem. Judged by S. Mei Sheng Frazier. This contest is recommended by Reedsy. See past winners, advice from the judge, and submit onlne at winningwriters.com/tompoetrynp21.

Contest :: Puerto del Sol 2021 Poetry & Prose Contests Currently Open

Puerto del sol 2021 Poetry & Prose Contests bannerDeadline: September 1, 2021
Two months remaining! Puerto del Sol is accepting entries to our annual contest in poetry and prose through September 1. Judges are Eileen Pollack in prose and Todd Dillard in poetry. Winners receive $500 and publication. $9 entry fee includes one-year subscription. All manuscripts entered will be considered for publication. See website for complete guidelines—puertodelsol.org.

Consequence Forum Monthly Features

Screenshot of the June 2021 featured events, articles, and pieces of Consequence ForumBesides publishing the annual literary magazine Consequence in print, they also feature work on their website each month. On June 28, they released a new story by Cynthia Boorujy titled “Strange Teacups.” Besides reading the story, you can also listen to an audio recording. Also, don’t forget to check out the visual art series “I’m An Animal” by River LaMer for some stirring food for thought.

Consequence will open to submissions again on July 15! They are particularly interested in nonfiction and translations, but would love to receive any quality work centered on “the human consequences and realities of war or geopolitical conflict.”

Lannie Stabile Strikes Lightning Back at Zeus and Men Who Name Their Dogs After Him

Guest Post by Chris L. Butler.

In poetry, you often see the connections between people and animals in a way that demonstrates the humanity that can be found in animals. With Good Morning to Everyone Except Men Who Name Their Dog Zeus, Stabile explores the opposite: why men name their dogs Zeus and how that connects to the god’s often overlooked abusive legacy.

What I love about reading Lannie Stabile’s work is that I always learn something. This is absolutely the case with her debut full-length collection, published this month (June 2021). I was immediately drawn to the book because I truly believe the title itself is a poem. I also love dogs and reading mythology.

Stabile places toxic masculinity on trial by unearthing the havoc Zeus reigned among his fellow godly peers as well as humans; while connecting it to modern patriarchal society. With lines like “the beast will burrow himself into the gentlewoman,” Stabile shows many men have a tendency for god-complex thinking and believe that they can do whatever they wish, as Zeus did.

I believe this collection is important not only for the genre of poetry but also could be utilized in women’s and feminist literature courses. We are in a time when we look at art and society for the entire truth, and not the parts we favor most. Good Morning to Everyone Except Men Who Name Their Dog Zeus is a collection that pushes us in that direction by exposing Zeus and the impact he continues to have on the modern male.

Good Morning to Everyone Except Men Who Name Their Dog Zeus by Lannie Stabile. Cephalo Press, June 2021.

Reviewer bio: Chris L. Butler is an African American and Dutch poet and essayist from Houston, Texas living in Canada. He is the author of the microchap BLERD: ’80s BABY, ’90s KID (Daily Drunk Press) which is set to be released on August 2, 2021.

Heartbreaking & Exhilarating Depiction of Real Life

Guest Post by Natalie Hess.

The emotional impact that Stephen Chbosky’s The Perks of Being a Wallflower had on me from the very beginning was incredible. This story is told through letters to an anonymous friend, and it depicts the life of Charlie, a teenage boy, who is simply growing up. Everything about this novel is so real.

Chbosky does not try to sugarcoat the hardships of life and what it’s like to discover those hardships and have to live with them. Charlie experiences everything from the death of a loved one, drugs and alcohol, and sexual assault, to building different kinds of relationships with people and learning to trust and be there for them. Charlie (as well as many side characters) go through so much, and it’s similar to what so many real people experience all the time, which makes this read heartbreaking and exhilarating and confusing and amazing and miserable all at once. But it’s life. And this book did such a good job of depicting real life that I would highly recommend it, especially for those of us who still have some growing up to do.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky. Pocket Books, February 1999.

Reviewer bio: I’m Natalie Hess and I’m simply a high school student who LOVES reading everything from scifi to romance to nonfiction and everything in between. I also love sharing my thoughts and I hope you enjoy!

Buy this book from our affiliate Bookshop.org.

Call :: Driftwood Press Open Year-round & Pays Contributors

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Submissions accepted year-round.
John Updike once said, “Creativity is merely a plus name for regular activity. Any activity becomes creative when the doer cares about doing it right, or better.” At Driftwood Press, we are actively searching for artists who care about doing it right, or better. We are excited to receive your submissions and will diligently work to bring you the best in full poetry collections, novellas, graphic novels, short fiction, poetry, graphic narrative, photography, art, interviews, and contests. We also offer our submitters a premium option to receive an acceptance or rejection letter within one week of submission; many authors are offered editorships and interviews. To polish your fiction, note our editing services and seminars, too.

Free Lecture: How to Publish Your Writing in Literary Journals

The editors of Radar Poetry will be taking part in a one-hour Zoom lecture and Q&A session hosted by Authors Publish. They will be discussing what editors look for, how to organize your submission, and “insider tips” for getting your poems published in literary journals.

This will air live TODAY (June 30, 2021) at 2PM EST. You do need to register to attend. Don’t worry, it’s free. You also will get a a free recording of the full presentation.

A Delightfully Spooky Treat

Guest Post by Lawrence Scales.

Even if you’re an avid reader of graphic novels, The Dylan Dog Case Files won’t be on your radar. Yet it’s billed as a book with over fifty-six million copies sold. That’s your first clue: it should be. The decades long Italian series about “nightmare detective” Dylan Dog and his Watson, cast as Groucho Marx (literally), is still releasing new issues. Overseas, Dylan Dog, created by Tiziano Sclavi, is sold in one hundred page black and white editions for a few American dollars.

Stateside, the only English copy of Dylan Dog’s cases— dealing with everything from zombies to invisible men— is this trade paperback collection from Dark Horse Comics released in 2009. The Case Files is a seven hundred-plus page tome containing several stories, with cover art by Hellboy creator Mike Mignola. It’ll set you back fifty dollars used. But it won’t be a penny wasted. The first story, drawn in a style akin to Egon Schiele, is the 1986 classic “Dawn of the Living Dead.”

The Case Files is the best drawn depiction of a pulp movie genre from Italy known as giallo. Like much Italian fare of the time, giallo was as known for its slashers and prog soundtracks as much as it’s looseness with copyright.

Likewise, The Case Files is a fast read that goes down like the best popcorn flicks. In print the best comparison would be Tales from the Crypt. Even horror fans unfamiliar with giallo will find a comforting familiarity with the material. The Dylan Dog Case Files may have a niche audience. But for those of us who fit within it, this collection is a delightfully spooky treat with some real scares.

The Dylan Dog Case Files by Tiziano Sclavi. Dark Horse Comics, April 2009.

Reviewer bio: Lawrence Scales is an artist living in Philadelphia. When he isn’t making art, he’s daydreaming about cats. You can find his work here and here.

Contest :: 1 Month Left to Enter the 2021 Red Wheelbarrow Prize

Red WheelbarrowDeadline: July 31, 2021
The 2021 Red Wheelbarrow Poetry Prize will be judged by Mark Doty. $1,000 for first place and a letterpress broadside printed by Felicia Rice of Moving Parts Press, $500 for second, $250 for third. Top five published in Red Wheelbarrow Literary Magazine. Submit up to 3 original, unpublished poems. $15 entry fee. Deadline: July 31, 2021. For complete guidelines, see redwheelbarrow.submittable.com/submit.