It’s no joke: 2012-2013 has brought us an unprecedented number of submissions. In order to give all these pieces the careful reading they deserve, we will be closing our submissions April 1st (which also happens to be the deadline for our 2013 Poetry Prize). Of course, we will reopen our submissions in the fall—stay tuned!
Have you heard? Indiana Review‘s annual Poetry Prize is officially open for submissions! This year’s judge is National Book Award Winner Nikky Finney. You can find guidelines here.
Last year’s prize-winning poem, “The Sublime,”written by Joshua Gottlieb-Miller and selected by Dean Young, is featured in our most recent issue, 34.2, which can be ordered here.
All submissions are considered for publication. So, round up your prize-worthy poems and send them our way!
Indiana Review poetry editor Michael Mlekoday believes poetry is “a register of our values and fears. It’s dynamic and purgative. It’s church and sex and everything in between.” If you ask him about his favorite kind of casserole, he’ll point out that “in Minnesota, we don’t say casserole, we say ‘hotdish,'” and go on to describe his favorite ‘hotdish’ in mouthwatering (?) detail: “I like tater tot hotdish—tater tots, cream of celery soup, frozen veggies, ground beef if you’re into that, and more tater tots.” When asked to predict the future of literary journals—both print and online—he says, “I think we’ll keep making and sharing poems and stories and essays until we’re all dead, one way or another.”
Continue reading to learn more about the poetry-loving, tater-tot eating man behind Indiana Review.
JL: How did you come to love poetry?
MM: Before their great friendship, the poets James Dickey and James Wright exchanged a series of relatively brutal letters attacking each other for things the other had written and published—there was name calling, squabbling, probably quatrains about each other’s moms, etc.
Had my high school English teachers taught that stuff instead of, oh, I don’t even remember, Shakespeare’s sonnets maybe, I might’ve become interested in poetry much earlier. Instead, I wanted to be a rapper. I memorized and analyzed every single line of my favorite albums—and only later realized that was poetry.
JL: What is the last piece of writing that knocked the wind out of you?
Our cover artwork for 34.2 is “Frog with chicken,” by Jenny Fine
Dear Readers,
We are so excited to announce the arrival of our Winter issue, Indiana Review 34.2!
I want to take a moment to say thank you to everyone who has helped in putting this baby together. This process, from start to finish, is totally a collaborative effort that requires the hard work of an entire staff of senior editors, a wonderfully talented group of interns, and a dedicated bunch of associate genre editors (graduate students here at Indiana University).
And of course, I would be remiss if I did not say a huge thank you to YOU, our readers. Seriously, we would not exist without your ongoing love and support.
Now, for the necessary sales plug:
If you’re looking for a good holiday gift for the lover of all things literary (yourself, perhaps?), you might consider gifting a subscription.
Or, if you would like to order a single-issue copy, you can do so here.
On behalf of our editorial staff, I wish you a holiday season filled with goodwill and awesome literature!
Happy reading,
Jennifer
PS We are always interested in knowing what you think. Feel free to comment below, or send us an email at inreview@indiana.edu. We can’t wait to hear from you!
Clockwise from top left: Mark Twain, Ron Swanson, Sean Connery, Topper Hiland and Joe Hiland
It’s true, Fiction Editor Joe Hiland has discerning taste in literature, whisky, and canines, but he also has a soul. Despite his dry wit and carnivorous tendencies, Joe is a true Duke Silver: sensitive, compassionate, and as tender on the inside as a medium-rare steak. Read on to see for yourself.
JL: What is the last piece of writing that knocked the wind out of you?
JH: We usually think of writing knocking the wind out of us (or whatever image we want to use) when we read something for the first time, but it’s interesting when a familiar piece of writing knocks the wind out of you. I recently had that experience with Bobbie Ann Mason’s story “Shiloh.” I’ve read that story at least a dozen times, and I was rereading it the other day in preparation for a class I’m teaching. I was taken aback by the precision of Mason’s language and the richness of even the simplest details in her story. I’d forgotten the first line, and it caught me pleasantly off-guard during my reread: “Leroy Moffitt’s wife, Norma Jean, is working on her pectorals.” So much of what’s at stake in the story is encompassed in that simple opening line.
JL: What do you look for a good story to do?
Read more, after the jump!
