Keeping up with online journals can be tricky.
With printed journals the latest issue appears in my mailbox, signaling Hey! Read Me! I eagerly rip the packaging off and am left holding evidence: a shiny cover with, more likely than not, a cool graphic of some sort; pages that are sometimes creamy colored, sometimes stark white. And the smell! Paper, ink. Glorious! I guess I'm a bit old fashioned in that regard.
I need to find a better system to keep up with online journals. What they lack in real, hold-in-your-hands evidence, they make up for in instant gratification. I can navigate to their site and wham! just like that I can read a story. Or two. Or five. No waiting for the mailman. No garbage to dispose of. No adding to stacks of journals that threaten to topple over with a gust of wind. Something to be said for that.
Here are some great stories to check out, online:
At Night Train: Tattoos Alive by Lydia Ship. I read this almost 2 weeks ago and it has stayed with me. Such creativity!
At Night Train: Watching Stanley Kowalski in the TV Room of Belle Haven by Jeanne Holtzman. Wonderful voice.
At Staccato Fiction: Almost Shaped by David Erlewine. This was published a few months ago but I just stumbled across it recently. Wonderful, tender story. So much is said in such a small space.
At Smokelong Quarterly: What Passes for Normal by Michelle Reale. There's a sad, haunting quality to this story that has stayed with me.
Go on... check them out!
hi mitzi, the michael czyzniejewski interview is up - thanks for your interest!
ReplyDeletehttp://jmwwblog.wordpress.com/2010/02/22/359/
and, s, i thought i posted a comment on this yesterday...thanks so much for the shout to my staccato story. and michelle's and jeanne's stories are both amazing.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your kind blog post about my Michael Czyzniejewski interview, Mitzi!
ReplyDeleteOkay, I look like a stalker! Thanks for your blog post, Mitzi. So jealous you were in a workshop with Michael C. He must be perfect in that sort of venue.
ReplyDeleteIndeed, Dogz was a bit too much too soon for me. I'd just started writing again when I began editing for them. I couldn't handle it. Now, I know how to "slow" things down enough to handle it all, or so I tell myself.
I'm so happy we are in touch, Mitzi.
And, by the by, I love your JMWW story. I read it awhile ago before editing for them. Great stuff. D
David, the stalker - that's funny :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for your kind words re my JMWW story! And congrats on all of your recent acceptances! You are on of the most prolific guys out there.
Thank you so much, Mitzi. I just saw your kind post on my blog. I've been "drained" of anything creative to write the past few days so seeing that kind post from you reminds me to calm down a bit.
ReplyDeleteYou're quite welcome about your JMWW story!!!