Three renowned editors have joined forces to create a new online journal of Appalachian writing: STILL at www.stilljournal.net.
Silas House (fiction editor), Jason Howard (nonfiction editor), and Marianne Worthington (poetry editor) are offering this online source for literature of and about the mountain south. Each issue -- which will be published in October, February, and June -- will feature stories, poems, essays, interviews, and multimedia like songs or short films.
Worthington says, "We will strive to publish the best established voices next to the best emerging writers of the region, and we believe we've done that in our first issue, which features the work of fiction writers Mark Powell, Kathi Whitley, and Tiffany Williams; nonfiction writers Donna McClanahan, Karen McElmurray, and Beth Newberry; and poets Steve Holt, Ron Houchin, Irene Latham, Lisa Parker, and Josh Robbins."
She continues, "This first issue also includes an interview with Appalachian scholar Jack Wright and a solo musical performance by Sue Massek of The Reel World String Band. Eventually we'll have an annual contest, and we're slowly building our links page as a great resource for Appalachian literature, music, environmentalism, and other sites of interest to those who love Appalachia."
About the name, the editors say:
1. we believe that to be a writer is to learn how to be still
2. The moonshine still is one of the stereotypical images of Appalachia,
3. as a culture, Appalachian has been told for decades that it is disappearing, but we are still here, proud and strong as ever, and
4. James Still, author of River of Earth, The Wolfpen Poems, and many other great works, is the grandfather of modern Appalachian literature and has inspired us all.
