Greetings!
In Issue 11, we published poetry only, but in this issue, Home Planet has once again opened its doors to fiction–nay! unscrewed the doors themselves from their jambs!–with short stories by Donald Mangum, Daniel Sklar, & Nancy Spiller. Of course, we continue to showcase a variety of electrically charged, aesthetically pleasing poetry by Angela Ball, Robert Beveridge, Cat Dixon, Deborah H. Doolittle, Margaret Gibson, James Harms, Vanessa Ogle, Ken Poyner, Richard Schiffman, Jennifer Schneider, Beate Sigriddaughter, Tino Villanueva, Mike Wilson, & Mark Young. Moreover, we’re tickled as Elmo to present “The Stenographer” by Susan Kaplan, our featured visual artist.
Just so you know, we don’t have a timetable regarding when the magazine will come out, i.e., it will appear irregularly. The idea is to grow each issue organically. In other words, when we have enough work for a new issue, we’ll post it. How many times a year that is depends upon our editors’ synchronicity &, more importantly, our contributors, without whom there’s no possibility of a magazine.
Our selection process works this way: As a team, we begin each day (6 a.m. sharp!) with various verbal calisthenics, followed by a full 5 minutes of meditation to mellow out, 100 mental laps around Home Planet HQ, & a loud, downright rowdy round-robin karuta match before the taking of a toast & tea. Editors read submissions, then share our lists of “likes” with our other editors. Unanimous “likes” automatically go in the Yes folder. Next, we try to form a consensus regarding works that one or another editor may like.
One of the deeply unpleasant tasks as editor is saying no. As a writer myself, I know the disappointment & frustration that may accompany rejection. All artists see the beauty of their work, a wise person once said. However corny, my advice to all writers is to be persistent. Don’t let the gatekeeping bastards (including me) keep you down.
This is my second issue as editor of Home Planet News. Thank you for all the kind words of support from readers & contributors alike—or even if you’re different. In fact, here at Home Planet, we encourage you to be different. Don’t conform. Don’t comply. Screw the system that keeps us in chains.
Matt Morris