Barrelhouse Write-ins!

It’s almost time. For school, leaf piles, Hallowe’en megastores, beverages that are allegedly pumpkin-flavored, and especially for Barrelhouse Write-ins. 

What’s a write-in?

A write-in is where writers meet up in a chat room, and then work on their own projects. It might seem pretty basic, and it is, but it gets results. Also, it’s just fun to talk to other writers someplace besides Twitter for a change.

What are write-ins like?

You’ll enter a chat room. There’ll be no cameras, and no mics. (If the host is not off making their write-in coffee when you arrive, they’ll say hello.) At five minutes after the hour, the host will say it’s time to start. Sometimes there are sprints, where you’ll work for 20 minutes and take a 5 minute break. You’re welcome to chat in the chat room at any point during the session. When the write-in is over, the host closes the chat room, and everyone does whatever is next in the journey they call life, until next time.

When do write-ins happen? How long do they last?

Write-ins happen every few days. During write-in season, there’s almost always one on Sundays at 1pm Eastern Time. For other times, watch the @barrelhouse Twitter feed, the #writein hashtag, and/or the discussion board on the Barrelhouse Write-in site. Suggestions for other days and times are always welcome.

Write-ins typically last an hour. Arriving late or leaving early is fine -- it doesn’t intrude on the session, life happens, we totally get it.

How much is it, and how do I sign up?

Write-ins are free, free, free. Here’s the signup link. Once you’re in, drop by the Discussions section and say hello!

Okay, I’m signed up! Now what?

Whenever there’s a Write-in, you’ll get an email. When you get the email, go to this page and look for a Write-in to join under “Conferences.” See you there!

Announcing: Barrelhouse’s Funky Flash Fall

Give us your unique, your unusual, your hard-to-place flash stories yearning to be read. We’re running an online flash fiction edition in the fall, and we want YOU (to submit)!

We’ll open our Submittable queue for flash fiction for three days at the end of the month: August 28-30.

To help you prepare, here’s what we’ll be looking for:

You can submit one or two stories of up to 1,000 words each; but in order to spread opportunities as broadly as possible, we won’t be able to accept two stories from the same author.

Pieces can be humorous or serious (or both!), and there’s no theme. We’ll read both traditional stories and experimental pieces.

We’re open to “hermit crab” flash (stories told in non-traditional formats like lists, letters, forms, recipes, etc.), and will be able to accept stories in Word or PDF to preserve unusual formatting.

That said, we’re also thrilled when extraordinary stories rise out of the good old tradition of words in a row on the page.

We’re also open to new voices in flash fiction. Maybe you’re a poet going long, or a novelist going short for a change. Let’s hear your weirdness in all its funky glory!

And as always, BIPOC/LGBTQ writers are encouraged to submit.

Selected authors will receive $50 for their story.

The nitty gritty: If you plan to submit two stories, we’ll ask you to put them in a single document, starting the second story on a new page, and to include your name and the story title(s) in the document. Unless you are submitting a hermit crab story that relies on specific formatting, please double space.

All right? All right! Watch this link, starting on August 28th!

BARRELHOUSE BOOKS TO PUBLISH NEW POETRY COLLECTIONS BY GINA MYERS AND CHRISTINE NO

Thank you to everyone who submitted to our 2019 open reading period for poetry manuscripts. The amount of good work out there is overwhelming. We wish we could publish so many of the manuscripts we received. Trust us, world, there are a lot of good books coming your way in the next few years.

We’re excited to announce that Barrelhouse will publish Gina Myers’s Some of the Times (2020) and Christine No’s Whatever Love Means (2021).

Those who are familiar with Gina Myers’s previous work will be pleased to see Some of the Times build from the same base of social consciousness while also pushing in new directions. Myers captures what it feels like to live in this era of late capitalism in a way that few other poets do. This is a book for those who suffer and endure and laugh about the suffering later.

Gina Myers is the author of two full-length poetry collections, A Model Year (2009) and Hold It Down (2013), as well as several chapbooks, including most recently Philadelphia (Barrelhouse, 2017). In addition to poetry, she has published numerous essays, reviews, and articles for a variety of publications, including Hyperallergic, Frontier Psychiatrist, Fanzine, The Rumpus, and The Poetry Project Newsletter, among other places. Originally from Saginaw, MI, she now lives in Philadelphia, PA, where she works as a web content writer and social media specialist, co-edits the tiny with Gabriella Torres, and runs the Accidental Player reading series. Find her online at gina-myers.org.

Christine No’s debut collection Whatever Love Means offers the rare experience of watching a mind work on the page as it mines the body, the psyche, and the interwoven histories of family. These searching poems are equally full of wisdom and unanswerable questions.

Christine No is the daughter of Korean immigrants. She is a Sundance Alum, VONA Fellow, two-time Pushcart Prize Nominee and Best of the Net Nominee. A producer by day and word nerd by night, Christine has served as Assistant Features Editor for The Rumpus and is a Board Member with Quiet Lightning, a Bay Area Literary Nonprofit dedicated to creating platform and community for writers and artists. You can find her poetry and essays in: The Rumpus, Entropy, Columbia Journal, The Harpoon Review, Story Magazine, sPARKLE+bLINK, Vagabond City, Apogee, Atlas And Alice, & various anthologies. Christine believes in the power of radical vulnerability; and, that art is a reminder that we can only get through this, together. She lives in Oakland, CA. [...& online. Come say hi! www.christineno.com / @iamchristineno]

Stay tuned to our social media for more info as these books come together. To request a review copy, inquire about booking a reading, or for more information, contact barrelhousedan@gmail.com

New Barrelhouse Reviews Guidelines!

What's New with Reviews?

We're looking for reviews of books up to 1000 words. As with all things Barrelhouse, you can get a feeling of our sensibility by reading the magazine, but put simply, the Reviews section is where can integrate pop cultural commentary with other kinds of works. We want to see reviews that transcend book reports and digress into essay territory. We want to see how the book fits into our pop culture and what the writer's voice cuts through the din. Think Roxane Gay, Leslie Jamison, Samantha Irby. We don't want to know what the book is about, we want to know why we should care (and we get to that by reading about how much you care). And although we all enjoy a good book that you can pick up at the airport as much as anyone else, we'd prefer to see some love for the small and independent presses that don't have the budgets and marketing muscle to land national bylines. Please stick to literary fiction, essay collections, memoir, and poetry collections. No genre fiction, academic texts, or self-published books. For an idea of what subjects and styles of books we would prefer to feature, we recommend perusing the Barrelhouse archives for a sense of the mission and voice of the website.

We can, for instance, imagine a review of an academic work, but it would likely have to be a book that makes interesting connections, is surprising, funny, prescient, intelligent, even ludicrous—but never boring or abstruse. In this category, you can imagine new or upcoming works of sociology, history, science—really any academic field, as long as you feel it speaks to a general readership who is not well-versed in the jargon of the field and meets the above criteria. The same goes for books on the craft of writing, biographies, memoirs, collections of essays etc.—even if the material is dry, don't let your review be! Feel free to transform the minutiae of life in the English countryside into Hitchcockian mystery, write a review to an academic so deliciously scathing it makes us cackle, reimagine a historical narrative on the rise of neoliberalism through the prism of Lewis Carroll, or give us high-Michiko Kakutani musings on a work via Stewie from Family Guy (actually, not Stewie in particular, but you get the point). Be fiercely political or even-tempered; experimental or direct—but don't be racist, misogynistic, albeist, queer- or trans- phobic . Feel free to review transgressive work, but know that we're only likely to publish it if your review—despite the book itself—has high merits of its own. Whichever way you do it, above all give us reviews that stand as works of art in their own right.

WANT AN ASSIGNMENT? BECOME A REGULAR REVIEWER! 

Book Reviews Editors Kamil Ahsan and Tabitha Blankenbiller are looking to add a few regular book reviewers for the new Barrelhouse book reviews section! Experience not required, passion and opinions essential. We cannot pay you in dollars, but you will be receiving FREE BOOKS! Please see above for book review guidelines, and be sure to check out the Barrelhouse archives and online issue for a sense of style and content. To apply, email yobarrelhouse@gmail.com with a brief bio and links to 3 writing samples, preferably in the review genre.

Barrelhousing with New Poetry Assistant Editors Micah Ling, Coco Keehl, and Christina Beasley

Good news, everyone! The Barrelhouse Family is growing! This time in the poetry space. You might remember about a year or so ago when we added Tony Mancus to our poetry crew to help lead up our chapbook series. That has worked out great! Thanks, Tony! Now we’re bringing on a few new faces to help edit the print journal, too.

We were looking for folks who “get our whole vibe” and “know what’s up” but also had slightly different tastes, are plugged into poetry that might not be on our radar, and who are interested in doing things in a new way. Let’s meet them, shall we?

MICAH LING

1) Okay, first: tell us about all the things you do that aren’t Barrelhouse-adjacent.

I’m a secret agent. I can’t say much more. My cover is that I teach at a community college and obsess over cycling all the mountains in Colorado, where I “live.”

2) What made you want to work with us?

I’ve worked on a few literary magazines; I actually love the process of reading submissions: picking, choosing, matching things together to create an issue. Barrelhouse seems to be good at this process, so I’m honored to join.

3) What are you looking for in poetry submissions? What makes a poem stand out from the slush pile for you?

I try not to think about what I’m looking for, because I usually don’t know. I do tend to like clear curiosity: marveling at something specific. My creative writing students would probably tell you that I like knowing what’s in the pockets.

4) Who are some of your favorite contemporary poets?

Sherman Alexie. Sharon Olds, Todd Colby, Ada Limón, Elizabeth Scanlon, Cornelius Eady, Nick Flynn, Ross Gay, Claudia Rankine, Paul Martínez Pompa.

5) If you could change one thing about the current lit world, what would it be?

It feels like we’ve gotten a little lost in the line between art and commerce. I’ve had fantasies recently of all art being anonymous.

6) We’re legally obligated to ask you this: what’s your favorite Patrick Swayze movie?

To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar. This was a way more important film than it gets credit for. Wesley Snipes, John Leguizamo, and Patrick Swayze, dressed to the nines. It doesn’t get much better.

COCO KEEHL

1)     Okay, first: tell us about all the things you do that aren’t Barrelhouse-adjacent.

I am a bartender and work at a library, which is to say I get paid to deal with a lot of public and addictive substance: beer and books. I love everything that goes into making, selling, drinking a good craft beer almost as much as I love the satisfaction of giving a tiny human their first library card. It comes with great responsibility, I tell them and then let them know they can check out up to 100 books then proceed to check 78 books myself.

When I am not working my erratic hours of multiple doubles in a row, I enjoy hiking / goofing around with my best doggo, Carver Zissou. You can also find me caffeinated AF at the local park picnic table reading poetry aloud to myself or driving into the perfect sun movements of Michigan (motorcycle TBA). I am in the church of I need to be outside as much as possible.

Recently, I got really into smoothies. I check NUFORC almost daily. A good podcast is worth my weight bitcoins.

2) What made you want to work with us?

Barrelhouse is the perfect combination of culture and clever. 

This summer I had the amazing opportunity to attend Barrelhouse Writing Camp and hang out with the Barrelhouse team. The vibes this organization has is so electrically energetic, alive and serious about delivering to the public the best it can offer in way accessible to everyone.

Barrelhouse has nearly everything you could wish for; from sharp writing, to online workshops, to seminars and writing camp and support for other lit magazines, the only thing lacking is a spaceship. Spaceship aside, why wouldn’t I want to spend my time working with the minds that curate, produce, support such cool energy, what a dream!!! 

3) What are you looking for in poetry submissions? What makes a poem stand out from the slush pile for you?

From the voice, to the language, to being able to present something in a way that feels fresh. I like new voices, new formulas. When a poem feels exposed and raw. I am also drawn to what makes me think outside the box then outside that box then outside the circle drawn around those boxes and suddenly I am doing cartwheels into a blackhole. I look for poetry that makes me change my perspective that pushes boundaries and evokes me to feel what I have not before.  

4) Who are some of your favorite contemporary poets?

This hard one but in no particular order: Chen Chen, Claudine Rankine, Caroline Crew, Tommy Pico, Layli Long Soldier, Morgan Parker, Zoe Dzunko, Ocean Vuong, Dalton Day, Dorothea Lasky & & & &  (I could go on).

5) If you could change one thing about the current lit world, what would it be?

The idea that academia is what makes a writer worth reading. Previous publications as an indicator of what makes someone worth publishing. If I could change one thing, I would say the past should not be an indicator for future promise. Give every voice a chance regardless of who previously. Poetry is for the people by the people. Let’s keep our ears open for the voices that have not been given the opportunity to be heard yet. 

6) We’re legally obligated to ask you this: what’s your favorite Patrick Swayze movie?

Who hasn’t tried the dance jump in Dirty Dancing? But favorite would be Donnie Darko even though I wouldn't count that as a “Swayze” movie. Patrick Swayze really doesn’t do it for me. 

CHRISTINA BEASLEY

1) Okay, first: tell us about all the things you do that aren’t Barrelhouse-adjacent.

When I'm not reviewing and editing poems, I am: writing poems, taking photographs, performing in a local choir and playing my ukulele, practicing yoga, volunteering and being an activist, reading, studying many languages, and working in national security in Washington, DC. But hey--I'll get all the sleep I need when I'm dead.

2) What made you want to work with us?

I've loved reading Barrelhouse for a number of years, and when I participated in Barrelhouse's Writer Camp last summer, I realized how fantastic the community truly was and that I wanted to become a bigger part of it! I adore the fact that Barrelhouse is willing to take risks and explore styles and subject matter that many other contemporary publications are not, and I wanted to be involved in nurturing and growing that type of environment. In fact, all you have to do to work with Barrelhouse is follow three simple rules: expect the unexpected, take it outside, and be nice.

3) What are you looking for in poetry submissions? What makes a poem stand out from the slush pile for you?

I strive to elevate work that addresses difficult or unusual topics in a carefully-articulated and intentional way. I would like the work to be wild in essence, but controlled in structure. I value precision in phrasing. All of these qualities in a poem allow me to become emotionally connected to it as well as intellectually curious. I want to be challenged by the work, and I want you to be nice until it's time to not be nice.

4) Who are some of your favorite contemporary poets?

I feel like I change my answer to this question whenever I read a new publication or anthology. There are so many voices to inhabit and they resonate so diversely depending on what I'm experiencing in my own life. As of late, some of my favorites include: Charles Simic, Terrance Hayes, Aracelis Girmay, Ocean Vuong, and Louise Glück. But truly, how can I pick? Nobody ever wins a fight.

5) If you could change one thing about the current lit world, what would it be?

I wish more publications would explore the depths of the slush pile, like Barrelhouse does. I don't just say that because I am a denizen of the slush pile, but because that's where I believe a lot of the less trendy, more subversive themes percolate to the surface. Also, I have found that new poets or poets who often find themselves at the margins of what is popularly available can be extremely invigorated through the opportunity to start a dialogue with the community and through sharing recent work. Here in the slush pile, let's be honest: we've got too many 40-year-old adolescents, felons, power drinkers and trustees of modern chemistry. Let's spread the wealth to the masses a little.

6) We’re legally obligated to ask you this: what’s your favorite Patrick Swayze movie?

ROAD HOUSE. Each answer to this interview has a quote within it from Road House. Watch Road House, identify the quotes, and then watch Road House again. And count your blessings... it's a good night. Nobody died.