| This Week from The Rumpus |
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| Editor's note from Aram Mrjoian Interviews with Kirsten Sundberg Lunstrum and Oluwaseun Olayiwola by Kristen Millares Young and Nathan Xavier Osorio Reviews of Marcus Clayton ¡PÓNK! and Andy Young’s Museum of the Soon to Depart Poetry by Saba Keramati An essay for our Enough column by Annie Bartos The Rumpus PRIZE, calls for submission, Letters in the Mail from Authors (Oliver Baez Bendorf) |
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| Dear Rumpus readers,
As the new year begins, I have made the very difficult decision to conclude my tenure as the editor-in-chief of The Rumpus, but don’t worry, I’ll be sticking around in an advisory role as an editor-at-large! I am so grateful for my time in this role at The Rumpus and am excited to continue supporting the success and vitality of the magazine. Serving as editor-in-chief has been an immense source of joy. However, with the very real demands of juggling my other responsibilities as the managing editor at Michigan Quarterly Review (a role I started in September), teaching schedule, my debut novel coming out in June, and family duties, I’ve realized I can’t do everything.
For the next six months, our managing editor, Stephanie Trott, will also take over as acting editor-in-chief while The Rumpus determines a plan for a more permanent replacement. I’m struggling to find adequate words to express how lucky The Rumpus’s staff and readers are to have Stephanie at the helm. Quite simply, The Rumpus would not run without her editorial vision and artistic precision. It’s been one of the highlights of my literary career to collaborate with Stephanie on the hundreds of excellent pieces The Rumpus publishes every year. I am also forever grateful to our publisher, Alyson Sinclair, for her leadership, friendship, and trust in me.
For the foreseeable future, I’ll continue reading submissions for the Collaborative Criticism and Close Reads column, contest submissions, and helping out in a volunteer capacity wherever I’m needed. I’ll still be making jokes around the digital water cooler. When I accepted the editor-in-chief position, I mentioned being a longtime Rumpus contributor. This magazine has been and will continue to be integral to my growth as a writer, editor, and educator. I know this is the case for hundreds (if not thousands) of writers who have published in the magazineover the years.The Rumpus exists because of the dedication of the magazine's incredible volunteer staff. It can only continue with financial support from our vibrant literary community. Together, we must ensure this space remains a home for writers and readers alike.
Thank you, readers, for everything.
–Aram Mrjoian |
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Interviews & Reviews
“A story in which the compelling feature of the plot is not violence...but rather the act of a girl or woman becoming more herself.”
Kristen Millares Young interviews Kirsten Sundberg Lunstrum about her novel Elita.
“If there is no easy classification for ¡PÓNK!, that’s exactly why Clayton’s book is punk as fuck.”
Erin Vachon reviews Marcus Clayton's debut hybrid ¡PÓNK!.
“These are things you can’t see. They’re only measured by visceral reactions: by sweat, touch, some sort of illness even.”
Nathan Xavier Osorio interviews Oluwaseun Olayiwola about Olayiwola's stunning debut poetry collection Strange Beach.
“Young transforms these cities into an enigmatic museum, with galleries that reach back through time...”
Ed Skoog reviews Andy Young’s new book of poems Museum of the Soon to Depart. |
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New Essays & Columns
“You and your siblings played funeral. You’d wrap your little sister in a blanket and lay her on the coffee table, pretending she was in a coffin.”
Rumpus Original Column Enough: “Our Father” by Annie Bartos
“After the funeral I didn’t know how best to comfort you, / and so you turned to the river.”
Rumpus Original Poetry: Two Poems by Saba Keramati |
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RUMPUS PRIZE for
Poetry, Fiction, and Creative Nonfiction! |
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Announcing the inaugural Rumpus Prize for Poetry, Fiction, and Creative Nonfiction!
Submissions are open December 5, 2024 to March 2, 2025. The Rumpus has a long history of championing emerging and established poets, fiction writers, and essayists, and we’re pleased to announce a new way the magazine will bring attention to great writing.
All submissions will be read by The Rumpus‘s editorial team, and our final judges will be Kaveh Akbar (Poetry), Rachel Khong (Fiction), and Megan Stielstra (Creative Nonfiction).
The Rumpus Prize offers $3,600 total in prizes, with $1,000 awarded for 1st place prize and publication in 3 genres: poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction. Honorable mentions receive $200 and publication in each of the 3 genres.
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| Click the image above or this link to learn more about Tahoma Literary Review. |
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| Letters in the Mail (from authors!) |
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Letters in the Mail from authors is a Rumpus subscription in which you receive an actual, postmarked letter from one of our favorite writers in your IRL mailbox twice a month. All letters are non-promotional, include a creative prompt, and have a return mailing address in case you'd like to write the author back!
Up next, an author letter from . . .
February 1: Oliver Baez Bendorf is the author of Consider the Rooster, and two previous collections of poems: Advantages of Being Evergreen (Cleveland State University Poetry Center, 2019) and The Spectral Wilderness (Kent State U.P., 2015). He has received fellowships and awards from the National Endowment for the Arts, The Publishing Triangle, CantoMundo, Vermont Studio Center, and the Wisconsin Institute for Creative Writing. Born and raised in Iowa, he now lives in Colorado. Subscribe by January 31! |
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Our ceramic mug
NOW SHIPPING WORLDWIDE! |
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| Sometimes our international friends ask how they can order our classic "Write Like a Motherfucker" ceramic mug. Well, we now have an option for you to get them through Bonfire. Get one for yourself or your best overseas bud. Also available to US folks, of course! |
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| We are open for our Enough column from Jan. 3-Feb. 7.
ENOUGH is a Rumpus series devoted to creating a dedicated space for work by women and non-binary people who engage with rape culture, sexual assault, and domestic violence. We want to make sure that this conversation doesn’t stop until our laws and societal norms reflect real change. We consider personal essays, critical essays, poetry, comics, and hybrid work.
Submissions for our inaugural Rumpus Prize for Poetry, Fiction, and Creative Nonfiction are open until March 2, 2025. Judged by Kaveh Akbar (poetry), Rachel Khong (fiction), and Megan Stielstra (nonfiction).
Two new columns, Collaborative Criticism and Close Reads are now open year-round!
We are open for Funny Women and Prose and Poetry Book Reviews submissions year-round.
(Reminder, annual Rumpus Members can submit their work in any genre all year long.) |
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Reader Support Keeps The Rumpus Going! |
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Founded in 2009 in San Francisco, CA and now based in Asheville, NC with readers and editors all over the US and abroad, The Rumpusis one of the longest-running independent online literary and culture magazines. Our mostly volunteer-run magazine strives to be a platform for risk-taking voices and writing that might not find a home elsewhere. We lift up new voices alongside those of more established writers readers already know and love. Often, we are an emerging writer's first notable publication, which is something we’re really proud of. We believe that literature builds community—and if reading The Rumpus makes you feel more connected, please show your support! Our Membership and subscription programs along with tax-deductible donations made to The Rumpus through our fiscal sponsor, Fractured Atlas, help keep us going and brings us closer to sustainability.
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