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Midwestern Gothic: Spring 2015
Issue 17 features fiction from Sara Crow, Ben Hoffman, Matt Hurley, Anna Lea Jancewicz, Leonard Kress, Lisa Mecham, Todd Mercer, Jillian Merrifield, Linda Niehoff, Nick Ostdick, Rachel Proctor May, Corey Mertes, Rachel Richardson, Alysia Sawchyn, Wendy A. Skinner, Sam Slaughter, Lindsey Steffes, and Greg Walklin. Poetry from James Barnett, Scott Beal, Randy Brown, Lisa J. Cihlar, Lee Colin Thomas, Gary Dop, Ryan Dzelkalns, Chris Haven, Henry Heidger, Marianna Hofer, Jesse Janeshek, Elizabeth Kerper, Charlotte Pence, and Marcus Wicker. Midwestern Gothic is a quarterly print literary journal out of Ann Arbor, Michigan, dedicated to featuring work about or inspired by the Midwest, by writers who live or have lived here. Midwestern Gothic aims to collect the very best in writing inspired by the Midwest.
135 pages, Paperback
First published March 28, 2015
1 person is currently reading
About the author
Jeff Pfaller
24 books43 followersJeff is an award-winning photographer and has visited all 7 continents, all 50 U.S. states in the U.S, and over 20 countries. He funds his wanderlust and parkaholic habits as a content strategist. He lives in Chicago with his wife, three children, and rotating menagerie of animals. His latest project, Dark Skies, is a landscape photography book celebrating national parks and rare moments in the night sky, captured after the crowds have gone home.
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
April 2, 2015
****EDITOR'S COMMENTARY****
The Spring Issue of Midwestern Gothic (http://amzn.to/1CciQU1) marks our entry into Year 4 of the journal, since we launched issue 1 in spring of 2011, this particular time of year serves as an anniversary of sorts and a marker of how far we’ve come. When folks ask at bookfairs if we’re new, I typically tell them that we’re not old, but not new either. I’m not sure when I’ll stop thinking of ourselves as a new entry to the lit scene, but it’s probably fast approaching.
It’s also interesting to me how different trends emerge as we put an issue together, and the trend that stood out to me this time around was how much short, short fiction we got. In a way, this almost feels like a flash fiction issue in that we received and selected more compact, powerful pieces of narrative than usual. One of my favorites from the issue was “Psychiatrist” by Corey Mertes, a short fiction about a strained relationship including a titular drinking game, which culminates in a pointed question designed to reveal a marital affair. The story examines the lead up to this moment from which there’s no going back and the fallout afterword in a way that perfectly captures the tension, second guessing, and “no going back” moments associated with decisions that come to define people. Here’s an excerpt:
She asks more questions. Rob replenishes drinks after everyone changes places for the third time. Allie thinks: Sometimes they tell the truth, other times they lie; sometimes they get up and move, and sometimes they don’t. Once in a while someone says “Psychiatrist,” but just as often they remain silent. She notices Suzanne can’t stop eating snack food and wonders if it is part of the game.
They change places after a lie, she notes, but not always—they move after the truth sometimes too. Where do they move to? Damn it! She hasn’t paid any attention to that. Now she’s really confused.
“Don’t be such a prude, Allie,” Greg says, after they’d been playing the game for half an hour. “Open it up a little.”
Everyone is laughing and having a good time except her. She tries to play along, to act the good hostess despite everything. Rule 6: Don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone. She asks Kristina when she lost her virginity, Andrew how many men he’s slept with. His response—fewer than fifty—evokes a selfcongratulatory chuckle from Travis, to his left, “Psychiatrist,” and then howls of laughter as everyone changes places again. Allie’s frustration escalates with each round. Why doesn’t Rob sense her alienation and come to her aid?
Buy a copy: http://amzn.to/1CciQU1
The Spring Issue of Midwestern Gothic (http://amzn.to/1CciQU1) marks our entry into Year 4 of the journal, since we launched issue 1 in spring of 2011, this particular time of year serves as an anniversary of sorts and a marker of how far we’ve come. When folks ask at bookfairs if we’re new, I typically tell them that we’re not old, but not new either. I’m not sure when I’ll stop thinking of ourselves as a new entry to the lit scene, but it’s probably fast approaching.
It’s also interesting to me how different trends emerge as we put an issue together, and the trend that stood out to me this time around was how much short, short fiction we got. In a way, this almost feels like a flash fiction issue in that we received and selected more compact, powerful pieces of narrative than usual. One of my favorites from the issue was “Psychiatrist” by Corey Mertes, a short fiction about a strained relationship including a titular drinking game, which culminates in a pointed question designed to reveal a marital affair. The story examines the lead up to this moment from which there’s no going back and the fallout afterword in a way that perfectly captures the tension, second guessing, and “no going back” moments associated with decisions that come to define people. Here’s an excerpt:
She asks more questions. Rob replenishes drinks after everyone changes places for the third time. Allie thinks: Sometimes they tell the truth, other times they lie; sometimes they get up and move, and sometimes they don’t. Once in a while someone says “Psychiatrist,” but just as often they remain silent. She notices Suzanne can’t stop eating snack food and wonders if it is part of the game.
They change places after a lie, she notes, but not always—they move after the truth sometimes too. Where do they move to? Damn it! She hasn’t paid any attention to that. Now she’s really confused.
“Don’t be such a prude, Allie,” Greg says, after they’d been playing the game for half an hour. “Open it up a little.”
Everyone is laughing and having a good time except her. She tries to play along, to act the good hostess despite everything. Rule 6: Don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone. She asks Kristina when she lost her virginity, Andrew how many men he’s slept with. His response—fewer than fifty—evokes a selfcongratulatory chuckle from Travis, to his left, “Psychiatrist,” and then howls of laughter as everyone changes places again. Allie’s frustration escalates with each round. Why doesn’t Rob sense her alienation and come to her aid?
Buy a copy: http://amzn.to/1CciQU1
August 20, 2015
Of course I loved it; I was in it! Plus there are several well-written, creative, compelling, and bizarre stories in this collection. There's also some good poetry, though I wouldn't consider myself well-read in that genre.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews