CO-EDITORS-IN-CHIEF MELISSA ROTERT & KRISTIN HOULIHAN
Knowledge, connection, and growth are key to the Epistemic Literary mission. Through our themed issues I hope, more than anything, to create conversations through poetry, fiction, and now, creative nonfiction. Diversity of voice, experience, and culture are so important to what we do. And through our first issue we’ve already made amazing friends and had conversations with people all over the world.
With this second issue, we’ve added an editor of creative nonfiction after the submissions from issue one made it apparent this is a missing piece of the conversation. Work that is, perhaps, even more intimate. I am so enthusiastic about the work Genalea is curating for our Happy Place issue.
Besides putting together a cohesive anthology of beautiful work, our focus this first year is on building membership, supporting our contributors, and finding the best ways to make our magazine accessible. Inspired by a close friend who can only experience literature through audio, I brought the idea to Kristin to include audio recordings of each piece in this second issue. It was an easy decision for us both. These recordings are brought to our readers through the voices of the authors, their colleagues, and even our editors. Our contributing writers have been beyond supportive of this new initiative and I truly hope other digital magazines follow suit.
As for our theme, when Kristin proposed Happy Place as the subject, I didn’t know what to expect. We have pieces that range from joyful moments and heart-warming relationships to difficult losses and solace found in the darkest of spaces. These works will break your heart and heal it again.
Please join us in celebrating each beautiful entry. And join us @EpistemicLit on Twitter/X as we highlight each author and their successes.
– Melissa Rotert, Co-founder and EIC, Fiction