Many Mountains Moving:
The Structure of a Small Literary Magazine
Jessica Perciante
Undergraduate
University of Northern Colorado
E-mail: perc8899@blue.unco.edu
After two and a half years of English instruction at an institution of higher education, I decided it would behoove me to do an internship, as it would assist me in my goal of entering the business of publishing. I felt I was entering unexplored territory, not because I was the first English major ever to be an intern, but because many of my fellow English majors wanted to be teachers and, therefore, were student teaching instead. I asked my poetry professor for advice, and he recommended Many Mountains Moving, a literary magazine of which he was a contributing editor. Within days, I had mailed my resume, talked with the editor in chief, and received a summer internship. By the end of the summer of 2003, I had successfully completed the internship, which I could now add to my resume. I also decided never to work at a literary magazine.
Perhaps other small literary magazines are different in regard to these factors, although I know most literary magazines, unless they are connected to a wealthy benefactor or a university, struggle with both timely publication and money. Perhaps some are organized to the point where everybody has a well-defined job with set hours and set expectations. Many Mountains Moving is not that organized, for several reasons. One reason is the scarcity of funds. This makes the editor rely almost exclusively on volunteer labor, and the lack of a paycheck means less accountability. I met the poetry editor during my first day as an intern, and I never saw her again. Even though the other interns and I read poetry submissions frequently for her, we had no way of communicating with her except via e-mail. Employees who are paid keep erratic hours because they are part-time and low-wage. Communication and, therefore, organization are difficult with the host of unreliable volunteers and part-time employees.
The atmosphere at the magazine also is unorganized, albeit inviting. Operations are run out of the editor's home in a reading room with couches and pillows and a living room that has been converted to an office. The living room/office has bins for mail and slots for employees, but submissions inevitably were mixed up in the relaxing chaos of the reading room. On several hot summer days, my fellow intern fell asleep while reading on one of the couches. The lack of desks and other office paraphernalia encouraged low productivity and disorder.
Along with the lack of organization at Many Mountains Moving, or probably partly because of it, there was a lack of deadlines. Some of my annoyance in this area is due to my own bias, or perhaps my own preference, since I am used to the fast pace of a newspaper. Deadlines are always present and influence the production of a newspaper, and while I realize a magazine has a much different timetable, the apparent lack of deadlines at Many Mountains Moving was frustrating. During the course of the summer, I asked several employees when the next issue was scheduled to publish. No one had a clear idea. The editor had an answer, but it was vague. I realize that not having enough funds to publish or the manpower to finish often hinders the magazine. But I wanted to see the results of my work, and I never did. The dubious nature of deadlines at a literary magazine means that writers whose work is accepted for the magazine might not see it published for several years.
As mentioned, both disorganization and a slow publication timetable can be attributed, at least partly, to the need for more money. Many Mountains Moving is a non-profit organization, which means it tries to stay afloat through donations and grants. Unfortunately, grants for publishing are hard to come by because, for some reason, organizations don't like to give money to people who print things. So Many Mountains Moving tries to obtain grants for other reasons, like hosting writing workshops or poetry readings. Much of our time as interns was spent researching and applying for grants, and much of the regular employees' time is spent doing the same. Unlike for-profit publishing ventures, which often have a separate business and advertising department, the editors at the magazine are the ones raising money. The editor can't always take a salary when money is especially tight. Only recently has the magazine begun to explore the possibility of advertising, but since it is non-profit, the ads must relate to writing and literature. The editor does not really want to have advertising in the magazine, but it has become a necessity.
All of these negatives about the magazine exist in spite of the fact that Many Mountains Moving is a highly regarded publication that has featured many well-known writers, including Allen Ginsberg and Robert Bly. The people who work at the magazine are genuinely nice and care deeply about the arts and literature. My hope is that, someday, Many Mountains Moving will become as successful financially as it is critically.
Academic Exchange Extra invites reader responses to any writings in this issue--especially articles advancing the scholarly debate of issues raised.
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Citation Reference: AE-Extra. Available Online. [URL: < >. Created: 27 June 2004. Updated: --. Accessed: ] |