Editor Interview: Intrepidus Ink

Intrepidlode

Welcome to intrepid culture...
Intrepidlode: Our name and brand of storytelling.
Intrepidlode is fiction centered on an alarmingly individual's courageous pursuit of a meaningful goal.
It defines situations and people who step forward immediately, when stepping back would be easier—no resistance in the moment.
Overcoming, inspiring fiction.
That’s intrepidlode.

An acceptance is a combination of brand matching, great storytelling, timing, and more.
We celebrate great storytelling, and we love when authors "get us."
Intrepidlode defines our stories--stories of alarmingly individual characters with specific goals who take the reader on an amazing journey. We love emotional, overcoming, and inspiring stories.
Our stories are free to read--start there. If you understand those, you'll understand intrepidlode. :-)

Many authors try to match a magazine’s creative vision only to face rejection. That's why we've focused our brand and named our stories. We want to define who we are. Intrepidlode describes the expectations we hold for stories. Read the essay on our website (intrepidusink.com) titled, "What's In a Name: Introducing Intrepidlode," under words > blog for more details.

We love cover letters, but don't read them until a story's end (the story tells us everything about the author's storytelling excellence). I often explore the platforms and stories of authors we're considering publishing.

We use a multi-step process to decide on story publications and award nominations.

Most stories arrive ready to go, but we lightly polish every story before publishing.
Occasionally, we will ask an author for a rewrite, but these stories ultimately involve collaboration (developmental editing) to bring to publication, so they are rare.
My editorial style involves asking questions, sharing insights, and standing back, allowing authors time to make decisions. Authors approve final edits because the editorial process is dynamic, not one-sided. But I also don't work off the premise, "This is your story, dear author, so anything you say goes."
(Gasp--what?)
Can we agree that it's often challenging for an author to see gaps in their story?
We're here to help, not do battle.
Allison and I efficiently spot problems so writers can fix them. (And we're your biggest fans, too!)
Check out what authors say about us on our website. :-)

We nominate stories for our own prize, the Intrepid Award, the InkMark Award for small/medium publications, BOTN, and the Pushcart Prize.