Q: Describe what you publish in 25 characters or less.
A: fresh, wonderful, weird
Q: What other current publications (or publishers) do you admire most?
A: We admire publications, and publishers, that are committed to innovative or intellectual or challenging or humorous work from the present and from the past. That means our aesthetic is as informed by the reissues published by NYRB Press and Persephone Books as it is by work that appears in the pages of Granta, The Paris Review, Carolina Quarterly, Gettysburg Review, Fence, Lapham's, Public Domain Review, and others. We greatly admire university-based journals that have not only survived but flourished in an age of shrinking readership: Gulf Coast, AQR, MQR, the Southern Review, our neighbors Ninth Letter and Sou'wester. Lastly, we admire journals that thrive online, like The Collagist, Nashville Review, Shenandoah, and others.
Q: If you publish writing, who are your favorite writers? If you publish art, who are your favorite artists?
A: Our favorite writers are those we haven't even discovered yet, who will surprise and delight us with their work when we come across it in the submission queue. We've had that experience with writers like Uzodinma Okehi, whose first book, Over for Rockwell, was published by Short Flight/Long Drive Books in 2015 but was new to us. As for all-time favorites, we're fans of Hilary Mantel, Charles Portis, Edward P. Jones, Jack Pendarvis (yes, we love humor), Penelope Fitzgerald, Joy Williams, Toni Morrison, Tom Drury...the list goes on and on.
Q: What sets your publication apart from others that publish similar material?
A: Being based in Central Illinois, we are born of the prairie and take, in particular, to Midwestern-spirited voices that are, nonetheless, saying something new (though we're certainly not geographically limited in scope). That means we gravitate toward the plainspoken and impactful and honest, and also the weird and wonderful and funny and ironic. As a Canadian-American, I'm also keenly interested in looking for international voices that nonetheless embody that Midwestern spirit--that are honest, impactful, real, and enjoyable to read.
Q: What is the best advice you can give people who are considering submitting work to your publication?
A: The same advice you get from every journal: read our issues. Spend time with us. Follow us on Instagram and Twitter. Get an idea of the flavor of the work we publish. Keep in mind that, with non-fiction, in particular, we are looking for creative non-fiction rather than academic work (though we do love a well-placed footnote).
Q: How much do you want to know about the person submitting to you?
A: Previous publication credits matter when they are relevant to the work we publish at Bluestem (if your work was selected for Best of the Net or BASS won a Pushcart or an O. Henry or an award from a literary magazine, or if you publish in journals whose work we admire, of course we want you to tell us! Especially if you're female-identifying--please don't be afraid to brag.) On the other hand, we love to discover new writers who've never published before. We definitely want to brag on you if this is your first publication. These are all notes to include in the cover letter, and we do care about them--especially the latter. We don't care, however, for claims such as "X has published fiction in over 100 venues," or for synopses of the work you're submitting. This is all to say, yes, we do read cover letters, because they give us a fairly good sense of how familiar you are both with our journal and with publishing, as a whole.
Q: What additional evaluations, if any, does a piece go through before it is accepted?
A: Each submission is read by at least three readers, and sometimes more. The editor of each genre then looks at all the comments and makes the decision based on the sensibilities of the majority of the readers. If the responses are divided, then we discuss our reasoning until we reach a decision. Editors are encouraged to argue in favor of works they fall in love with.
Q: What is a day in the life of an editor like for you?
A: Because many of our editors balance academic jobs with their own writing and editorial duties, each day is very different from the last. Some days are teaching-heavy. Ideally, most of us try to write each day. Bluestem happens, often, in our homes or the quiet of our offices, where we have the time and space to read. Occasionally, however, Bluestem happens in the form of editorial meetings with student readers, where editors have the chance to discuss work we're considering for the journal or advocate for work that they particularly enjoyed. Each mode of reading and discussion allows for different insights into submitted work.
Q: How important do you feel it is for publishers to embrace modern technologies?
A: In two words: very important. Over the past several years, Bluestem has moved from mail to online submissions. Nowadays, most of our focus is online. We've also found new audiences through social media, especially Instagram. We have great respect for print media and tradition, but also feel that it's necessary at this stage to use whatever form of media best reaches our audience.
Q: Do you nominate work you've published for any national or international awards?
A: Yes! We nominate for the Pushcart and Best of the Net, and may yet widen our pool of nominations.