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Editor Interview: Punk Monk Magazine

Describe what you publish in 25 characters or less.

Femme. Punk. Femmepunk.

What other current publications (or publishers) do you admire most?

Trash Wonderland, Roi Faineant, Sage Cigarettes, Manic Pixie Magazine, Bullshit Lit, Angel Rust Magazine, Weird Girl Magazine, Sad Girl Review.

If you publish writing, who are your favorite writers? If you publish art, who are your favorite artists?

Chris Kraus, Assata Shakur, Kathy Acker, Joy Harjo, Elizabeth Smart- see magazine guidelines for more.

What sets your publication apart from others that publish similar material?

We care about ongoing relationships with writers. We don't care about bios/degrees/five dollar words. We give sincere, succinct rejection letters that don't create false hope or make you go, "Geez, if you think it's so great, then why not publish it?!?!?!"

What is the best advice you can give people who are considering submitting work to your publication?

Read. Guidelines. Thoroughly.
Also: take real care to look at the author list we cite. Do you know most of the names, or just a couple? Have you read my (C.E. Hoffman's) work? All these will be very strong clues as to whether or not you're picking up what we're putting down.

Describe the ideal submission.

"I wish I wrote that!"

What do submitters most often get wrong about your submissions process?

Fiction submissions: We still get a ton of dudely dudes sending us dudely stuff we do NOT want.
Poetry submissions: We still get a ton of showoffy poems using five dollar words- which we do NOT want.
Art submissions: No AI-assisted/generated, please!

How much do you want to know about the person submitting to you?

No bios needed. By all means say hey. Definitely mention if you read/dig Punk Monk. Definitely mention if we've published you before. (We've been around since 2012 and may not remember you!)
Prove you're human.
That's about it.

If you publish writing, how much of a piece do you read before making the decision to reject it?

All of it. I will admittedly skim fiction subs that are clearly not abiding by the guidelines (or have basic failings in grammar/syntax), and same too with poems with those damn five dollar words!

What additional evaluations, if any, does a piece go through before it is accepted?

I adore my volunteer readers, but to be totally honest, I usually make all the decisions myself.

What is a day in the life of an editor like for you?

CE:
(sits in front of laptop)
Been a while since I logged into the Punk Monk email!
(logs in)
Wow! So many submissions!
(reads some)
Wow! Such awesome submissions!
(reads more)
Wow! People still don't read the guidelines!
(accepts, rejects, schedules publications, etc)

How much do you edit an accepted piece prior to publication?

Barely, if at all. We'd rather reject your work outright than tamper with it.

Do you nominate work you've published for any national or international awards?

We (sometimes) nominate for Best of the Net but we (sometimes) forget.

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