"One of My Favorite Things is When We Are a First Publication for a Writer." A Chat With Tara Laskowski of Smokelong Quarterly
Tara Laskowski has been the editor of Smokelong Quarterly since 2010. The online journal only publishes flash fiction, meaning short stories of 1,000 words or less. It publishes one story a week, as well as a quarterly electronic journal that includes the weekly stories and others. Smokelong gets its name from a descriptive, if exceedingly outdated, way to think of the form--the idea that flash fiction stories are just long enough to get the reader through a cigarette. It was coined back in the day when most writers smoked. What would be the modern-day equivalent? Smoothie-long? Not quite as catchy.
Laskowski writes a lot of flash fiction herself (www.taralaskowski.com). She earned her MFA in creative writing (fiction) from George Mason University in 2006 and published a chapbook-length collection of stories, Modern Manners for Your Inner Demons, with Matter Press in 2012. Her full-length collection of stories, Bystanders, will come out next spring from the Santa Fe Writers Project.
Here she answers some questions about working for Smokelong.
Interview by Christine Junge
I've been editor since 2010. SmokeLong has been around since 2003. You're right--it is pretty time consuming and there's no financial payoff. I don't think most editors are in it for the money (or the fame, none of that either!) But even so, there are some pretty decent perks to being an editor. For one, you get to read a lot and so you kind of know what's out there, what the trends are—and how to make your own writing more unique or fresh. The other big benefit, I think, is getting to meet a lot of people. We get to interact with a lot of writers and editors and that leads to networking opportunities; conference, panel or reading invitations; and occasionally free beer.
For me, the best part is finding a story in the slush pile that really shines, and knowing we're providing writers and artists a place to showcase their work. That is very gratifying. Last week, for example, we were working with an author whose story we really loved but thought it could be even better with a little revision. We don't get to work with authors that closely very often because of time, but it's really nice when we do. And when we accepted the piece, she sent me this really great note thanking us for the feedback. That was really satisfying and it's what makes all the unpaid work and time worthwhile.
What do you look for in submissions?
Something that surprises me. Something that jumps out of the queue and slaps me across the cheek. Mostly, that's language for me. I love surprising turns of phrases. I'm a sucker for that perfect unique description of something that just nails it. I like really good dialogue that is “speaking” on more than one level. I like characters that aren't perfect and break stereotypes.
Our staff at SmokeLong is made up of a very diverse group of editors as far as taste. What they have in common is they are all savvy and smart readers, and I totally trust their judgment. We have editors that love narrative flash, and editors drawn to really experimental stuff. We have editors that love in-your-face dialogue and raw subject matter, and those who want poetic, careful lyricism. One of our editors told me recently that she thinks it can be hard to crack us sometimes because your story has to appeal to "more than one set of aesthetic preferences." What results, I think, what bubbles to the top, is a pretty diverse and kick-ass set of stories. Add to the mix our guest editors, who we choose for their varied tastes and tendencies, and you never know what you might get when reading a SmokeLong story. I like that. Otherwise, it would get boring.
What writers do you/the magazine staff particularly love?
We pretty much will publish anything that Sherrie Flick, Randall Brown or Kathy Fish will write. Otherwise, like I said above, we all like different things and even then, we continue to surprise ourselves. One of my favorite things is when we are a first publication for a writer. I love love love giving a new writer that first “yes.” It's the best feeling.
For me, the best part is finding a story in the slush pile that really shines...
How many submissions do you get, and how many stories do you publish?
We average about 70 submissions a week. So if each quarter we get about 1,200 submissions, we usually publish about 20 stories an issue. Our acceptance rate in Duotrope is about 1-2 percent.
What's a surefire way to get rejected?
The only surefire way to get rejected is to send us a poem. Or a story longer than 1000 words.
Do you have a favorite short short that was published in Smokelong? What about in general?
One of my favorite short shorts of all time (it's also been called a prose poem) is “The Colonel” by Carolyn Forche. As far as SLQ, I've got many. Three that come to mind immediately: “Belly of a Fish” by Rachel Mangini, “PTSD” by Terence Lane, “Dive” by Dawn West.
Tell me about the Kathy Fish fellowship and writer in residency. When did these last run? When do you plan to run them again?
The fellowship honors Kathy Fish, a former editor here at SmokeLong, a fantastic writer herself, and a continuing champion of new and emerging writers. The winner is considered a “writer in residence” at SmokeLong for four quarterly issues. Each issue includes one flash by the Fellowship winner. The winner of the Fellowship also receives $500.00. Fellows have the opportunity to work with SmokeLong staff and participate in online writing workshops.
I won the fellowship in 2009 and afterward became editor. Most of the fellows tend to stay on as staff editors after their tenure, which I think is a nice bonus for them and for us. I cannot say enough about it—it really helped me in my writing and my career. I worked with [Flash Fiction Writer, Editor, Publisher, Writing Professor] Randall Brown a lot when I was a fellow, and he is an amazing writer and editor. I don't think I'd be writing and publishing flash like I do if not for his guidance and friendship.
The fellowship is offered as funding permits. We are hoping to bring it back sometime next year if we can, but stay tuned!
Anything else you'd like our readers to know?
Just that we recently redesigned our web site after 12 years, and we are pretty proud of it. We were able to do so because of generous contributors to our Kickstarter campaign last fall.
Also, you can sign up for our mailing list on our homepage or via this link: http://eepurl.com/bkyV_D if you want new stories delivered to your inbox each week.
Christine Junge earned her MFA from Lesley University. She currently lives in California, where she finds herself thinking about writing far more often than she actually gets pen on paper.
