At CNN, Leah Asmelash reports on the recent spate of closures of literary magazines, from Tin House to The Believer, and how some magazines formerly tied to universities are planning to continue publishing without that support. Despite the fact that most lit mags have not been profitable in the long-term, they were once seen as a good investment for universities, especially after World War II. Today, new magazines are experimenting with crowdfunding. “Literary magazines need to change, they need to reflect the era we’re living in,” said Elissa Schappell, cofounder of Tin House. “But I don’t think anything is ever going to replace that experience that happens between the reader and the text.”
Tonight at 8pm, McNally Jackson Books in New York City is hosting Sasha Fletcher and Hilary Leichter in conversation. The pair will discuss Fletcher’s new book, Be Here to Love Me at the End of the World.
Yesterday on her Substack, Vicky Ward wrote a post responding to a piece on the New Yorker’s website. The New Yorker’s Isaac Chotiner investigated why Ward’s reporting on allegations of sexual abuise against Jeffery Epstein was not published in 2003, an account Ward disputes.
In the New Inquiry, ML Kejera writes about memes that people see in their sleep or that are inspired by dreams (known as “planks”). The dream meme forum r/thomastheplankengine collects these otherworldly visions, which Kejera appreciates, he writes, because “they are the best representations of objects brought from the collective unconscious into reality.” Kejera compares planks to early-twentieth century surrealism, noting, “While true planks might be the ultimate modern manifestation of Breton’s surrealism, most members of r/thomastheplankengine would not wear the Bretonian label.”
The University of Illinois Press has joined the Scholarly Publishing Collective, a platform hosted by Duke University Press to house journals and fulfill digital access to the collection.
Next Thursday, 192 Books and Paula Cooper Gallery will host Nicole Rudick for a discussion of her new book, What Is Now Known Was Once Only Imagined: An (Auto)biography of Niki de Saint Phalle with Ruth Franklin. Attendance at the virtual event at 7pm Eastern is free.