August 2017
By Sandra Tyler, Editor-in-Chief
Writing from the woods of New Hampshire in the early morning when the lake is like glass. August is our WTP hiatus, so catching up on my own writing (sort of) and reading of books too long piled by my bedside.
July marked a month of interviews with some artists working in unusual mediums: Eduardo Terranova, who paints with precious metals on burlap, and Agnieszka Gyzl, silicone caulking on canvas. Site reviews include those of versatile artist Joy Munt and prolific writer Wally Swist, author of over twenty collections of poetry. There is also a site review of Word Tango—worth a look for any writers seeking not only workshops but community. As Emily Jaeger writes, “One challenge of online communities is creating a warm, welcoming environment in the absence of a physical meeting. Word Tango, which offers remote writing workshops and an online community for fiction and genre writers, is not revolutionary in its concept. Where Word Tango does stand out is in their considering the writing community not only from the perspective of what can be taught, but from how the members can support one other and share in opportunity.”
Speaking of our terrifically talented features editor: Emily is leaving us next month, but for a teaching fellowship at Colgate—well deserved. She is outstanding in her insights as well as her writing, and I know she will prove a memorable teacher.
We are, therefore, seeking a new features editor. Rather, a writer or writers; anyone interested in writing for WTP please contact me. This would primarily be interviewing WTP contributors and also website and possibly exhibition reviews, but I’m always open to any ideas you may have.
Other news:
July 31 was also supposed to mark the closing of our WTP contest deadline. Toward the end of the month we had a nice uptick in submissions, but to make this a truly fair competition, we will be extending it through October. In subsequent years as we make this an annual event and the WTP contests become anticipated, artists and writers hopefully will submit sooner rather than later.
I’ve also been trying to start up an art correspondent series—writers from various cities reporting back to WTP on local art scenes. Right now, I’m especially interested in covering Los Angeles; New York City; Provincetown, Massachusetts; and Chicago. Art correspondents would be issued their own business cards, which would help to facilitate dialogues, especially with gallery curators. The idea is not only to bring to our readers images and insight on exhibitions they otherwise must miss, but also to spread the word about WTP—you meet an artist whose work you admire, give them a card and encourage them to submit their work.
You do not have to be a stupendous writer—you do need to be frequenting art exhibitions. That’s what editors (i.e. me) are here for, to hone what you bring to the WTP table. So if you’re at all interested, email me at editor@thewoventalepress.net.
Enjoy this last month of summer!