Steven B. Rosenfeld is a retired New York lawyer who has been writing for 40 years and began writing short fiction in 2015. His stories have been published in The City Key, Inigo Online, Jewish Fiction.net, Reflex Fiction, Good Works Review, and Flatbush Review. An earlier version of “Amy’s Story,” the piece published by Jewish Fiction.net in September 2017, received an Honorable Mention in the 2016 Short Story America Prize contest.
Risky, Volume 4, Issue 2
Though the two places don’t often go hand in hand, TJ Neathery spent his childhood between Texas and Albania. He writes fiction and received his MFA from Oregon State University. Among his recent publications are stories in Front Porch Review and Amarillo Bay. He also writes a weekly Artist of the Week feature for oncoloradosprings.com. Currently, he writes in Colorado Springs, CO and works in nonprofit communications. Check out his website: www.tjneathery.com/author.
Ravi S. and the Tiger, Volume 4, Issue 2
Paul Mills has worked variously as an English teacher and newspaper subeditor in various countries including Spain, Lebanon, and China, but is currently based in the UK. His writing has appeared in The FT Magazine, The Lebanese Daily Star, and The Independent.
Slow fade, Volume 4, Issue 2
Claire Martin graduated from Columbia College Chicago in 2017, where she was a managing editor for the award winning literary magazine Hair Trigger, as well as the interview editor for its online counterpart, Hair Trigger 2.0. You can find her current fiction in Hair Trigger 40, Longshot Island, Ariel Chart, and in this summer’s upcoming issue release of Scarlet Leaf Review. These days, you can find her holed up with a camera somewhere along Lake Michigan.
The Hunter and the Home, Volume 4, Issue 2
Gloria DeVidas Kirchheimer is the author of a novel, Amalie in Orbit, and a short story collection, Goodbye, Evil Eye. Her work has been published in various magazines, including The Antioch Review, Arts & Letters, Kansas Quarterly, Lilith, New Letters, Carolina Quarterly, North American Review, Persimmon Tree, Hippocampus and others. Check out her website: http://www.gkirchheimer.com/
I Could Bake a Cherry Pie, Volume 4, Issue 2
Henry Hitz taught pre-school for 30 years in San Francisco and recently retired from 15 years of organizing parents in the Oakland public schools. He lives in Oakland with his wife, his son, and two sisters. He is treasurer of the California Writers Club Berkeley Branch. He has published stories in Cube Literary Magazine, Instructor Magazine, and Moonfish. His first novel, Tales of Monkeyman, won the Walter Van Tilburg Clark Prize. His novel White Knight was published in January 2016 by Wordrunner Press.
Turtle Bay, Volume 4, Issue 2 (Pushcart Nomination)
5 artists submitted 5 comics, 2 creative nonfiction writers submitted 2 creative nonfiction pieces, 30 writers submitted 33 pieces of fiction, and 34 poets submitted 136 poems.
Volume 4, Issue 2 will be available soon.
Describe your creative space. Do you work at home, in public spaces, etc.?
The space I dedicate to writing is a spare bedroom in my house that has had the bed replaced with a desk and a comfortable chair. I do, however, keep pencil and paper at hand when I’m out for recording snippets that I might use later.
What kind of materials do you use? Do you write by hand or type? What is your favorite writing utensil?
I do all of my fiction writing on my Mac. I find that I can work much more quickly this way to get first drafts down, especially when the ideas are flowing. Editing is easier this was as well. Nonetheless, I’ve kept a handwritten journal for more than three decades, and I have a favorite mechanical pencil that I reserve for this work.
What is your routine for writing?
I rise at an unholy hour on the weekends when the house is quiet so that I can enter the creative part of my mind undisturbed and let the work flow. I also always have a tall pitcher of iced tea— unsweetened, of course—beside me and I will usually finish it as I’m working. Generally, I can expect to get about three hours of work done before either the household wakes or my creativity is exhausted. I rarely try to do any creative writing during the week, though I often make copious notes then about whatever project I’m working on at the time.
How long have you been writing? When did you start writing?
I knew from an early age that I wanted to write, and I’ve been dedicated to it for my whole adult life. There were many years of apprentice work, and more than a decade passed between my first published short story and my second. But I seem to have found my voice through all of that effort and can reliably spin a tale that has a fair chance of being acceptable to an editor and finding its way into print.
Who is your intended, or ideal, audience? Who do you write for?
I try to write what would be termed literary fiction, so discerning adults willing to put some thought, patience, and effort into appreciating a piece of fiction would be my likely audience. I don’t know these people, though. I let myself be my audience; I write the kinds of things I want to read.
What inspires you to write? If you are blocked, what do you do?
I had several good mentors early in my writing life; that steered me onto the right course. And I’ve always loved to read, so the words seem to come easily to me. Of course, they still need polishing. I don’t tend to be blocked, or if I am, I don’t see it that way. I’m always thinking about stories and characters and how to develop them. In recent years my greatest inspiration is having found my great subject: the relationships between fathers and sons. I’ve written several dozen stories about this. I haven’t exhausted the subject yet.
What other things do you do besides writing? Do you dance or play golf, etc.?
For many years I could only squeeze my writing in between raising a family, earning a wage, and going to night school. But now that the children are gone and the debts are paid, I find myself bouncing grandchildren on my knee. I’ve also done a lot of running, a sport I only took up recently. No one was more amazed than I when I found myself crossing finish lines, including four marathons. Running has made several appearances in my stories. Other than that, you can generally find me in bookstores, libraries, or art museums.
What is your favorite part of the creative process?
When it all comes together, when the words are flowing into the ideas that get it all exactly right. Those moments are infrequent; generally I have to struggle over every word and sentence, but sometimes I fall into that perfect place.
What is your advice to aspiring writers?
Read widely and write ceaselessly. Don’t worry too much about things like grammar and punctuation. Find writers you like and read their stuff. Keep at it until you find your own voice, and never apologize. Only you can tell your stories.
Check out Paul’s work in Volume 4, Issue 1.
Describe your creative space. Do you work at home, in public spaces, etc.?
My desk faces a lovely view out my window, but my chair is uncomfortable. I should probably replace it, but I like that it matches the desk. It’s a classic case of style versus comfort.
What kind of materials do you use? Do you write by hand or type? What is your favorite writing utensil?
I do most of my writing on my 2010 MacBook Pro. I’m thinking of a younger, sleeker, lighter-weight model. Maybe she and I will venture out to coffee shops. I live in Los Angeles, so maybe people will see me typing away on my sleek, new laptop and assume I’m writing a screenplay. Maybe Jessica Chastain would play me.
What is your routine for writing?
Writing is generally agonizing for me, so I try to make it a routine like brushing my teeth or going to the gym. And I try to do it after those two things on most days, at least during the week.
How long have you been writing? When did you start writing?
I’m not one of those writers who say they can’t remember a time before they started writing. I do recall in the 1st grade I loved to pull out laminated images from magazines that were kept in a box in the classroom and dictating a story about those images to a teacher’s aide. I wrote for the student newspaper when I was in high school. That was followed by a dry spell when it comes to writing, except the sterile scholarly articles I published as a professor, which I don’t consider to be “real writing.” I missed having a job title after leaving my profession, so I started saying I was a writer. Then I had to live up to that title.
Who is your intended, or ideal, audience? Who do you write for?
I don’t necessarily have an intended audience when I sit down to write, but it’s a great feeling when people have a reaction to something I’ve published.
What inspires you to write? If you are blocked, what do you do?
Often I’m inspired by something I’ve read or some conversation sparks an idea. Then later something comes to me while I’m walking my dog or taking a shower or brushing my teeth. I’m a firm believer in the importance of good oral hygiene.
When I feel blocked — pretty much every time I sit down to write — I chew lots of gum. I don’t know if the gum helps with the writer’s block, but it satisfies my urge to get up to check what’s good to eat in my kitchen. I do lots of that too.
What other things do you do besides writing? Do you dance or play golf, etc.?
I’m playing in the genre of memoir so in a way I’m always writing. When I’m going somewhere with my daughter or talking with my mom on the phone, it’s all my life and that’s material.
What is your favorite part of the creative process?
I love bouncing ideas around and sharing work in progress with my writer friends.
What is your advice to aspiring writers?
Writing can be an isolating activity, so it’s nice to be part of a writers’ group that can provide camaraderie.
Check out Mara’s work in Volume 4, Issue 1.
Describe your creative space. Do you work at home, in public spaces, etc.?
I absolutely agree with Virginia Wolfe and have always carved out a room on my own. When the door is closed, LEAVE ME ALONE.
What kind of materials do you use? Do you write by hand or type? What is your favorite writing utensil?
I can’t imagine writing on anything else but a computer at this point. My handwriting long ago became illegible, even to me.
What is your routine for writing?
I try to write every morning, although I often lay in bed the early hours before sunrise thinking through my stories. Walks can also be very useful in puzzling out what comes next.
How long have you been writing? When did you start writing?
I always wanted to write, and participated in the poetry scene in Manhattan in the 1970s. Recently, I returned to writing prose.
Who is your intended, or ideal, audience? Who do you write for?
As an avid reader, my ideal writer is my fellow readers.
What inspires you to write? If you are blocked, what do you do?
I have a great writing group which inspires me and, when all else fails, I rely on prompts. I have now participated in NaNoWriMo twice and, as a result, have two novels in the works.
What other things do you do besides writing? Do you dance or play golf, etc.?
Yoga, biking, and hiking.
What is your favorite part of the creative process?
I always try to remember that the act of writing is the greatest joy. As Anne Lamott once said, publication is the crack but the true ecstasy is in process of creating.
What is your advice to aspiring writers?
Enjoy yourself!
Check out K.B.’s work in Volume 4, Issue 1.
The Magnolia Review 