New Voices Editorial Experience

Although there were more submissions to go through for New Voices than there were for Dust and Fire, I thought that the elimination process was a lot quicker than it was for Dust and Fire. That could be because students in the class were given the option to reread rejected manuscripts for a second opinion. Initially I did not choose that option, but I ended up reading through at least one or two No packets in order to help save a few poems and short stories from elimination. I found that I enjoyed a few of them upon reading them for a second time.

While reading through prose submissions, I found that there were a lot of fantasy stories, some fairly grounded in reality with extraordinary characters and events while others were set in other worlds inhabited by creatures like centaurs and elves and other mythical beings that often confused and amused me all at once. Fantasy is not exactly my cup of tea, but then again I am just one reader without complete devotion to any specific genre. I also had to keep in mind that these are young writers who are just starting to get their feet wet with writing poems and short stories.

I had some trouble adjusting to the genres. Most submissions were fantasy, horror or suspense, and a few even bordered on noire fiction. I was impressed with the level of creativity that these writers utilized in their pieces. However, I was a little disappointed that there were no creative nonfiction pieces--again, my personal preference is speaking out for I tend to read a lot of nonfiction these days.

Overall I had a bit more fun with New Voices. It took me back to the books I used to read in high school and also the stuff I used to write about in high school. I had to switch back into the teenage mindset in order to get into the mood and become more open-minded about the pieces I was reading.