A new literary magazine created by freshman writers at the University of Iowa, *Ink Lit Mag*, will hold a reading at Prairie Lights Wednesday.
by JULIA JESSEN
julia-jessen@uiowa.edu
The collaborators of *Ink Lit Mag* wants to separate their literary magazine from the pack of others in the genre found in Iowa City and on the University of Iowa campus.
In their reading at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Prairie Lights, 15 S. Dubuque St., the students plan to expose their voices to the ears of the writing community as they read from the first issue.
“We want to be a teaching magazine,” said freshman Michael Collier, a co-editor-in-chief of *Ink Lit Mag*. “The members of Ink and the people who submit their writing to *Ink* sort of want it for the experience of submitting to a literary review and being part of the whole ordeal.”
Danny Khalastchi, the assistant director of the UI’s new undergraduate certificate in writing, said he first brought up the idea of a literary magazine to members of the Iowa Writers Living Learning Community at the beginning of the fall 2011 semester and discovered a student interest.
Funding for *Ink Lit Mag* came from a donation by the Magid family. The gift also created the Frank N. Magid Undergraduate Writing Center Fund in the UI College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
Members of the group chose to make the magazine open only to freshmen and alumni of the Iowa Writers Living Learning Community.
The magazine will also include work and advice from an established writer in each issue. UI alumnus and poet Marvin Bell contributed a poem and did an interview for the first edition.
The editors of *Ink* said that this interaction with people at the beginning of their writing career sets the magazine apart from other literary magazines on campus.
“I think that our magazine is really helpful to people of all writing abilities and all writing backgrounds, and that’s what makes our magazine truly special,” said freshman co-editor-in-chief, Rachel Gosch.
The editors looked for pieces that had interesting messages or themes that might not have been explored in other literary magazines as they put together the first issue of *Ink Lit Mag*.
Some of the topics include stories of soldiers, pieces about time travel, and essays about new college experiences.
“I just think it’s a unique blend,” Gosch said. “We were looking for material that has something new to say.”
The magazine was started from the ground up without a blueprint for the production of a literary magazine. The widespread student participation created some challenges for the young writers.
“The energy was palpable — they tuned what could have been an adversity into something that made them all better writers and readers,” Khalastchi said. “They turned that challenge into something that made Ink what it is today.”
Creative director and co-editor-in-chief Sevy Perez said that there are numerous reasons to read *Ink Lit Mag*.
“If you enjoy reading, pick up *Ink*. If you like design, pick up *Ink*. If you like to smile or laugh, pick up *Ink*. If you want to be pleasantly surprised, pick up *Ink*,” he said. “You never know what you’re missing out on unless you pick up a copy of *Ink*. We’ve got a lot to share with the world.”
