News Archives – ZYZZYVA

ZYZZYVA and The Booksmith present Lockdown Lit @ Lunch

by ZYZZYVA

May 18, 2020

Posted on May 18, 2020 (May 14, 2020) by Zack Ravas

Lockdown Literature, a collective of 80+ authors with new books published during the COVID-19 crisis, will partner with The Booksmith, one of San Francisco’s oldest independent bookstores, and the literary magazine ZYZZYVA, to present “Lockdown Lit @ Lunch,” a series of midday conversations between contemporary writers. The first event will be held on Tuesday, May 19, at 2pm EDT, featuring Clare Beams (The Illness Lesson) and Rachel Vorona Cote (Too Much: How Victorian Constraints Still Bind Women Today). Events will be broadcast on Facebook Live (facebook.com/booksmith) and hosted by ZYZZYVA Managing Editor, Oscar Villalon. “There are so many great new […]

In Memoriam: Eavan Boland

by Kenneth Fields

May 6, 2020

Posted on May 6, 2020 (May 5, 2020) by Zack Ravas

(Image credit: Maura Hickey) There are depths we cannot fathom. In this long season of losses, many of us have felt and will feel ourselves dropped into these depths with the death of loved ones. This is how many of us feel about the death of my friend and colleague, the Irish poet, Eavan Boland. She was born in Dublin in 1944 to Frances Kelly, a noted Irish painter and Frederick H. Boland, a famous diplomat. As director of Stanford’s Creative Writing Program for 24 years, she combined her artistic and diplomatic skills to negotiate among fellows, lecturers, faculty, donors, […]

‘Child of Light’ by Madison Smartt Bell: Rolling Away the Stone

by Paul Wilner

April 15, 2020

Posted on April 15, 2020 (April 17, 2020) by Zack Ravas

Too many literary biographies are a waste of space–a cut-and-paste pastiche of previously published materials, random interviews, and unselectively edited quotes, put together in the apparent rush of getting from A to Zed and be done with things. The funeral is more important than what preceded it. Madison Smartt Bell largely avoids these obstacles in Child of Light (588 pages; Doubleday), his masterly new biography of Robert Stone, in which he adheres to the Joseph Conrad dictum that Stone liked to quote: “Fiction must justify itself in every line.’’ Bell is also the editor of The Eye You See With, […]

35th Anniversary Issue: Letter from the Editor

by Laura Cogan

April 13, 2020

Posted on April 13, 2020 (May 4, 2020) by Zack Ravas

ZYZZYVA Volume 36, #1, Spring 2020 (No. 118)

The following is Laura Cogan’s Letter from the Editor in our new 35th Anniversary Issue. You can purchase a copy of the new issue from our Shop page. Dear Reader, This year marks the centennial of women’s suffrage, and while it remains a source of national shame and outrage that we came by this expansion of voting rights so disgracefully late, it will nevertheless be natural for many to take the anniversary as a moment to celebrate how far we’ve come. But the passage of time has (or should have) also shifted our perspective and broadened our lens, so that […]

Shelter in Place Compatibility Quiz

by Christine Sneed

April 2, 2020

Posted on April 2, 2020 (April 1, 2020) by Zack Ravas

For this period of forced togetherness and self-quarantine, take this quiz to determine if you and your mate really are suited to spend so much time together. 1. Fill in the blank: I am a ________ person A. Dog B. Cat C. Horse D. Carp E. Squirrel 2. If you chose “carp,” you did so because A. It is a difficult word for your Uncle Jeff, the family bully, to pronounce B. You are indifferent to cats, dogs, and horses, and squirrels are imbeciles C. As an anagrammable word, it is subpar, but you’re crap at Boggle anyway D. Carp […]

Limited Time Offer: 3 Issues for $35

by ZYZZYVA

March 25, 2020

Posted on March 25, 2020 (April 13, 2020) by Zack Ravas

With our milestone 35th Anniversary issue shipping soon, the best way to ensure you promptly receive it is if you have a subscription. To make that much easier to do, we’re offering a special deal till this Sunday: Get our next three issues for only $35! The 35th Anniversary Issue features fiction by Bryan Washington, Lysley Tenorio, Kristen Iskandrian, and Peter Orner; poetry by Meg Hurtado Bloom, Troy Jollimore, and Jennifer Richter; nonfiction by Lauren Markham; an interview with Margaret Wilkerson Sexton; and much more. So be safe. Mind the six feet of distance.And get ready for a wonderful issue! […]

35th Anniversary Issue

by ZYZZYVA

March 23, 2020

Posted on March 23, 2020 (March 23, 2020) by ZYZZYVA

Our 35^th Anniversary Issue. Fiction: Bryan Washington, Lysley Tenorio, Elizabeth Reichert, Santiago José Sánchez, Mark Chiusano, Peter Orner, and Kristen Iskandrian. Nonfiction: Lauren Markham, Dave Madden. Interview: Margaret Wilkerson Sexton talks to John McMurtrie. Poetry: Meg Hurtado Bloom, Lisa Higgs, Troy Jollimore, Debora Kuan, Jennifer Richter, Dujie Tahat, John Sibley Williams, and Emma Winsor Wood. Art: Anne Siems. You can purchase a copy of No. 118 here, or order a subscription to ZYZZYVA now. […]

New Book Releases to Read During Shelter in Place

by ZYZZYVA Staff

March 18, 2020

Posted on March 18, 2020 (March 18, 2020) by Zack Ravas

Readers and friends, we hope you are staying safe during these trying times. We are all adjusting to the societal changes that are taking place due to the impact of COVID-19. It occurs to us that many new book releases have not received the coverage they would have during a normal news cycle, and their authors’ book tours have been cancelled due to safety concerns. As such, we thought we would collect a list of such books here in the hopes of giving them their due attention, with a reminder that you can order from Bookshop.org to support your local […]

Talking Shop: Chia-Chia Lin on Writers’ Workshops, Pitfalls and Inspiration

by Alicia Long

March 2, 2020

Posted on March 2, 2020 (February 27, 2020) by Zack Ravas

Chia-Chia Lin’s debut novel The Unpassing (FSG) was released last year to widespread acclaim (it was named one of the Best Books of 2019 by TIME, The Washington Post, and Esquire). Her short story “Ring Around the Equator, Pockets Full of Acres” was featured in the Bay Area issue. And soon Lin will be teaching a Fiction Workshop that you can apply to now. Lin recently shared her thoughts on the Writers’ Workshop process, as well as some of the pitfalls students can avoid. ZYZZYVA: What do you think a Fiction Workshop can offer writers who feel their piece is […]

The Bay Area Issue: Editor’s Note

by Laura Cogan

November 25, 2019

Posted on November 25, 2019 (January 26, 2020) by editor

One day in July I ran into a colleague on my way to lunch. We commiserated about the state of the world, briefly, and then he asked me if I’d been to the Flower Piano program at the San Francisco Botanical Garden yet. He said he’d just been, and that after one of the professional performers finished her set, a few of the people milling around took turns playing. One played David Bowie’s “Life on Mars,” singing softly under his breath. Another, a child of about ten, played a classical sonata, with astonishing beauty. There’s still art here, he said […]

In the Winter Issue

by ZYZZYVA

November 17, 2019

Posted on November 17, 2019 (March 23, 2020) by ZYZZYVA

New writing from the East Bay to San Francisco, from the North Bay to the Peninsula. Fiction: Charlie Jane Anders, Rita Bullwinkel, Lydia Conklin, Chia-Chia Lin, Nina Schuyler, Michael Sears, Ingrid Rojas Contreras, and Andrew Roe. Nonfiction: Paul Wilner, Gloria Frym, and Lydia Kiesling. Poetry: sam sax, Meg Hurtado Bloom, Luiza Flynn-Goodlett, W.S. Di Piero, Sara Mumolo, Kevin Simmonds, Lady Nestor Gomez, and Matthew Zapruder. Interview: Dodie Bellamy and the late Kevin Killian. Art: Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Janet Delaney. You can purchase a copy of No. 117 here, or order a subscription to ZYZZYVA now. […]

How to help those affected by the California fires

by ZYZZYVA Staff

October 30, 2019

Posted on October 30, 2019 (March 6, 2020) by Zack Ravas

Northern California is once again faced with wildfires. We encourage you to explore this link from the Northern California Grantmakers on ways you can help the many people displaced by the fires. NCG provides a number of options, including vetted wildfire relief and recovery funds such as the Center for Disaster Philanthropy and the Solano Disaster Relief Fund. Please feel free to share links to similar relief efforts in the Comments below. […]