For anyone who has ever considered the prospect of publishing a piece of writing, be it a poem, a short story or an essay, even entertaining the thought can be daunting and induce feelings of stress and anxiety. But, thanks to Volition magazine, much of that strain can be alleviated.
Volition is a literary magazine for George Mason University students who are interested in publishing their written work. Originally established in 1996 as Apathy, the journal has remained relatively small and underground in terms of literary journals on campus.
“Pretty much since my freshman year, it’s been like a maximum of five people working at a time,” said Volition Co-Editor Kathy Morgenegg, a junior double majoring in Russian and creative writing. “It’s always been a really small magazine.”
Volition Co-Editor Hannah Wing, a junior biology major, can attest to that as well. “A lot of our staff has graduated, especially last year.”
However, they are hoping to change that this year given the number of goals they’ve set for themselves, including the redesign of the journal’s logo, the biannual cover contest and the ever-popular open-mic night which will be held at a tentative time in mid to late February.
One of the greatest attributes of the magazine is its concentration on Mason’s undergraduate students. “We strive to promote undergraduate creative writing, mostly because Phoebe and So to Speak publish almost exclusively graduate work,” Wing said.
Compared to the better-known literary journals at Mason, Volition is still small, but that is also one of its greatest assets. “It’s kind of a good outlet where undergrad students can test the water for publishing later on in life,” Wing said.
Unlike Mason’s other literary journals, Volition is entirely run by undergraduate students.
“We have no faculty advisor. We’ve decided that we’re just going to run it,” Morgenegg said. And so far, things have started off smoothly. They have already begun taking submissions for their next journal and openly accept any and all entries. The final deadline is April 4.
“We accept poetry, fiction, non-fiction, short stories, art, photography and it’s even evolved to graphic design,” Morgenegg said. “As long as it’s not overtly pornographic or profane without reason, we will gladly accept it.”
Volition is a great opportunity for anyone who has ever wanted to publish a piece of art. However, Wing and Morgenegg caution that there is only space for four pages of colored art in the journal. Morgenegg pointed out that it would be beneficial if those who submit artwork indicate whether or not publication in black and white is acceptable. She said, “We won’t turn anything away.”
Submitting art to Volition is simple. Send your file in a .doc, .docx, or .jpg format to volitionmagazine@gmail.com by April 4.
For more information on submission, the cover contest — for which the winner gets a $25 Starbucks gift card — or the open-mic night, go to Volition’s website at volitionmagazine.onmason.com.
Or you can like them on Facebook by looking up Volition-GMU or on Twitter.com/volitionGMU.
Comments