Dear So to Speak readers, 

I’m proud to present to y’all our Summer 2023 Online Issue! From stories about exploring trans identity through dance to poems about finding your sexuality through fanfiction, this issue is full of pieces that represent the So to Speak mission of showcasing writing and art with intersectional perspectives in mind. 

2022 into 2023 has been an exciting year for STS: in order to continue our mission of providing an equitable and accessible space for writers, we retired our annual contest and now award paid honorariums to each of our contributors. We have been considering this change for a while, and found that we’d rather have all of our contributors paid fairly instead of paying a select few through a contest issue. With this new publication model, we published a gorgeous print issue, featuring cover art from our contributor, Joanne McFarland, and designed by Arianne Payne.

In March, we traveled all the way across the country to Seattle for AWP 2023, alongside our sister journal Phoebe. With Phoebe, we also co-hosted a Submit-In, where emerging writers could learn tips and tricks for submitting their work to journals. Additionally, we’re looking forward to hosting a virtual reading with Phoebe this upcoming Thursday, June 8th! Also new this year, we collaborated with Barrelhouse at their Conversations and Connections Conference 2023 in D.C., acting as “speed dating” editors for folks working on their fiction and poetry. 

Outside of these new activities and events, we’ve grown as a remarkable team of writers and editors: thank you to our amazing team, who worked with passion and consideration to craft this amazing online issue. We receive so many great submissions for every issue, and our editors work hard to read and select each piece. I’m incredibly grateful to be able to work with such a brilliant team of editors; all of whom are writers and creators with diverse perspectives, just like our contributors. 

Thank you, lastly, to our contributors and readers. Thank you for continuously supporting So to Speak, whether it’s through submitting your work, saying hi to us at AWP, attending our on-campus and/or virtual events, or just by reading our journal. 

Once again, I’m proud to present to you this online issue, especially during Pride Month. The fight for inclusion and acceptance is an ongoing one. It can be easy to get discouraged and not see the importance of writing or creating at all, especially after seeing the recent anti-trans laws developing in Florida, the ongoing labor dispute between the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, or even the removal of Target’s independently-designed Pride Collection due to threats of domestic terrorism. Still, I’m always impressed at the outpouring of support online and in-person for continued, inclusive creativity, either through the active striking and marching in the streets for equal writing pay (not to mention the refusal to be replaced by AI), or by reading a small journal online, run by graduate writing students. Thank you for reading, and continuing to write and create. We’re grateful for you, and fighting alongside you. 

Warmth,

Eli V

Editor-In-Chief