Six Questions for Jennifer Walkup, Fiction Editor, The Meadowland Review

From the website:

"The Meadowland Review is an online literary journal comprised of a small group of writers and editors who share a commitment to providing a public space for thoughtful and original material. We welcome and encourage both emerging and established writers of short fiction and poetry. " 

(Ceased publication)


SQF: Why did you start this magazine?

JW: We stared The Meadowland Review to offer writers and photographers a new forum for their work. Our goal was and is to provide a public space for a stylistic mix of writing.


SQF: What are the top three things you look for in a story and why?

JW: The Meadowland Review is looking for stories of any genre and style. What catches the attention of our editors is good writing, believable characters and a complete story that we think about long after we put it down.


SQF: What are the top three reasons a story is rejected, other than not fitting into your answers to the above question and why?

JW: Stories can be rejected for a variety of reasons. While sometimes the writing isn’t up to par, oftentimes it’s simply a matter of personal taste or that we’ve already accepted something similar in subject. Another common occurrence is stories that aren’t complete stories. Just like a novel or longer short story, it needs to have a beginning, middle and an end. Oftentimes we receive stories that are character sketches or scenes.


SQF: What is it about the characters in a story that makes them pop off the page and grab hold of you?

JW: Characters have to be real in their actions, dialogue and situations. Sometimes the best stories show us how people act and react. Their situation doesn’t have to be extreme, as long as the characters are created in a believable way. They could be doing anything from baking a cake to landing on the moon, as long as they are true to themselves, we’ll believe in them and be compelled to read their stories.


SQF: Will you publish a story an author posted on a personal blog?

JW: Absolutely.


SQF: What one question on this topic do you wish I'd asked that I didn't? And how would you answer it?

JW: Perhaps which writers' literary magazines do we admire?  Rattle, The Cortland Review, Harpur Palate, The Salt River Review, and A capella Zoo [See Six Questions For. . . for an editor interview], among others.

Thank you, Jennifer. We all appreciate you taking time from your busy schedule to participate in this project.


NEXT POST: Six Questions for Megan Duffy, Poetry Editor, The Meadowland Review