Six Questions For Phil Slattery, Editor, Dark Passions Magazine

Dark Passions Magazine publishes fiction and poetry of less than 7,500 words. “Dark Passions is a fledgling magazine that intends to be a place where readers can enjoy a stimulating narrative of passion and/or romance with dark elements but of high literary quality. “Read the complete guidelines here.

SQF: Why did you start this magazine?

Phil Slattery: I was interested in finding a more widespread demographic than with The Chamber Magazine or Rural Fiction Magazine. I did a little research on the Internet and found that the most popular genre is romance. As most of my interests lean toward the darker side of almost everything, I looked into dark romance and found that there is a recognized literary genre for it. However, most of the subject matter in what is generally accepted as dark romance is often abhorrent, even to me. I decided to see how a magazine focused on a sort of "dark romance lite" would fare, i.e. with the emphasis on dark romance stories of a more literary nature and without the gore or sex for sex's sake or violence. So, this is a continuing experiment on whether topics and subject matter normally viewed as dark romance can be addressed in a tasteful and literary way yet still pack power both intellectually and emotionally.

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

PS:

1. How beautiful the style is.

2. Does the author show a mastery of language, character development, backstory, and plot development?

3. How masterfully and subtly the author deals with underlying themes.

Why? These are all things that enable the reader to be immersed in the story and suspend disbelief.

SQF: What most often turns you off to a submission?

PS: The opposites of the three things mentioned above: bad grammar, bad spelling, carelessness, awkwardness, clumsiness, unbelievable and shallow characters, etc.

SQF: What do you look for in the opening paragraph(s)/stanza(s) of a submission?

PS: Action or an intriguing situation that places me in medias res (in the middle of things). Something that grabs me emotionally or intellectually.

SQF: Many editors list erotica or sex for sex sake, as hard sells. What are hard sells for your publication?

PS: Gratuitous violence, pornography, hate, racism, anything tasteless or crude or that sickens me, etc. I believe that almost any topic can be addressed but doing it in a way that is tasteful, intriguing, and even with a well-developed style and beauty is the trick.  I once saw an interview with Quentin Tarentino. The interviewer asked Tarentino, "What do you say to the people who say there is too much violence in your movies?" Tarentino answered (this is close to the actual quote if not it exactly), "Saying there is too much violence in my movies is like saying there is too much sex in pornography. The violence is what it's about." No one can deny there is a lot of violence in a Tarentino flick, but yet it is not on the same crude, graphic level as say the violence in the Saw franchise or the Hostel franchise or (to even think of this one sickens me) the Human Centipede franchise. The story is still the most important aspect of a Tarentino film, whereas the story is usually overly simple, crude, or amateurish and/or takes a distant back seat to the violence and gore in any of these other movies.  What I am looking for then is a love story in a Tarentino-ish style. If you watch Netflix, here are some recent Netflix shows (though none are really romance per se) that may give you an idea of what I like: "1899", "Dark", "Peaky Blinders", "Cabinet of Curiosities", "Dahmer", "Mindhunter", "Bullet Train", "The Pale Blue Eye", "Woman of the Dead", etc. You get the idea. 

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

PS; Q: What has been the public's response to my magazine?

A:  The response has been subdued. I receive a few submissions now and then, but the response has been nowhere near what it was for Rural Fiction Magazine or The Chamber Magazine. However, the stuff I have received has been good and I have been able to publish some of it. Once the magazine finds its fanbase, I think I will see some dynamite stories. As unremarkable as the reception has been, I will continue on with the magazine, because with the few submissions I receive, I do not spend much time on running it and because I am simply curious as to what might develop with it.

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