I wasn’t sure what to expect when coming onboard the Toyon. Unlike most courses, the outcome of all the work the class collaborates on becomes a physical product. The literary magazine has been run almost entirely by students since 1954 and has seen a lot of change since its inception. That’s quite a legacy to uphold.
Some students arrive as previous Toyon staff or with other editorial/ publishing experience. Other students, like myself, arrive with none. Everyone is always learning however. The nature of publishing requires change and that means that from year-to-year working on each issue of the Toyon can be different. Although everyone is separated into roles and given their unique tasks in accordance to their role, there’s also work that calls for people to work together. As someone whose future goals is geared towards writing, working on the Toyon staff still gave me a peek at what the industry is like. I liked learning about the best practices to evaluate the submissions we received and navigating web development platforms. Even as a writer, one still needs to develop how to work with others within a field that will always see shifting due to being a product of culture. As far as this blog goes, I’m definitely taking a break. Winter break that is. I want to focus on writing and hopefully dig out a piece or two to move on to the submissions phase. Because my last semester is coming up next, I’ll probably only come back to blog about things of interest in the classes I take. I’m looking forward to finally graduating in half a year. For now, Happy Holidays to everyone.
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Originally, I attended a university in Hawaii as a Diplomacy Major. It was living in the busy Waikiki Strip that I was first truly exposed to a myriad of languages. It was one of the reasons I switched out a Political Science course for Japanese during my semester there. I wanted to gain the talent of snatching a third language out of the air of conversations that floated about whenever I roamed the body streets. In my attempt to pick up the Japanese language, one way to immerse myself in my studies was through the culture and to do that through reading books originally written in Japanese by Japanese authors, like Yukio Mishima or Sei Shonagon. It was the only way I could attempt to understand differing viewpoints in culture and customs without moving to another country.
For the Toyon Research Project, I discovered that there is a very skewed percentage of works translated into English from another language within the publishing industry. As language is tied to culture, identity, and other ways of thinking; that means that the published works we encounter as a whole reflect Western views. Art has always been political, but current our publishing industry pushes closed-mindedness by being largely limited to works originally written in English. The Toyon can become an example of a literary magazine that works to delve into that area of conflict. As a literary magazine that presents itself as multilingual that is one area I want to see achieve the most growth. The Toyon needs to do better about gaining submissions that fall into more languages than: English, Spanish, and Spanglish. This year, another language will be joining our publishing history. It is a good step forward, and that vein needs to continue. It would be a great idea to reach out to that particular author and ask them both how they heard about the Toyon and why they decided to submit a piece in a language we had not published before. For the Literary Translator and the Multilingual Editor to continue working together in the future and reaching out to the Centers of Academic Excellence and the World Languages Department. Ask them to announce our presence and forward our call for submissions. I’ve run across many students whom did not know the Toyon existed. The Toyon has seen some change the past few years. In the next five years those changes need to grow into their own as staples that the Toyon becomes known for. The unique covers picked among the art submissions, publishing more works in different languages, and working to gain more submissions for Environmental Justice. Advertising for the Toyon year-round is how these areas can be targeted. Improving circulation is a goal for all literary magazines with no easy answer. However, in one of this weeks readings, “The Future is a Magazine: A Roundtable on the Contemporary Literary Magazine” by a large group of authors in pages 245-268 of Paper Dreams, provides the tidbit that “Online literary magazines get much more attention from prospective readers than print magazines, (pg. 249, Paper Dreams).” There is something special about seeing your work in print and in the future we may have a website that features certain experiences you can’t get from the print version: honorable mentions, new voices to keep track of or a “Where Are They Now?” segment. The Toyon is off to a good start with beginning to archive its current and most recent runs, as well as looking back and archiving previous Toyon issues. Building a strong online presence may push up the circulation run. The Readings For This Week: **Rosser, Jill Allyn. Morgan, Speer. Roth, Marco. Hammond, Raymond. Zuniga, Adrian Todd. Horowitz, Eli. Burch, Aaron. Percesepe, Gary. Kurowski, Travis. "The Future is a Magazine: A Roundtable on the Contemporary Literary Magazine." Paper Dreams. Madison, NJ: Atticus Books, 2013. 245-268. Print. **Leibowitz, Herbert." Some Comments on the 2008 Mississippi Review Roundtable on the Contemporary Literary Magazine." Paper Dreams. Madison, NJ: Atticus Books, 2013. 269-271. Print. Additional Works Cited: Anderson 21 October 2014, Hephzibah. "Why Won't English Speakers Read Books in Translation?" BBC - Culture. Bbc.com, 21 Oct. 2014. Web. 27 Nov. 2016. <http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20140909-why-so-few-books-in-translation>. I decided to go with what I know and thus my project will be on “The Art of Translation.” It’s a fairly straight-forward powerpoint presentation. The first couple of slides open up on examples of bad translation, whether they be bad because they are incorrect or because the literal translation makes no sense. The entirety of my powerpoint presentation is geared for an audience of my peers whom have never considered or given much thought to the field of translation. Although, it is also intended to be helpful to the following year’s Literary Translator. The opening slides are meant to keep things light and humorous as a way of catching attention. This allows for an easy transition into translation as an art form. I expand on the of how works of translations are works themselves. No one will read another’s work more carefully than a translator. These are backed by direct quotes from articles about translation from websites such as: theguardian.com, NPR.org, and Literary Hub. The closing slides follow as: roads to certification as a translator, more resources involving translation, a note for future Literary Translators, and a bibliography. I only provided three of the paths for certification in translation to cut down on time. They are however among the most common. The extra resources detail websites and magazines that work primarily on translation projects and/or promote events on a local level. Because my research project is meant to be an introduction to the art of translation, the first half of the presentation isn't as applicable to the future staff members of the Toyon who take on the job role of Literary Translator. The latter half I hope is a valuable resource for introducing roads to certification and other available avenues for how translation as a career is viable. All the links are embedded where they are applicable, including the photos, but a bibliography is also available. All of the research projects should be made available for future Toyon staff members. The class shares a folder on Google Drive and the projects should be ready to download there. However, wherever some of them apply they should be made available on the website as well. For example, my research project can potentially be downloaded off the page that describes the duties for the Literary Translator. (Downloadable file provided through Keynote- the powerpoint presentation software available through Apple. Can only be viewed through Apple hardware)
Fall break has arrived. We are coming to the end of the line. There are only two weeks of school instruction left which means my time with the Toyon is coming to a close. Right now is a time of reflection on all we have done for the Toyon, a time for final edits and proofreading, and it is crunch time. As close as we are, we are not done yet.
For the Multilingual section there has been some setback. We had received some submissions that the Multilingual Editor and myself thought would be a good fit for publishing. The kicker was that they were pieces of translated work in a language no one on the staff was familiar with. We reached out to outside sources for help, but our initial find ended up falling through. Because of such we had to extend the deadline for letting us know if the translations were done correctly until after break. It’s no big issue, as long as we get a timely answer this time around. The other issue was similar but concerned the pieces for the Trilingual Poetry Contest of which we had agreed to publish their Award Winners in our issue of the Toyon this year. They too required the same extension. As soon as break is over we will hopefully have all the pieces in our possession so that they can be properly formatted and entered into the final proof of the Toyon. That brings me to what is left to do in the coming weeks. The next blog post will be about the Research Project so I’ll refrain from giving it space here. The last couple of things to take care of are as follows: final proofread, letter to next year’s Literary Translator, a Vision Statement alongside a Five Year Plan, and a final blog post. Of course, that’s without last minute changes that may come up. There is also the opportunity of continuing on with the Toyon for the following semester. For some of the roles this is a must, like the Managing Editor, but for most of the roles this is only an option. Any help in ensuring the production and the Release Party for the Toyon goes well will involve in the student signing on within a Directed Study course. How much a student wants to contribute will range from a 1 Unit to a 4 Unit course-load. Unfortunately, as the next semester is my last semester continuing on with the Toyon doesn’t hover in my field of short-term goals so much as ensuring I’ve got all my credits covered. As far as professional portfolios go I’m pretty happy with my own. That sounds arrogant of me to admit until I tack on that I don’t have a lot of experience browsing through the professional portfolios of, well, professionals or in building my own. As a new experience to me, at this particular point in time this is my best version of a professional portfolio. I am proud of it as an enormous first step.
First, a rundown of what I like. The “Home” page gives my name and title, but the background photograph speaks out as well. All of the photographs on the site were taken by yours truly and they are meant to speak to life on the NorthCoast and among the Redwoods. As the Toyon is a NorthCoast journal, I wanted to highlight this with somewhat subtlety. The set-up of my portfolio makes it very easy to manage, thus approachable. However, it is the blog that I’m most happy about. I’ve been good about keeping it up to date and personalizing my responses enough to keep within the bounds of professionalism yet hold onto my distinctive voice. This leads me to looking it over with a critical eye and admitting where I come up short. To help, I looked at one of the professional portfolios provided to us students in the ENG 460 course for comparison. The professional portfolio I looked at belongs to a recent graduate whom worked as a reporter for their university and gained editorial experience from an internship (http://jasmineschillinger.weebly.com). I thought it best to look at someone whom is only just down the line from where I am, a goal within sight. The first glaring oversight is that I need to make a page for my resume. There’s the option of providing a link for a quick download of my resume or a suggestion to contact me for a copy of it. I’d rather go with the latter as it provides the opportunity for a line of communication. The “About Me” page needs to be redone. It shoots out tidbits of information without explaining what I want to accomplish or what I have accomplished. I’m also thinking of changing some of the photograph too, at least the background on the “Home” page so that the small text can be read more clearly. My thoughts on editing once confused it with revision. Finish your work, look it over carefully, and make corrections where applicable. It was a very set pattern, one I used again and again. Once habits are formed they are hard to break, especially if one doesn’t recognize that they are indeed a habit. Looking through some of my old writing, fiction or academic or otherwise, the similar patterns emerge. For a long time I’d simply been churning out the same basic form.
Working with translation broke some of those habits. When I first began my approach to the field, translating short articles for a website that never launched, I started to realize just how much the small bits matter. No two languages perfectly mirror one another so no translation is ever literal. You have to make a choice word-by-word and sentence-by-sentence. Because of that, your translation won’t be like anyone else’s translation either. In making your own choices on how to translate a piece you are creating your own version of a work. According to the reading for this post, “On the Conjunction of Editing and Composition” by Peter Gizzi from Paper Dreams, editing involves much of the same. It’s similar to translation in that the choices that are made when “Editing, like writing, is fundamentally about composing a world, (pg. 231).” What we like to read shapes what we write, thus also shaping how we edit writing. The choices made during the editing process make-up the final product one wishes everyone else to see which will then move on to shape those readers' choices in how they approach their writing or editing. Working with translation pushed me out of my comfort zone. Editing has further widened my scope. Though I’m enjoying my time working on the Toyon, especially within my given role, it is that particular role I want to later explore. Literary translation is a job that helps a text gain a greater readership and introduces readers that were not able to read a particular text before to the exploration of a different viewpoint. Becoming certified in translation is a short-term goal I’ll be working towards. The Reading For This Post: **Gizzi, Peter."On the Conjunction of Editing and Composition." Paper Dreams. Madison, NJ: Atticus Books, 2013. 229-235. Print. It’s come to the part where I give away secrets to getting published. The moment where I unveil tidbits from my end of the submissions process so that you may have a better chance at getting your work published in a literary magazine of your choice. Here it comes, pay very close attention.
There are no secrets. There is only work. There is only preparation. Writing isn’t just difficult, it is painstaking and it is emotional. Every writer is putting themselves on the line when they are submitting a piece for publication. You want to be published and it can be crushing when you receive notice (if any at all) that your piece “wasn’t a good fit,” that it “still needs work” or a flat-out “this is crap.” The reading for this post was “Submitting to Literary Magazines” by Katie Chase in the book Paper Dreams. It’s a pretty general guide of things to consider before, during, and after you’ve submitted your work. Here’s a short outline of it: “Is This Piece Ready? Send your best revised work. Where To Send? Research your magazines. Don’t send blindly. How To Send? Research the submissions process. You don’t want to be rejected on the grounds of being unable to follow directions. What’s All About This About Simultaneous Submissions? Pay close attention as to whether your magazine wants to be the sole publication considering your work. What About Contests? Usually requires a fee to submit, but they are another opportunity for publication. Should I Keep Track Of All This? Yes. Don’t Write To Publish, Write To Write Support The Literary World. Magazines only exist because of their readers.” -Taken from pages 419-423 of Paper Dreams Lastly, expect rejections. They are inevitable, but they are not meant to be locked down as solely negative. They are a show of progress.Whenever you fail, aim to fail better the next time. Push yourself to collect as many rejections as acceptances. Having been on both sides of the veil I can tell you that the field of writing is always in motion. Always aim to hedge your boat closer to shore. You will get there. The Reading For This Post: **Chase, Katie."Submitting to Literary Magazines." Paper Dreams. Madison, NJ: Atticus Books, 2013. 419-423. Print. I’ve been bouncing around an idea since the beginning of the semester that I’d like to make a book. That is, an actual bound book that is handmade to be given as a gift for a friend. Of course, that was before I began researching into that that would entail. I freely admit to having underestimated at the start how much work is involved in such an endeavor. Underestimating also how much money will likely be required.
The reading for this post is “The Letterpress and the Mimeo Revolution” by Kyle Schlesinger from the book Paper Dreams. It is meant to help us explore what is at stake for the Toyon when making decisions about printing and production. My role doesn’t require that I immerse myself in design and layout, but every staff member is encouraged to do so. Going back to my friend, she wrote a book she never intends to publish and a copy as a PDF file rests in my laptop. When I initially had ideas about turning her book into a physical copy, I used up a free trial with InDesign to play around with the layout. I’ve come to see the approach to the Toyon is not at all removed from the same I had played around with. They both require a lot of work and planning. Layout requires decisions to be made about the minutiae. Design requires careful thought given to balancing what will be in the content and what you think will make others reach out to pick up the book. The big difference lies in that I make all the decisions in my personal project and with the Toyon everyone is open to suggest ideas. What I wasn’t anticipating with either is how much those decisions reflect back on us; “DIY is about making decisions and asking questions about who we are, what we do, and how we live, because writing, like printing, is both a thing and an activity, (pg. 191, Paper Dreams).” Every year the Toyon is printed the students have to make choices. Choices about the cover, the material the book will be printed out of, the layout, etc. Choices beyond the content that’s chosen to be published in it, and yet just as important. These decisions are a reflection of what each year’s collective group of students value and want to represent themselves. Schlesinger writes that the affinity for mimeo culture, magazines born out of the sixties in DIY fashion, has seen a similar reemergence in this age of technology where anyone with a computer can craft and design all online. It’s difficult to sum up what’s at stake for the Toyon when considering printing options as politics and economics always change. A see-saw of options between “going green” and affordability, glossy covers or choosing more pages, whether there will always be enough money to fund publishing or whether fundraising will become inevitable and how to go about it, and so on. What students have to consider, year after year, as representatives of their own eras, is how their choices reflect not only the physical copy of their work but what they are saying with it. The Reading For This Post: **Schlesinger, Kyle. "The Letterpress and the Mimeo Revolution." Paper Dreams. Madison, NJ: Atticus Books, 2013. 185-191. Print. The Multilingual section works a little bit differently than the others. All the other Editors are gearing up to move on to final cuts. Because we don’t receive as many submissions, we have got a bit more of a balancing act to focus on. Even if some of the submissions we receive include more than one body of work, unlike the other sections, we can consider to publish more than one piece of work from the same author for our category. Yet, we still have to keep in mind that the Toyon attempts to showcase as many different works as possible. A second piece from one author will have to be weighed against another author’s individual work for the same spot. It is not an easy decision to make.
That’s another thing we keep in mind as well, our limited space. The total number of pages the Toyon printed last year that included multilingual or translated works numbered twelve. Although the print run differs from year to year according to budget, the previous year’s number is a good one to keep in mind in consideration to how many pages we may be allotted this year. In fact, it is the only number to keep in mind. It is only since the previous year that a category for multilingual or translated works had been adopted into our range of submissions. The point I’m really trying to get at is this, we can’t begin to finalize any of our choices yet until next week at the earliest. Due to our agreement with the Trilingual Poetry contest (in which we publish their Award winners), we have to make space for their works as well. Until we receive their works (due Nov. 4th), we can’t make a decision on what to cut and what to keep of what of the works we currently have available to us. That means, again, we can't do much until next week at the earliest. Knowing you have a big project coming up is also a reminder that the semester is coming to a close. In about three weeks, Fall break will hit, and then it is only two more weeks of instruction afterwards before Finals arrive. It feels like the homestretch in a way, and like a cliche, it came by so soon.
I am unsure about what I want to approach with this project. We have known from the beginning of the semester that there would be a research project involved in this course, but we had only a vague inclination as to what that would entail. We still have only a vague idea as there was no rubric handed out to guide us. So far, we have only received a short email detailing some of the topics we could work on. At this moment, it is not a misunderstanding of what I need to do that daunts, but the availability of options to choose from. I could go the ‘easy’ route and make a thing out of translation itself. A short presentation on translation as an art form that will highlight just why we accept works of translation as submissions up for publication, followed by a directory of helpful resources for anyone interested in learning more about translation or what they need to know in order to get certified is the only starting idea I have to go on. Yet, I could also present on a number of other topics of interest, such as the inns-and-outs of getting an MFA degree. The professor was very clear in letting us know that what we worked on for our research project did not have to be tied to our job role. I guess I’ve got a few coins to flip. |
About These Blog PostsWhile we work on the Toyon we must also blog about it. Sometimes it's through simple updates and sometimes we will be given specific assignments that we must answer. Archives
December 2016
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