Our mission as a literary journal has changed, only slightly. Previously, our mission was focused on this:
One of the most common questions asked of people who just move to Springfield, Illinois is, “Why did you move here?” This question, Why here?usually implies that there are other, busier, better places to live than in the Central Illinois area. Central Illinois is often seen by locals as flat
and boring with few activities to do. It is our goal as a journal to highlight fiction, nonfiction, and poetry to help answer this question, Why Central Illinois? But, not only do we wish to learn what makes people move to this part of the country, we also want to know what makes people choose to move away from Central Illinois, and what makes people choose to stay? Moving from one place to another is a huge transition in someone’s life that can involve a multitude of mixed emotions, ranging from fear to excitement to anxiety to tranquility. We hope to emphasize these changes in people’s lives by focusing on the Illinois setting as a character. Contributors will receive a free copy of the print issue. The changes in our mission are that we have now expanded our net to incorporate fiction, non-fiction, and poetry from the entire state of Illinois, rather than just Central Illinois. You do not have to be from Illinois to contribute, but your work must focus on the Illinois setting. The reason we are expanding our scope is because we hope, with each issue, to highlight various forms of being “uprooted,” and this we believe is the best possible route to fulfilling that cause. Please see the new submission guidelines for further details. The other change in our mission is that we are no longer a print journal. Due to budgetary constraints, we simply cannot afford to print our journal. Therefore, we will now only publish work online.
