In a chronological and simplistic order: come up with the theme, do a call for submissions, read the submissions, select the best submissions, commission illustrators to illustrate the poems/short stories, receive the illustrations back, start putting all the content into layout, finish putting all the content into layout, send the final files to the printer, talk to the distributors, receive the printed copies back from the printer, then start telling everyone that a new issue is out. If someone can combine all those elements, I’m pretty much sold.Īs editor what tasks do you do for each issue? They create a beautiful rhythm to a poem without the need for meter, which sounds fluid without being contrived. I’m also a massive fan of internal rhyme, alliteration, and assonance. Trying to find something that combines the two is really quite difficult. Other times, we receive poems which have a brilliant idea running behind it, but are badly executed. Sometimes we receive poems which are beautifully written but lack substance, or a strong thread. What do you look for when selecting poems?Īn interesting and original idea/story told with visually explosive language that makes you feel something – whatever that may be. It was only after reading Roald Dahl’s Kiss Kiss collection – which I absolutely loved – that I thought it was time for flash fiction and short stories to join the fray. They were absolutely amazing but I had never considered trying to incorporate that into the magazine. Before Popshot, I had read some incredible short stories by a French surrealist writer called Roland Topor. I hear you’re expanding to include flash fiction submissions, why did you decide to add flash fiction to the magazine?īecause I felt it would bring some increased depth to the magazine – depth that it was in need of. To know that Popshot could sit on the shelves of Borders and Barnes & Nobles though – that was really exciting. In the past I had always written content for websites so producing an online magazine wouldn’t have seemed like anything new.

I’ve always been a sucker for beautifully produced magazines and books so it was a bit of a dream to produce a real, physical publication. I think the beauty of Popshot lies in its combination of poetry, illustration, and print. There have been lots of exciting online journals started over the last few years, did you consider doing an online magazine and why did you chose to do print?Īn online magazine was never really an option. So that’s where it started! I felt that by combining poetry with design and illustration it could become much more appealing and help give the poetry a stronger sense of context. After trawling through the shelves of Borders (RIP), I felt that poetry magazines were doing poetry a gross misjustice and I could do it better.

The inspiration for starting the magazine was born out of naive arrogance. So, why did you decide to set up a magazine for poetry and illustration? Jacob edits Popshot a bi-annual magazine that champions contemporary poetry and illustration. Poetry Magazine Editor Jacob Denno tells us what he looks for in a poem, why black text on white is a classic and how naive arrogance can sometimes have its positive side.

When did popshot magazine start