| vagabondage press © 2008 |
| Vagabondage Press |
| New Directions in Art & Literature |
| Letter from the Editor Our name, "Vagabondage Press", hopes to evoke the freedom and cheery aimlessness of the seanachies and story-tellers of bygone eras. "The Battered Suitcase", a literary magazine with an independent, DIY ethos, holds everything we take on the journey and all the trinkets and trifles, anecdotes and wisdoms, we collect along the way. In this age of the collective narrative, where everyone seeks a voice for their vision, and creativity and talent are the coins of the realm, the traditional publishing industry is still trying to put writers and artists into the same old narrow and sharp-cornered boxes. Art has become a commodity, like so many pork bellies, and the results have been depressing. Writers seeking new high ground and artists seeking to share their vision find themselves turned away at the doorstep simply because their creations are not just like that which sold a million copies last year. It's become an industry of copycats, based on what's marketable, rather on what's good storytelling. We hope to offer an alternative. In our premiere issue, columnist Louise Beech serves a slice of life with no side-orders of redemption and Leslie Braley reveals that there really are just no good men of any shade to be found in the city. Chris Miller flirts with the compelling allure of self-annihilation, and J.P. Devlin examines the unique power of human connection to change the course of a shattered life. No stranger to the DIY ethos himself, musician Adam Ficek offers lyrical poetry from his own DIY project—Roses Kings Castles, an acoustic, folksy alternative to his usual role as drummer for the UK indie band Babyshambles. In keeping with the spirit of enriching the collective narrative through verse, contributors include artist and poet Peter Schwartz, whose work tickles a sly, knowing chuckle at the human condition. Other contributing poets include Stefanie Maclin, David MacLean and the 2005 winner of Radio-Canada’s "Young Artists" award, Lucinda Tang. Art contributions include the vivid marine abstracts of Jim Fuess, the sweet and sinister portraits of Kelly Haigh, outsider art by Dario Molinaro and the digital stylings of new artist Jenn Anderson. Welcome to the premiere issue of The Battered Suitcase....open it up... see what's inside. Fawn Neun, EXECUTIVE EDITOR fawn@vagabondagepress.com |
| Volume One - Issue One - June 2008 |
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