Our “Staging Style” craft essay series presents innovative writers, translators, and critics articulating the influences and impulses that have sharpened their thinking and writing minds. Below we answer frequently asked questions about this series.
The submission guidelines state that you’re looking for essays “that trouble the conventional prescriptiveness of ‘craft.’” What do you mean by “trouble”?
Here the word “trouble” refers to the process of challenging the prototypical approach to the craft essay genre, which, conscious or not, often imposes a particular style of writing upon the essay’s auditors.
We agree with Matthew Salesses’s assertion that craft is a set standardized expectations and seek works that directly engage with where those expectations come from and what effects they have on us as readers. We are not interested in essays that simply diagnose and perpetuate what “good writing” looks like; we want to learn about the influences that have reshaped your understanding of commonly identified elements of craft and/or the genre(s) in which you write.
On a practical level, what are you looking for? What are you not looking for?
Our favorite craft essays layer a little bit of personal narrative, a dash of theory, and multiple examples of outside texts that concretely illustrate the question or literary phenomenon at hand.
We are not looking for essays that are overtly academic or autobiographical. Additionally, please do not submit worksheets, handouts, or other teaching materials dedicated to the nuts and bolts of craft.
Are there are any specific subjects or areas of craft that you’re hoping to see in the Staging Style submissions queue?
Much like in our standard open reading periods for the print journal, we don’t know what we’re looking for until we see it! But there are a few areas of inquiry that we’re hoping to spotlight as this series continues. This includes but is not limited to essays that explore ecopoetics, place-based writing, ekphrasis, flash fiction, doubling, memoir and the narrative subject, etc.
Why are submissions limited to 2,000 words? Is that enough space to do the type of work that you’re looking for?
Because we’re not seeking craft essays that are highly esoteric in nature, we’re of the mind that an author’s ability to succinctly introduce then illustrate their thinking is another important facet of this series’ goal to “trouble” the craft essay status quo.
We’re hopeful that Staging Style can serve as a teaching resource for writers, translators, and critics at all stages of their careers and believe that our focus on the economy of language presents the most approachable way to access this kind of material.
When should I expect to hear back about my submission?
We aim to respond to all Staging Style submissions within four months. You are welcome to query the status of your submission at nereview@middlebury.edu if you have not heard from us within that timeframe.