A name like Silly Goose Press can’t help but attract such comments as “Have you seen that egg?!” or “What a honking good time they are to be around!” which the editors would take as high praise, along with recognition for knowing how to use an Oxford comma. Puns (mostly) aside, Silly Goose Press is a new, online magazine publishing poetry, fiction, creative non-fiction, art, and photography roughly every four months. Readers can enjoy accessing each piece individually online or via PDF which can be downloaded – all for free.
Silly Goose Press was inspired when the editors attended their first AWP conference. “We are best friends who love flocking together,” says Editor-in-Chief Rhiannon Fisher, “just a group of silly geese and always have been. The publication name is an inside joke amongst writing friends that has evolved into something magical.” After the conference, Fisher says, “We challenged ourselves to expand our knowledge of and place in the literary world. We wanted to be a part of something bigger than our individual literary careers, make friends, and build community. Also, now we are legally bound to maintain a friendship.”
Bound in friendship, the current “Varsity” level editorial flock includes the four co-founders: Poetry Editor-in-Chief Lexi Rosen, who studied Fiction at the University of Redlands and has recently graduated with a dual-genre MFA in Fiction and Poetry from the Vermont College of Fine Arts; Art and Photography Editor-in-Chief Eric Enbom, a writer and photographer who holds a Bachelors in Creative Writing and Media Studies from the University of Redlands; Fiction Editor-in-Chief Rhiannon Fisher, who has a BA in Public Policy and Creative Writing from the University of Redlands, and received her Masters in Creative Writing from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland; and Creative Non-Fiction Editor-in-Chief Parker Dean, who earned a Bachelors in Creative Writing and English Literature from the University of Redlands and a Masters of Creative Writing and Poetics from UW Bothell. Rounding out the flock are “JV” members Fiction Editor Ian Wuertz, Editorial Project Manager Julia Shelley, and Copy Editor Annelise Schoups.
Readers coming to Silly Goose Press can expect to find “the magical within the mundane and the mundane within the magical,” says Fisher. “We are focused on publishing craft-forward, whimsical pieces that won’t necessarily make you feel happy at the end, but we hope you’ll be happy to have read them.”
Select works the editors recommend checking out – from Issue 1: “MY HEART IS A CHERRY TOMATO” by Yetta Stein, “Quarter-Life Crisis” by Christina Li, “A Note From Someone Who’s Stuck” by Jay Sjoberg, “Getting Stuffed” by Malina Shamsudin; from Issue 2: “The Sun Has Found The Back Room” by MaryGrace King, “Self Portrait as Sapphic Persephone” by Mary Simmons, “Hiring That Surrealist Architect Was A Huge Mistake – Bigger On The Inside Than It Looked On The Outside And Still Absolutely No Storage” by Jude Potts, “Coffee Time” by Zary Fekete, “Beach Aerial Plate” by Genevieve Garibaldi; from Issue 3: “School Trip to Mount Fuji” by Tamiko Dooley, “when they really get to know you they will” by Natalie Childress, “It’s Our First Date and I Leave For College Next Week” by Gavin Garza, and “The Thing That Is Worse Than Jumbies” by Judy Raymond.
Being new to the nuts and bolts of running a literary magazine, Fisher reflects on a common truth behind the submissions process, “Something we have learned through publishing is that often-times a piece is very good, but just doesn’t fit the vibe of a particular issue or magazine. It has helped us realize that a rejection doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re a bad writer, but maybe that piece just hasn’t found the right home yet. It’s been a good reminder.”
As Silly Goose Press continues its flight into the future, Fisher notes, “We would love to expand the Flock. To us, this looks like building up our community of writers, giving back to the literary community, finding ways to monetize aspects of the magazine, and promoting new literary friendships. Some of our editors are also considering becoming the official ‘Goose-lerette’ matchmaker, but the trademark is still in review.”
For readers and writers wanting to support Silly Goose Press, Fisher encourages, “Follow us on our socials! Come swim in our pond! Engage with us online – we love some witty banter! Submit to our magazine! Tell your friends and neighbors and cousins and enemies all about us!”
