Interviews & Reviews
Elizabeth Gonzalez James interviews Nicolás Medina Mora about América del Norte
“...we live in history: Who among us can say that the life they’re leading is the product of their choices and not a staging of the script they were handed at birth?”
Erin Vachon reviews Renee Gladman's My Lesbian Novel and To After That
“Under Gladman’s gaze, love is patience. A long-drafted object. A conversation held over years.”
Emma Bolden interviews Megan Pinto about Saints of Little Faith
“When we allow for the unknown and do not struggle to pin it down, we allow for mystery to unfold.” |
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| FIRST BOOK "RUMPUS ROOTS" SPOTLIGHT |
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 | | A few times a year, we learn that one of our contributors has a book coming out that began its journey at The Rumpus—whether through an essay, a short story, several poems, or another form of writing. Championing writers who are getting one of their first publishing credits is central to our mission. We hope that their work will begin to find its readers and lead to new opportunities in the writing community. It’s also part of our mission to celebrate those authors once a major milestone is realized. Melissa Petro is one of those authors, and this First Book interview is particularly special to us: Her debut memoir, Shame on You (out this week from G.P. Putnam, an imprint of Penguin Random House), has its roots in two essays she published with The Rumpus back in 2010 and 2011.
Read Melissa Petro's on publishing Shame on You. “I felt under constant surveillance and yet utterly invisible, frequently shamed and, consequentially, ashamed.”
This is the start of a broader, ongoing effort to highlight authors whose books began here—books with Rumpus roots. If you're an author with a forthcoming book that started in some earlier form with the magazine, reach out at hello@therumpus.net. |
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New Essays & Columns
Rumpus Original Fiction: "Before Love, Before Loneliness" by Shipra Agarwal
“Haley’s comet, tectonic plates, the Sahara desert—her stories are always about places or phenomena, never about people.”
Rumpus Original Column ENOUGH: "The Tiny Thing Inside Me" by BC Reynolds
“It waited for me on that tiny metal tray, and I for it on the fake bed with stirrups, and we sat there in a room together so alone and cold before it happened.”
Rumpus Original Poetry: Four Poems by Jan Beatty
“So, you think that bare trees / are beautiful—not lacking, / but open to grey, the grey / more important, louder than the branch.” |
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| Letters in the Mail (from authors!) |
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Letters in the Mail from authors is a Rumpus subscription in which you receive an actual, postmarked letter from one of our favorite writers in your IRL mailbox twice a month. All letters are non-promotional, include a creative prompt, and have a return mailing address in case you'd like to write the author back!
Up next, an author letter from . . .
September 15: Hannah V Warren is the author of Slaughterhouse for Old Wives’ Tales (Sundress 2024) and two chapbooks. Her poetry and translations appear in Gulf Coast, Passages North, Crazyhorse, and Denver Quarterly, among others. A poet, translator, and Fulbright Scholar, Hannah has a PhD in literature and an MFA in creative writing; her research and writing interests often center monstrous aesthetics, post/apocalypse literature, and representations of alterity. Originally from Mississippi, Hannah now lives in Birmingham, AL. Subscribe by September 14! |
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| Pre-order alert:
WE'RE MAKING NEW TRAVEL MUGS! |
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 | | Note: This item is available for pre-order. We'll begin shipping the second week of October 2025. [Mock-up pictured here.] The NEW "Write Like a Motherfucker" travel tumbler is elegant and classy AF! This is your new grownup high quality 16 ounce insulated MiiR brand to-go mug. MiiR is a certified B-Corp, and we're basically selling these at cost. This tumbler handles hot and cold beverages equally well. It fits great in a cup holder and in your hand. Black powder coated with Rumpus red etching. It's the classic design by Walter Green. “Write Like a Motherfucker” is a quote from one of the most famous Dear Sugar columns by Cheryl Strayed.
*Annual Rumpus Members, a reminder to log into your store account, if you'd like to pre-order at a 20% discount. |
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| JOIN US in person at
Punch Bucket Literary Festival
SEPTEMBER 21 in Asheville, NC |
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If you're in the Asheville, NC area, The Rumpus will be tabling at the Punchbucket Literary Festival from 9 am to 5 pm on Saturday, September 21 and our Publisher, Alyson Sinclair, will be on a panel with the good folks from Southern Cultures, Ecotone, Cold Mountain Review, and The Greensboro Review from 4-5:15 pm (Renaissance Hotel, Ballroom 1). More info here. Come by and say hello! |
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| Do you want to establish a regular writing routine? |
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We recently launched a new Rumpus offering: The Writer's Welcome Kit, a 5-week asynchronous online course to establish your regular writing practice. This course was created by author and writing coach Paulette Perhach specifically for writers who are looking for a starting point as they begin to practice their craft in an intentional way. *Perhach's book, Welcome to the Writer's Life, was published in 2018 by Sasquatch Books / Penguin Random House and was selected as one of Poets & Writers' Best Books for Writers.
If you're a beginning writer in any genre who would like guidance on establishing a dedicated writing practice OR any writer who wants to commit to an intentional routine, this course was built for you.
Ready to start? |
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| Closing soon: Submissions for Fiction are open August 15 until September 15.
Submissions for Comics are open August 1 until October 31.
Two new columns, Collaborative Criticism and Close Reads are now open year-round!
Our new column Parallel Practice is open again for submissions. Read the call here before submitting.
We are open for Funny Women and Prose and Poetry Book Reviews submissions year-round.
Submissions for Poetry opened on Aug. 15 and closed on Aug. 19th, since we hit our 500 submissions limit in just four days.
Save the dates: Essays submissions will open again on Oct. 1-31.
(Reminder, annual Rumpus Members can submit their work in any genre all year long.) |
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Reader Support Keeps The Rumpus Going! |
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Founded in 2009 in San Francisco, CA and now based in Asheville, NC with readers and editors all over the US and abroad, The Rumpusis one of the longest-running independent online literary and culture magazines. Our mostly volunteer-run magazine strives to be a platform for risk-taking voices and writing that might not find a home elsewhere. We lift up new voices alongside those of more established writers readers already know and love. Often, we are an emerging writer's first notable publication, which is something we’re really proud of. We believe that literature builds community—and if reading The Rumpus makes you feel more connected, please show your support! Our Membership and subscription programs along with tax-deductible donations made to The Rumpus through our fiscal sponsor, Fractured Atlas, help keep us going and brings us closer to sustainability.
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