Acceptance: IthacaLit

IthacaLit is a new journal that has taken its recent flight very seriously. As a result, it has already learned to soar. Currently, a small number of poets, only twelve, have work on the site; but the quality is outstanding, and so IthacaLit spreads young yet magnificent wings. You will find the work of seasoned and extraordinary voices like Diane Lockward and Desmond Kon Zhicheng-Mingdé, and also lesser known yet scintillant silver-tongues as well.

Founding Editor Michele Lesko has done everything right (with assistance from Editor Sherry O’Keefe, who also edits at YB poetry). She no doubt realized that if the name of your journal is eponymous with place, you de facto become a representative of the personality and eloquence of place. By claiming geographical kinship, you contribute to a communal aura.

In my sincerest opinion, the city of Ithaca can be quite proud of this nascence--and better be. IthacaLit is like a star that pulls your eye to a certain quadrant of the sky.

Today is Solstice and I’m not swimming in an abundance of time (maybe a little ice), but I want to add that the ambience upon arrival at the URL (ithacalit.com) is absolutely pro. Expert and stylish organization, including font and color, synergize with a generous assortment of starkly good photos. You feel emotional roots as soon as you cross the threshold.

Once this journal gets known, the chance of acceptance is bound to plummet; and I suspect it is already a camel-through-the-eye-of-a-needle kind of thing. Polish your best pieces with lapidary care, and send them out quick. Keep in mind the Yule song that goes, “Up on the rooftop quick, quick, quick” and move even faster!

I’m lucky and honored that my poems “Hermit Thrush Song” and “On the Couch” will be included. A rare and special gift.

This journal is a must-see.

Owl