Yesterday, I had the opportunity to have coffee with the editors of what I think might be one of the (if not the) most interesting ventures we have encountered in the lifespan of this blog, yet. Put together by creative writing grad students who themselves are prose writers, Plural Prose Journal is attempting quite the feat by dedicating an online space entirely to the interest of furthering prose.
What Is Plural?
Plural is an online prose journal. They feature prose work that is diverse (there is no theme per issue) and which pushes the limits of prose (both how it is written and how it is percieved) without necessarily breaking away from the heart of the matter: story-telling. The project is the brain child of founding editors Erika Carreon and Carlo Flordeliza. Joining them on the Plural editorial board are Neobie Gonzalez, Lystra Aranal and Rick Velasco.
How did it begin?
Plural began with Carlo and Erika—both of whom had known each other since they were in college.
“Although some of the ideas of making Plural and the name Plural itself came from a project that I worked on with some of my MFA classmates, what really jump-started it was when Carlo asked me, ‘Hey, wanna start a journal?’” Erika says jokingly.
“Also, Carlo was a good choice for me; we’ve known each other since college started and I always joke that since then he has been the most constant male presence in my life aside from my dad.”
On a more serious note, co-founding editor Carlo adds, “I also wanted to get the idea out there that prose isn’t something narrow—that you can play with ideas, with form using fiction. A lot of people are under the impression that prose is a rigid form, but it’s not. So I think Plural is supposed to represent that and when I presented these ideas to Erika, wala namang hesitation.”
When asked abouut how the group of editors came together, he says, “Erika was the only choice for me. I need someone I can trust and someone who can keep me in line—that’s her.”
Plural’s Editorial Board, sans Rick Velasco
After this initial agreement, they then decided to contact the journal’s three other editors.
Erika says that for her there had never been any question about who they wanted to work with. “Neobie, Lystra and Rick are people who bring something different and refreshing to the table but who have the same work ethic. I think it’s important when starting something like this to know who and which people you want to work with the most.”
Why now?
While there are (and have been) magazines which feature fiction and non-fiction, most of these have been primarily geared toward criticism and have just had a literary section on the side. Plural is a response to the absence of an avenue for contemporary prose writers to flourish (at least locally). This can be seen in contrast with the local poetry scene and the local indie comics scene, both of which have pretty established avenues for publication (i.e. the Poetry High Chair), distribution (i.e. Komikon) and appreciation.
Erika says, “We thought that it was about time that we came out with something like this—or made something of ourselves, maybe I mean—I’m normally a very laid back person, but I realized that I’m finishing my masters and yet so far, (I know it isn’t a measure of greatness but) I haven’t gotten into any workshops, I have a few pieces published but yeah: my thesis is fiction, but the work I’ve published is poetry. That really messed with my brain. I think that (for me) a big part of it was to get out of what felt like literary procrastination. I really hated the intellectual lethargy that I’d fallen into and so it felt absolutely opportune when Carlo approached me with the idea.”
Carlo adds, “The idea for Plural was born from my growing restlessness for Philippine fiction—most of the things that come out now are themed anthologies. You know, in my mind like, how can we expand the borders of fiction beyond this whole “Filipino-ness” thing if we don’t have a venue? Plural was really about that for me. I didn’t have a name at the beginning, just an idea—like Facebook, hahaha—kidding aside, yeah. So I pitched the idea to Erika and she said yes. This was summer last year.”
How does Plural operate?
Plural is released bi-annually through different online formats—pdf (for us laptop/PC users), e-pub (for the readers on Kindle) and mobi (for those who are on other e-readers like the Nook or Kobo).
The issues are free. The editors stress that this was very important to them: it was one of their goals that access to the journal be easy and open for everyone interested in reading it.
Every issue consists of different stories, all of which are carefully curated by the editors—in addition to this, they feature one artist every issue; the artist is selected based on how his or her body of work complements the overall feel of the issue.
What can we expect from the issue?
“Ummm—sad stories,” Neobie volunteers. A murmur of consensus runs through the group.
“Yes, so sad. But also very funny. Stories which will make you laugh and then break your heart,” Lystra adds. “There’s this one story which is really funny, I was laughing so hard the entire time that I was reading it—it ‘s a story written in Filipino and in very sort-of crass, coloquial language. I let my sister read it: she has a hard time with Filipino but even she enjoyed it. It’s stuff like that. Stuff that’s well-written but very relatable.”
“The thing about the work in this issue is that it’s all stuff that is contemporary and which we feel represents prose as a broader form without deviating too far from what prose is. All of it fits the voice that Plural is trying represent,” Carlo says.
“Wonderfully sad is a good way to put it,” Erika says in conclusion.
The work in the first issue features work from writers Mitch Cerda, Marguerite Alcazaren de Leon, Glenn Diaz, Wina Puangco, Joshua So, Chris Mariano, Jenette Vizcocho, Francis Alcantara, Melissa R. Sipin, Stephanie Shi and Noelle Leslie de la Cruz.
Also featured in the issue is work by local graphic artist Kevin Roque.
Plural’s first issue cover by Kevin Roque
“We were looking for artists—with the prose work for this first issue we didn’t post a call for submissions because we wanted to first be able to feature work from writers who we already trusted to produce quality work. That’s key for a ‘pilot’ issue. But we did put out a call for unsolicited art and we got a couple of responses: not to take away from the other artists who contacted us but none of them were what we were looking for; none of them fit the aesthetic that this issue was going for,” Erika explains.
“And then I remembered Kevin, whose work I’d seen because he’s my Facebook friend and he posts a lot of his completed projects online. And yeah. I showed the work to everyone else and poof, it just fit. Kevin’s work is incredible.”
What are Plural’s goals for the future?
“To keep going. We also want to help our contributors out and eventually go into print with chapbooks and various anthologies—like the first five years, if we make it til then,” Carlo says.
“But it won’t be traditional printing,” Neobie stresses. “If ever, it’s going to be print on demand. We’ll print for when we have events or when people order. That’s sustainable.”
“Also, like we mentioned previously, we’re only looking to assign a value to the books and make back costs for printing and transportation but we’re not in this for the money. So, we want to as much as possible, keep doing this while charging as little for it as possible. Pamasahe lang,” Carlo says of Plural’s future plans.
Where can you find Plural?
Plural Online Prose Journal can be found at the following web addresses:
Facebook
Plural’s official website
Twitter
Google +
Their first issue is coming out February 25th, Tuesday. Click here to see the first issue’s trailer!
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