L E T T E R   F R O M   T H E   E D I T O R   ~   f e b r u a r y   2 0 0 6
BLUE STOCKINGS AND YELLOW WALLPAPER
Margin celebrates National Women's History Month
b y   t a m a r a   s e l l m a n   ~    M a r g i n

To subscribers, contributors and friends of Margin:

We're pleased to celebrate National Women's History Month and have put together a comprehensive series of articles to direct your attention to the growing magical realist presence in women's writing, with high points which include:

Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon ~ Native America's magical realist women ~ Charlotte Perkins Gilman's feminist treatise in "The Yellow Wallpaper" (forthcoming) ~ America's top forty favorite magical realist divas ~ Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God ~ MR's blue-stockinged heroines

We're also devoting our MAGICAL REALISM NEWS BLOG to women writers of magical realism from all 50 states throughout the month of March.

Some announcements:

• Check out the crystal ball icon on our contents page. Roll your cursor over it and you will foresee into a bit of Margin's future for 2006!

• Coming in late March/early April: "Earthwords—magical realists speak the language of the planet" ~ our special focus on Earth Day, the equinox and all things elemental

• Our general reading period is still CLOSED. Sorry, we've got 2006 filled! Stay tuned for news about upcoming calls for submissions, and see below. There's also been a CHANGE IN PLANS regarding our "Passages to India" theme. Since we revamped the schedule, we've decided to turn that theme into an extensive article for inclusion in "A World of Magical Realism." Therefore, we're not accepting any more submissions for this special theme call for submissions; thanks, but we have everything we need for a fabulous article on MR from the subcontinent.

• Our Hurricane Relief project, Southern Revival: Deep South Magic for Hurricane Relief is off to a good start. We've collected enough donations and manuscripts for a special edition of Periphery to be released in Spring 2006; our decisions on the manuscripts will be forthcoming in April. We'll keep you posted on developments with Southern Revival; right now, it's a safe guess that we have already collected enough donations to help provide 1000 books to those Southern libraries and evacuees most desperately in need. Interested in reserving your copy or giving a donation? We're asking for $10 minimum, 100% of each donation forwarded to First Book.

• Because we're in the midst of a vortex of cool changes at Margin, we're inviting everyone and anyone to give us their FEEDBACK. What's worked for you? What hasn't? What would you like to see at Margin that we haven't already done? What really isn't worth our effort? Go to the survey page to download your poll and let us know how we're doing. Your responses will help shape the coming future of Margin.

• Finally, a little shameless self promotion: Please visit TUESDAY NIGHT PUBLISHING and learn about the soon-to-be-released anthology of speculative fiction, Obliquity. This book has been a local project near and dear to my heart and I heartily recommend its purchase, especially if you like eclectic collections of imaginative writing. Includes contributions from two descendants of the infamous Heinlein family; you'll not want to miss it!

In the meantime, please enjoy this special tribute to MR's leading ladies. Sending you many happy wishes, for Mardi Gras, National Women's History Month, National Small Press Month and the first day of March!

Tamara Kaye Sellman, Editor and Publisher
aka The Magical Realism Maven

(see our SPECIAL EDITION TABLE OF CONTENTS)

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Rev'd 2006/03/01