There's little I am left wanting from San Diego. All in all, she's a pretty good town: plenty of sunshine, good vibes, Jacoranda trees, the mighty Pacific, and a burgeoning arts and music scene to boot. Aside from May-Grey/June-Gloom and dangerously poor bike lanes, all I'm usually left hankering after is an opaque literary community. For sometime now, I've known of some dear souls out there, faithfully penning works of worthy regard; however inaccessible by way of lousy exposure. If only there was some collective platform on which those satellite San Diegans could present their written work! Well, imagine my contentment when, whilst selecting some jukebox jams at Turf Club (with which to mourn/toast my very sudden unemployment), I came across a flier announcing open submissions for an online literary and arts journal, The Latent Print. It almost seemed too good to be true, so I contacted the pioneers behind the project (and was glad to discover it wasn't).
Who is The Latent Print & what inspired all of this?
Charlie, Matt, and Eric started a writing group to inspire and push each other in their writing. Discussion arose regarding the lack of and need for an outlet for writers. They decided to do something about that, brought Lily into the project, and then approached Diana about joining the group, and The Latent Print was born. When the five of us started getting together and sharing ideas, the project really blossomed. We have allowed it to organically grow into a multi-media project.
While creative endeavors like art & music get their fair share of local attention, the literary scene is often overlooked. What do you suppose that is?
It is surprising that in San Diego, where there are three major universities and many talented writers, there aren’t many consistent venues to showcase local literature. Visual art and music are more accessible in ways that literature is not, and we have found a great way to combine these media and hopefully foster community among different types of artists in the process. In literary circles, there has been a sort of taboo against online publications, and we are looking to challenge that way of thinking.
The Latent Print is not only a mix of written genres, but visual mediums. Why did you decide to have such a broad oeuvre & how do you see them working together?
We've heard some criticism saying that we're taking on too much. We envision a desegregated art community through The Latent Print. As a group, we represent so many different tastes and media, it wouldn't seem right to leave out one. In San Diego a lot of artists are struggling, and if it makes sense to come together in order to have a louder voice and stronger presence, why wouldn't we?
What do you hope readers will come away with?
The idea behind the name of "The Latent Print" is to leave a mark, and that's precisely what we are hoping other people will do, and be inspired to do by reading The Latent Print. We want people to come away with the awareness that all of these media, all of these artists DO exist in San Diego. We just want you to do SOMETHING, and if you already do, give another medium a whirl. Submit work, or don't, just create.
Have you ever considered a print format (for future editions, etc.)?
As a matter of fact, our initial goal was to produce a hard-copy version of our online content. As the project has progressed, we are looking at a quarterly or semi-annual collection of select works but always online.
What journals can be found on your browser or bedside table?
Diana: Juxtapoz, Hi Fructose
Lily: McSweeney's, Paris Review, Bitch, too many blogs to count
Matt and Eric: Harper's
Charlie: The Comics Journal, the world wide web...
When's last call for submissions?
There isn't one. Yesterday, today, next week, whenever. We are always accepting submissions, we are always evolving. Submit...soon.
Join The Latent Print crew for their launch party at the Whistle Stop on August 5th. For more information about the journal, go here or here.