Best of the Web Nominations

I am pleased to announce Valparaiso Poetry Review’s nominations for the upcoming Best of the Web anthology from Dzanc Books. The publisher describes its annual anthology as “representing in book form the best literary writing online magazines have to offer.” The editors consider up to three works selected for submission by each online literary journal. As noted in a recent post, two poems that first appeared in Valparaiso Poetry Review—“Prophet Township” by Jared Carter and “Walking an Old Woman into the Sea” by Frannie Lindsay—were honored by being chosen for publication alongside nearly sixty other works in the recent issue of the anthology, Best of the Web 2008.

As I mentioned previously about nominating work from the journal for special distinction, I have a high regard for every poem selected to be in VPR, and I am uncomfortable—as the editor who accepted all the poetry—choosing some pieces to be honored over others. I value all the poems and depend on all the poets in Valparaiso Poetry Review.

Yet, I welcome the admirable efforts of the anthology’s editors to bring attention to the growing number of fine works being published in online journals. Also, I am pleased when an opportunity arises for a few of VPR’s splendid poets to reach a larger audience and find the greater recognition they deserve through possible inclusion in the anthology.

Therefore, once again, I have relied on the numerous comments concerning poems appearing in VPR’s most recent issues that I have received in correspondence from readers throughout the past year. In this way, I obtained a sense of readers’ response to the poetry in VPR’s pair of issues in Volume IX (Fall/Winter 2007-2008 and Spring/Summer 2008), which are eligible for the 2009 anthology by Dzanc Books.

Based upon a compilation of those observations by VPR’s readers, I have been able to offer the editors three poems for consideration from Valparaiso Poetry Review, and I am pleased to announce the following nominations:

John Balaban: “Finishing Up the Novel After Some Delay”

W.D. Ehrhart: “Coaching Winter Track in Time of War”

Lynnell Edwards: “Suite for Red River Gorge”

The works by Balaban and Ehrhart appear in Volume IX, Number 1 (Fall/Winter 2007-2008), and the Edwards poem appears in Volume IX, Number 2 (Spring/Summer 2008).

I congratulate the nominated poets. At the same time, as I have in the past, I wish to express my appreciation to all the contributors whose works have appeared in VPR this last year, as well as in past years. I also hope this post encourages readers to continue communicating their feedback on writings in the journal, commentary I always enjoy receiving. In addition, I am grateful for all the ongoing support Valparaiso Poetry Review has received from contributors and readers during its nine years of publication, and I look forward to much more good poetry in the future from other contributors I hope readers will find equally as entertaining, engaging, and enlightening as those they have chosen to compliment in their past correspondence.