Literature and Editing: The Publishing Process of a Literary Magazine

Invited by Soochow University’s Light Year Poets Society as the third speaker of the four literature-related lectures in a two-week “Light Year Poetry Festival” from May 8 to May 19, the editor Godwind (penname) of Unitas Literary Monthly talked about the theme of "Literature and Editing." She is not only an editor but a writer who wrote Girl Core, The Ninety-Eight Percent Mediocre Girl, etc.

Godwind started her speech by citing the movie Genius, in which the editor Perkins and the writers Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald became bosom friends after  discussing and revising the manuscripts together and publishing their novels. According to her own experiences, in  reality, nevertheless, it is inevitable for an editor to encounter some difficulties that it may even wear down his or her passion for editing and publishing.

Godwind then introduced the publishing process of a monthly magazine. First, the editors need to decide the theme, make the outline, write down the imposition scheme, revise the draft, and then check the printing conditions in the factory. She joked that the publishing process is a constant "one-month cycle in hell,” and the editor's job is almost like a factory worker’s.

In the case of a literary magazine, editors hardly revise authors’ drafts, but just correct some typos or misspellings. In addition, they also need to communicate with photographers, illustrators, art editors and hold meetings to discuss and select the covers and the pictures in the magazine.

Most editors working in literature publishing business love writing. However, while writing can be completed by a single person, editing and publishing a magazine always involve team work. It is necessary and essential for an editor to communicate and cooperate with other people in order to make good publications possible. In the end of her speech, Godwind shared her words of wisdom: "In literature and editing, you’ll find both passion and frustration. The two may seem different but could be the same. So try to stand in the middle, and you are welcome to be a middle person of love!”