Category: editor’s notes

Issue #4 ~ Summer 2021
Editors’ Note

Dear Friends and Lovers of Fine Literature and Art,

At long last, we are pleased to present our 4th issue of The Good Life Review. This release is significant for us as it marks the end of our first full year as a budding literary journal. With any new endeavor, you never know quite what to expect until you are in the thick of it. That has certainly been true for this journey thus far and as we look back over the past year and a half, we can’t help but feel fortunate, proud, and grateful.

When we initially began, we were hopeful that we would have twenty submissions in the first month, worried that we might not have enough to provide readers with full issues, and concerned that our editors would tire of volunteering their time. Instead, we came to realize that the love of sharing between artists in the world is limitless. We have received thousands of submissions with letters from writers who have a desire to share their passion and the fruits of their labor with us.

All the editors on our team are artists just like those who send their work to us, and we understand that each submission, be it writing, painting, photography, etc., is much more than just a name, letter, and manuscript to consider. It is a reflection and exploration of the deeper parts of ourselves. These reflections are raw and vulnerable which can make sharing them scary and difficult. It is a risk, but the desire for human connection is a powerful one and when we put our hearts on display for the world to see, the reward can be equally great. 

In this issue, we are excited to feature the winners of our first contests in poetry, nonfiction, and fiction. Congratulations to Pamela Sumners for her poem, “April is the Cruelest Month;” Sarah Lass for her nonfiction essay, “Here, Gone, Again;” and Koree Schueler for her fiction story, “Inspection Checklist.” Brava to these incredible pieces, and thank you for being a part of our inaugural Honey Bee Prize. 

We also want to express gratitude to our guest judges: Marco Wilkinson, Douglas Manuel, and Kate Gale who not only volunteered their time and expertise but were also wonderful to work with and provided insight and direction when we needed it. Thanks also to the editors who did double duty reading both issue and contest submissions—Annie Barker, Mike Keller-Wilson, Tacheny Perry, Allison Guenette, and Stepha Vesper, 

As it has been for our previous three issues, we are still feeling our way through the ins and outs of this business. As such, we continue to make changes to improve how we operate and take steps toward being a more diverse, inclusive, and welcoming space. One of the changes in this issue is the presentation of submitted artwork alongside the scripts, poems, stories, and essays that were selected. 

Our decision to accept artwork and photography via our submission platform was actually one of the easier ones, and we were blown away by the sheer number of pieces to consider. Those selected were chosen because of their thoughtfulness and the ways in which they visually complement the writing in the issue. Special thanks to Michelle Kimberly who urged us in this direction and whose talents and eye for design and detail are incredible. She has worked tirelessly on our web platform and all of the pdf versions of our issues and is truly an invaluable member of our team.   ❤️

Lastly, to everyone who contributed in some way to the successful release of this issue, thank you. We appreciate the love and support we’ve received and could not have come this far in such a short time or continue without it. We hope you enjoy all of what this issue has to offer and that you will return again and again!

That’s it for Issue #4, Summer 2021. 

Cheers to Celebrating Together for Years to Come,

~Shyla and Ed

Issue #3 ~ Spring 2021
Editor’s Note

Dear Readers, 

Spring has arrived in Omaha and with it, the promise of daffodils, tulips, and iris pushing through the newly thawed ground, rain to wash away winter grey, and this—The Good Life Review’s first Spring issue. 

Our aim from the start was to create a space worthy of the myriad of voices that surround us. For our third issue, we attempted to draw in a larger, more diverse population of writers, and were pleased by the number and quality of submissions we received, some of which found us from half a globe away. I was personally touched by the submission letters from students in South Korea, who were hoping to publish their work in order to build their portfolios for school. I could not help but think what amazing times we are living in, that such connection and communication are possible.

This issue includes poems, stories, and personal essays by a group of incredible writers from the likes of Nebraska, Georgia, New York, Oregon, California, Michigan, Illinois, Washington, the Philippines, London, and Australia. It’s truly more than I could have hoped for and a wonderful representation of what The Good Life can be. Thank you to all of our contributors for making this issue fabulous! 

I’m also thrilled about the addition of stage and screen plays to what we are offering our readers. This would not have been possible without our two skilled script editors, Jacob Lawson and Joe Atkinson. I am thankful that they were willing to join our team and spend their time and effort with us. I’m also pleased as punch to have the lovely Tacheny Perry joining our flash fiction team. Welcome Jake, Joe, and Tacheny! And similar to our previous issues, I’d also like to extend my gratitude to the rest of our staff who continue to dedicate their time and talent to our organization. 

In producing this issue I developed a greater understanding of the potential impact that our publication could have on an individual as well as the literary community we support. Quite a responsibility, indeed, and one that I don’t take lightly. It is one thing to state that we are working toward becoming a more diverse, inclusive, and welcoming space, and another altogether to be active in pursuit of this goal. There are a number of challenges that we need to work through in order to hold true to our mission and vision. How we approach these challenges and the actions we take to amplify marginalized voices, support other local and national organizations, and fairly evaluate the writing that we receive will solidify who we are as a publication. I’m excited to see what 2021 will bring and hopeful that we can continue to grow and learn together. 

To our readers, thank you for visiting, for reading, and for your support of the arts. We hope you enjoy all of what this issue has to offer and that you will return again and again!

That’s it for Issue #3 Spring 2021. 

Cheers to Sitting on Patios and Sipping from a Full Cup,

~Shyla

Issue 3 Good Stuff:

Issue #2 ~ Winter 2020/2021
Editors’ Note

Hello again, Friends. Today, as we write this letter, we can’t help but think about the fact that it is the last day of 2020. This year has been a doozy, for everyone, an ominous presence hovering over every inch of the year and one that we are looking forward to leaving behind. Of course, in the months of planning our debut of The Good Life Review, we were not thinking about that. When deciding to publish quarterly issues, the cadence of the seasons for a journal based in Nebraska felt very natural. 

The progression from Issue 1 in autumn to Issue 2 in winter just works. Until you get to get to winter and realize that there’s a question about the year. Such a small detail, but one that concerned us: Would our second issue be Winter 2020 or Winter 2021? Surely there was enough time to produce the issue before the end of the year. Surely we would have learned enough from the first issue to roll quick and smooth through the process. Surely it would not be a problem promoting our second issue as “Winter 2020.” 

It now seems fitting to close out this year with our second issue. 2020 may have been tough but art continues to flourish, and this issue is proof that life continues and can thrive in the direst circumstances. It is the end-cap to a year that will be remembered as especially difficult, but we hope that this issue serves as a celebration—in a way preserving the beauty that can come out of hardship. 

And what a celebration indeed! We’ve poured over each piece in this issue and are so invested in all of them. We are once again grateful to our contributors for trusting us with their words and we hope that they find we’ve created a good home for their work. These pieces are the biggest part of what defines the voice and image of The Good Life Review and for that, we thank you!

In a way, it is also a celebration of what we anticipate and hope for in the coming year. The journal is very new and we are, as a team, still in the early stages of figuring out which directions to go with this endeavor.  We have learned a great deal at every turn, but expect there will be quite a bit more as we progress through producing future issues and running our first contest in 2021. 

One thing we know for certain is that whatever developments occur, we have the right team to continue being successful with what we are in the midst of planning. We want to express our thanks to the team and acknowledge their efforts, too. Without their dedication to craft and the time they take to carefully consider every submission this endeavor would not be possible.

To our readers, thank you for visiting, for reading, and for your support of the arts. We are confident that you will enjoy this issue and hope you will stick with us through 2021 and beyond! 

That’s it for Issue #2, Winter 2020 / 2021. 

Cheers to Hot Cocoa with Whipcream on Top,

~Shyla and Ed

Issue #1 ~ Autumn 2020
Editor’s Note

Hello Friends,

As autumn unfurls its bounty of color here in Omaha, it is hard to believe that nine short months ago we were sitting at a table at the Lied Lodge in Nebraska City, home of the low-residency University of Nebraska MFA program, entertaining the idea of starting a literary magazine. 

At the time we did not know what we were in for. The seed was planted by faculty mentor Tom Paine, and the idea sparked excitement around the Lodge. Of course we would need a solid crew who were just as passionate about the idea. Of course we would need to establish our presence and somehow get the word out. And of course, we would need people to take a risk and trust us with their precious words. 

We envisioned creating a space that would showcase the writing of everyday people, who live and work among us. Writers whose stories and lives are often overlooked. As it is written in our mission statement: We are committed to exploring the overlooked. We recognize the diversity of voices that exist in the Midwest and know that a great many have something extraordinary to share. We were excited about the prospect of reading those remarkable works, and we imagined creating a good home for those poems, essays, and stories.

What we could not have imagined, in those early conversations, was that in the weeks and months to follow, the world would spin into a swirling vortex of doom–escalating racial injustice, riots, protesting, natural and unnatural disasters have all been in ample supply in 2020. Not to mention, the onset of a global pandemic. 

Given that, we could have halted our progress; we could have piled our plans on the back burner or canceled altogether. But that’s not who we are. The team decided to press on, fueled by the notion that art and literary celebration is so valuable in these difficult times. Passion for our craft is what brought us together, and we wanted to continue to contribute to the conversation by connecting writers and readers. The team, our friends:  Annie, Joel, Erin, Mike, Pamela, Allison, Suzanne, Stepha, Mimi, Cat, Tre, Kelsey, Luna, and Michelle, each played an important role in getting us to the finish line with this first issue. We’re grateful for you, your decision to join us on this journey, and your dedication!! We would also like to acknowledge Avery Kester for their contribution of drawings and website prototyping early in the project. Their ideas, banners, and logos allowed us to get our website live and open for promotion.

Special thanks to Michelle Quick, whose talents as a designer, writer, and maker extend to every corner of what the GLR has to offer. Her work on design and branding has been incredible, and her keen aesthetic eye invaluable throughout the process. We’re lucky to have her on our team.   

Special thanks also to Trelana Daniel, for her vision and follow-through in creating a podcast to supplement the content we have to offer readers. A weekly podcast was not part of our original plan, and she not only pitched the idea but also did ALL of the work to make it a reality. We’re grateful for her contribution, skills, and for her amazing voice. Tre has also taken on the task of being our social media manager which, as we came to realize, is vital to our success. 

We also owe a fair bit of gratitude to the people who provided guidance, direction, advice, and promotional support throughout this process: Tom Paine, faculty mentor for the MFA program at the University of Nebraska Omaha; Kevin Clouther, Program Coordinator for the MFA program at University of Nebraska Omaha; Kate Gale, faculty mentor for the MFA program at the University of Nebraska Omaha and Editor of Los Angeles Review. A final thank you to Sarah O’Brien, Tobi Harper, and Rebeccah Sanhueza for their wise words about operating and producing a literary journal. Thank you! 

To our contributing authors, thank you for taking a leap of faith with us and being a part of our inaugural issue, which would not exist without you! 

And to our readers, thank you for supporting and believing in the arts. We hope you find something you love in this issue. And we hope you decide to return for more.  

That’s it for Issue #1.

Peace, Love, and Tacos,
~Shyla and Ed

Good stuff from issue #1: