I’m happy to announce the upcoming launch of NōD Magazine featuring one of my stories among its many fab pieces.
NōD Magazine is a print litmag run out of the University of Calgary, based in the English Department but edited by undergraduate students from all departments. They publish prose, poetry, and artwork from new and established writers from everywhere, launching one gorgeous issue every summer.
Issue 31 launches on July 23rd.
I’ve been anxious to get my hands on this magazine for years — it’s not easy to purchase except at the time of each launch — and I’m so pleased to have a story in its pages.
Issue 31 launches in person in Calgary, from 7-9pm, July 23rd, at Shelf Life Books. If you are in the area, head out to hear live readings and purchase a copy.
My story, “Stripe the Revolutionary Skunk Reflects on his Attempt to Change the World,” is about a would-be animal revolution led by a genius skunk.
The story was years in the making, cobbled together from a massive file called “confessions.” I keep a journal practice and often, when I can’t think what to write, I’ll fill a page with a confession of murder by some non-human animal (who doesn’t, right?). This morphed into a series of interviews for a revolutionary army, and eventually I created a short story of sorts from a selection of its pieces. Since NōD loves whimsical pieces, I sent it to them — and was thrilled to get a yes.)
The story opens with Stripe’s first revenge killing and proceeds to the premise:
Picture a montage of horror: burning forests, empty seas, beakless chickens and trampled pigs, a frenzied fox in a leghold trap, the grey fingers of an old chimpanzee reaching through the wire of a roadside zoo. Et cetera.
Now picture a billboard at the edge of town: Assassins wanted. No experience required. The ability to pose as a human companion animal is a definite asset.
The lineups stretch to the horizon.
There follows a series of interviews for the revolutionary army, with Q&As including, “Can you provide intel on human vulnerabilities?” and Do you have the stomach required to gnaw off the hand that sometimes feeds some of us?”
The story includes just a fragment of my animal confessions, and I may publish more one day. (I have a massive 5-act epic in mind, with portraits and graphic panels….)
For now, I am thrilled that NōD will be launching Stripe into the world. (Thanks Mack and Alexandra and all the contributing editors!)
I can’t wait to read this summer’s issue!
If you are interested in submitting to NōD Magazine, keep an eye on their blog for a fall submission call. You can read the NōD guidelines here.
Check out my Canadian LitMag List for more opportunities and submit something today.
The world needs our stories. 🙂
[The first two images in this post are borrowed from the NōD blog; the Stripe portrait is an AI rendering of an obvious prompt and I must say, I love the hair and will be adding it to my comic….]
Catherine Austen 