The Oberlin Review
<< Front page News September 24, 2004

Close-up on Field Magazine

Ever wonder where today’s great poets are getting their first shot at fame? The answer is right here at Oberlin—in the basement of Peters Hall, where the editors and staff of Field literary magazine and Oberlin College Press are hard at work, keeping the craft of poetry alive.

Since its founding in 1969, Field: Contemporary Poetry and Poetics has been dedicated to promoting good poets. Says founder David Young, “Our mission is to find and print the best contemporary poetry in English and in other languages. If it’s in other languages, it has to be translated, and that means locating the best translators.”

Field is published biannually, in the fall and spring. In addition to original poetry and translations, every fall issue includes a symposium of essays on a particular poet. The spring issue includes a section of poetry reviews.

Field has attracted attention in recent years for being one of the most selective literary journals in the country. The magazine receives piles of mail every day and can only accept about one poem out of every 900 submissions. This summer, the Cleveland Plain Dealer’s Sunday magazine called Field the “Gold Standard” for contemporary poetry. The feature included interviews with writers who have been submitting for years without success.

Many major poets got their start in Field. The first issue included work from Gary Snyder, Denise Levertov, Donald Hall and Robert Bly. Other big-name contributors include former poet laureate Billy Collins, Charles Simic and Marilyn Hacker.

Young looks back fondly on an issue from 1977 that featured a poem by Franz Wright, an Oberlin alum and recent recipient of the Pulitzer Prize. “This was one of his first publications,” said Young. “There are a lot of names in here that we are a good deal more familiar with now than we were then. I take pride in our good judgment—we were discovering good poetry then as we are now, and the newcomers we featured went on to become quite distinguished.”

In addition to its biannual journal, Oberlin College Press has published 37 titles through the Field Poetry Series and Field Translation Series. The Press awards the Field Poetry Prize every summer, publishing the winning manuscript that is selected from hundreds of entries. This year’s prize went to Beckian Fritz Goldberg, for her manuscript Lie Awake Lake, which will be released in April 2005. Goldberg’s work is also featured in this fall’s issue of Field.

For 35 years now, Field has been a vital part of Oberlin’s artistic tradition, a tradition in which students as well as famous writers can take part. Each semester, creative writing students intern in the Press office as part of a practicum, earning up to two credits. Interns learn all the ins and outs of running a small press; they read manuscripts from all over the world, fill book orders and design publicity materials. Perhaps the most exciting part is that interns sometimes sit in on bi-monthly editorial meetings, where they observe the careful deliberation that goes into putting Field together, poem by poem.

Most small literary publications struggle to survive for more than a few years. Field’s staff works to procure new subscribers and funding from arts councils and foundations so the magazine can continue publishing cutting-edge poetry. “I never thought we’d go 35 years,” said Young. “I just hope good poetry continues to come our way and that we continue to represent it.”

Interested in subscribing to Field or ordering a gift subscription? Contact Oberlin College Press/Field magazine at Peters G8/10, x58408. Field can also be found in Mudd library.
 
 

   

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