City's first literary journal to debut this fall

A little known Noblesville trivia fact: 8th Street, now the route used by some motorists to avoid the busier 9th and 10th Streets, used to be the main north-south drag through town.


The street, originally named Polk Street, has seen a lot of change since 1823, from mills that once stood at the north bend on the river to bars and liveries and hotels lining the once bustling street on the south side of Conner. Depots connected Noblesville to St. Louis, Chicago, and Louisville.

Now a new literary journal, named The Polk Street Review, is seeking submissions from local writers. Old Town resident and high school teacher Bill Kenley, who applied for a Lilly Teacher Creativity Grant to start a literary journal in Noblesville recently was awarded the grant.

Kenley and fellow Old Town resident Kurt Meyer are collaborating on the project, which will be published in October of 2011.

“We wanted to do something to create an outlet for local writers, to enhance the cultural identity of Noblesville, and at the same time broaden the notion of what living in small-town Indiana means,” Meyer said.

“Polk Street became the line between the ‘good’ and ‘bad’ part of town, between blue collar and white collar, flood plain and high ground. It’s touched many of the defining aspects of local life for almost two centuries. The pages will be filled with stories that straddle the same lines of local experience.”

There are a number of literary journals in cities across the nation, and this will be the first of its kind in Noblesville as far as Meyer and Kenley know, who regularly trade fiction and review each others work.

“We agreed that opportunities for getting your work published were few,” Kenley said of his collaboration with Meyer in this new project. As far as the vision they have for the journal, Kenley said “we want the journal to look something like The Paris Review or McSweeney’s,” referring to some popular literary journals.

The journal is seeking fiction, non-fiction, poetry, interviews, photography, art and even has an undefined category. “All works must have a Noblesville connection, no matter how tenuous,” according to the journal’s page, The Polk Street Review, on facebook.

People interested in submitting work should send it to thepolkstreetreview@hotmail.com.

I surprised myself recently when a stranger asked me what I do and I heard the words “I’m a writer” come out of my mouth.

I had never summed myself up in those words before and it felt good to say. The only reason I did is because I’ve been doing this writing gig. But even if I wasn’t writing for publications, I hope I would have realized that I’m still a writer, simply because I love to write.
I recently read a great little article by James Altucher entitled “33 tips to be a better writer,” so here are some of them. If you’re a writer too maybe some will grab you. And if you’ve never considered yourself a writer but love to write, maybe you’ll shift your thinking a little. I’ve added my thoughts after each.
Write whatever you want. Nothing is off limits. Let go of ‘what’s proper.’
Bleed in the first line. Writing should grab people by the heart.
Don’t ask for permission. Leave out ‘in my opinion.’ Just say what you want to say.
Write a lot. Writing is like exercise—daily or at least a few times a week is the goal.
Read a lot. Expose yourself to great writing. Be a fixture at the library.
Don’t be afraid of what people think. If you feel it, write it. There are bound to be others that feel the same. Connect with those people through words.
Be opinionated. Have strong feelings on at least a couple of subjects.
Risk. When you put your strong opinions out there, you’ll open yourself up to criticism and sometimes that’s hard, but ultimately that is the best thing about writing—evoking emotions in people.
Take what everyone else thinks and explore the opposite. Question the status quo—I love to do this.
Paint. Or draw. Explore other artistic endeavors. Since I love hoopdance, that is what I often do.
Let it sleep. Come back to it. Tweak it.
Coffee. Lots of coffee.

See full article here.