The Rust Belt extends from the Great Lakes to the Upper Midwest and refers to the deindustrialization the region experienced as needs and supplies changed over the decades. As a Michigander, Detroit and Flint are well-known names from our state representing the Rust Belt sector. But on the tails of any discussion of decline and decay are examples and stories of revitalization and renewal, and these are common literary themes. Rattle takes a uniquely complex approach in issue #57, looking instead to the impact “the shifting political attitude of this region” had on the 2016 election and checks in to “find a first-hand account of what’s going on through the poet’s eye.”
Featured poets include: Joseph A. Chelius, Edward Derby, Heather Finnegan, Jim Hanlen, Zachary Hester, Donna Hilbert, Ananda Lima, Bob Lucky, Herbert Woodward Martin, Andrew Miller, Behzad Molavi, Al Ortolani, Li Qingzhao, Lee Rossi, Michael Sears, Matthew Buckley Smith, and Dennis Trudell, with a conversation with Detroit-based psychotherapist and poet Ken Meisel.
1st place goes to Dan Murphy [pictured] of Brooklyn, NY, who wins $2500 for “In Miniature.” His story will be published in Issue 101 of Glimmer Train Stories. This will be his first fiction publication.
“I Am Not Your Negro shows how the later Baldwin, as he negotiated the politics of the mid-to-late 1960s and lived through the murders of Medgar Evers, Malcolm X, and Martin Luther King, Jr., became disillusioned about the possibility of any peaceful resolution to racism. Though the film hints at Baldwin’s emergent anti-capitalism, attention to the texts Peck draws from reveal the force with which Baldwin began to see American capitalism, nationalism, normative sexuality, and whiteness as inextricably bound. To address racism, then, he came to believe, would require a fundamental transformation of society. More likely, though, America would burn itself to the ground.”
Emma Lazarus’ sonnet “The New Colossus” has gained new popular attention of late, thanks in part to White House senior policy adviser 
Listen, the dolls in my dollhouse
Subscribers to Rattle magazine will find a nice surprise with their Fall 2017 issue: a copy of the 2017 
Publishing fiction, poetry, and essays from the Department of English at Auburn University, Alabama, 
Able Muse Press annually holds the Able Muse Book Award, which offers a $1,000 prize, plus publication of the winning manuscript. The 2016 winner was recently published: Aaron Poochigian with Manhattanite.
Winners of the annual Mary C. Mohr Awards in fiction and poetry appear in the Spring 2017 issue of 
“Decompose #4” by Taylor Torres is featured on the cover of 
The work of artist and activist 
Entre Rios Press
After the first few months of getting their online feet wet, 
Under the Sun
For either 12 or 24 hours starting at 9am on August 5, 2017, an elite group of writers entered into – and finished – the annual 
The winners of 
The newest issue of 
Arkana
Nonfiction
Happy 40th Anniversary to 
Each year, PEN America grants one winner of the 
Gulf Coast: A Journal of Literature and Fine Arts
I have to admit to being slightly creeped out by 
I’m not sure if the cover images “Remote Lighthouse” by David Mark / “Delta Flyers” by Barry Jones was intentional – with the black and white lighthouse – given the special art feature in this Summer 2017 issue of 
In the most recent issue, 
Second Look
Ever stuck your foot or hand into ice cold water and held it there, feeling the numbness of the aftershock? How about the whacky idea of a polar plunge – your whole body into an icy lake – can you imagine what that must feel like? Believe it or not, that’s the exact sensation the editors of 
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