The New Laurel Review is an eclectic literary magazine featuring poetry, essays, photography and art, translations, reviews, interviews, memoirs, short stories, etc. The cover art for Volume 21 is that of Daniel Finnigan. The Founding Editors were Alice and Calvin Claudel during the 1960s and was at that time known as The New Laurel Review. When Lee Meitzen Grue became Editor in the 1970s, the “New” was added. Lenny Emmanuel, since 1998, has been poetry, contributing, or managing editor. The magazine has published a number of notable poets and authors, including Gerald Locklin, Lyn Lifshin, Roland John (England), Dave Brinks, Joyce Odam, Jared Carter, Richard Pflum, Virgil Suarez, Edward Lowberry (England), Ray McNiece, James Nolan, Andrew Frisardi, and the list goes on and on. The editors delight in receiving quality work from those publishing early in their careers. They especially enjoy publishing new talent, such as that of Erik Anderson Reece, Ace Boggess, Ryan G. Van Cleve, Christopher Thomas, Beau Boudreaux, and so on. While Lee Grue is relatively liberal in her thinking and editing, often preferring free verse to formal structures, Lenny Emmanuel is rather conservative, literary, and prefers to see structure and control rather than bare emotions merely for the sake of emotion. His article “I.My.Mine.Me” reveals his views about editing and specifically why certain poems are not accepted for publication. Both editors, nevertheless, look for well-thought-out and well-wrought images, metaphors, and/or symbols (whether with free verse or traditional forms), syllabics, accentuals, rhyme, pararhymes, rhythms, etc. And they always enjoy surprises, ironies, surrealisms, magic realism, romantic decadence, memorable lines, etc. Poet’s Market for years has published editorial comments, guidelines for submitting, etc. Usually, only four or five poems should be submitted at a time; and if submitting poetry and prose, the submissions should be in separate envelopes. There should always be sufficient postage for returning the manuscripts to those submitting their work, and there should always be SASE (self-addressed stamped envelope). The magazine, usually an annual venture, publishes about 120 pages on excellent paper, with about 40 poems in each issue, two short stories, a critical article or memoir, an interview with a notable poet or author, and reviews of recent publications. There are also translations, and sometimes an entire issue is devoted to a particular group of poets or writers. Volume 23, for example, was devoted entirely to Cuban poets. Though the editors strive to be open-minded, they tend to frown on profanity and/or vulgarity unless they constitute a significantly integral part of the poem or prose. They also frown on emotions and confessions spread down the page merely for the sake of being different, pseudo Whitman or Cummings, and such submissions are usually only briefly read and sadly in passing.
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