_{Photo courtesy of NJPAC}

Welcome Venture readers! 

On October 19th several Venture team members volunteered at the Newark Dodge Poetry Festival, including Editor-in-Chief Maura Corman, Web Editor Ashley Morales, Poetry Editor Micheal Keahon, and myself!  My name is Talia Hincks and I am a Fiction Editor at Venture. 

I was delighted when Professor Vincent Toro extended volunteer information to us, because although I specialize in fiction and prose, poetry has taken a fond hold over my heart. After a few hours wrangling busses of school kids, our team explored the festival. We picnicked by a carousel, we watched Professor Toro perform, but my favorite part was the open mic session. 

Short and simple: the open mic reminded me of my role as an editor. I had no idea what was coming, no idea who the poets were, or what their skill levels were, but each one of them got up to the stage and showed us who they were. There were veterans (both metaphorically and literally), and there were newbies as well. Performers ranged from 15 to 65, and each had a unique story to tell. 

There were no winners, and no losers, just people on a stage asking to be seen. That’s what it feels like to be an editor for a literary magazine. Reading every new submission was like stepping into the deep end, because there was no way to predict the outcome of a story. It was wonderful. Unfortunately Venture is only able to publish so many pieces per year, and it was difficult to choose only 5 fiction pieces for our last issue. Being at an open mic was a relief because I didn’t have to choose at all, I simply sat, and listened, and saw. 

I would love to go back to the Dodge Poetry Festival, but more than that, going to that open mic was a source of inspiration. I wanted to create, I wanted to listen, and I wanted to share my own work. 

So it is my personal mission, before the year ends, to find another open mic to go to. I’d love to just sit and experience that same magic, but it also could be pretty cool to read my own work. 

Either way, it was an experience for the books (or rather, the blog). 

Talia Hincks, signing off!

P.S. Submissions for Venture Magazine are open! Open to all Rider University Alumni, current students, and staff! Send in your submissions today. For more information, click here: Venture 24-25 Submission Form