Taking its name from a storied intersection in downtown Eau Claire, a new literary magazine called Barstow & Grand promises to be the perfect complement to the city’s burgeoning arts and culture scene.
Even though Eau Claire has “very blue-collar roots,” it still supports a lot of writing groups of all stripes, says Barstow & Grand founder and editor Eric Rasmussen. “Now, [with this magazine] we’re building towards something grand and artistic,” he says. “We can provide that experience for local writers, be supportive of the people around here who maybe have dreams of something bigger.”
Rasmussen’s goal for the magazine reflects the philosophy that drives its parent organization, the Chippewa Valley Writers Guild (CVWG), which works to support regional writers through craft talks, writing residencies, readings, and other community initiatives.
While writers don’t have to live in the valley to submit their materials to the new magazine, submitters are asked to prepare a brief (less than one hundred words) “Chippewa Valley Connection” statement to accompany their work. Because the magazine was founded “over beers on the porch,” Rasmussen chuckles when he notes that more than a handful of submissions thus far “connect to the region through Leinenkugels.”
Barstow & Grand accepts fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and hybrid text submissions of up to 4,000 words from March 1 to April 30 each year, and will publish their annual edition in the fall of that same year. Look for the inaugural issue of the magazine to arrive in time for the October 26, 2017, release party at Volume One headquarters at 205 North Dewey Street, Eau Claire.
