Image courtesy deathtothestockphoto.com

If you’ve been reading Write It Sideways for at least a few months, you’ll probably know that we’re creating our own literary journal, which will be connected to the blog, but which will also stand on its own.

Here are a few updates on how things are going with Compose: A Journal of Simply Good Writing:

Some of the distinguished contributors to the inaugural issue include Randall Mann (Breakfast with Thom Gunn), Stefanie Freele (Feeding Strays), Jeff Goins (Wrecked), Jennie Nash (The Victoria’s Secret Catalog Never Stops Coming), Josh Hanagarne (World’s Strongest Librarian), Lisa Cron (Wired for Story), and interviewee Catherine Ryan Hyde (Pay It Forward).

The website at composejournal.com is still in beta mode, but the design work is complete and we have a spiffy new logo, which you can see above.

Meet the Editors

It’s been a long process, but I’m delighted to introduce you to our editorial team at Compose: A Journal of Simply Good Writing.

Each member brings different experience and skills to the table; I think we’ll be unstoppable once we put our heads together. We’re all eager to dig into first issue, and hope to have it ready for you by late spring.

Jennie Nash, Features Editor

Jennie Nash is the author of four novels, including Perfect Red, The Threadbare Heart, The Only True Genius in the Family and The Last Beach Bungalow. She is the author of three memoirs, including The Victoria’s Secret Catalog Never Stops Coming and Other Lessons I Learned From Breast Cancer. Jennie has worked in a wide variety of publishing roles, including stints in the editorial department at Random House, on the editorial staff of New York Woman magazine, and as a freelancer for dozens of publications from GQ to The New York Times. Jennie is an instructor at the UCLA Extension Writers’ Program and a private writing coach/consultant for fiction and non-fiction writers. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two daughters. Visit her website at www.jennienash.com.

Lisa Romeo, Creative Nonfiction Editor

Lisa Romeo is a nonfiction writer and editor living in New Jersey, where she teaches memoir and creative nonfiction in the Rutgers University Writing Program and at The Writers Circle. Lisa also works as an independent manuscript editor, and edits material for Brain, Child magazine. Her nonfiction and poetry have appeared in mainstream and literary venues, including the New York Times, O-The Oprah Magazine, Sweet!, Barnstorm, Sport Literate, and many others.  She is also a contributor to anthologies and themed essay collections. Lisa holds a B.S. in journalism and an MFA in creative writing, and her work has been recognized with awards, grants, and scholarships, including from the Vermont Studio Center and the American Society of Journalists and Authors.  Lisa is at work on a memoir of linked essays.  She lives in Cedar Grove, NJ, with her husband and two sons. Her blog offers a wealth of resources for writers. You can connect with Lisa via Twitter @LisaRomeo and contact her through her blog or website.

Andres Rojas, Poetry Editor

Andres Rojas was born in Cuba and came to the United States at age 13. He holds an M.F.A. in poetry and a J.D. from the University of Florida, and currently works for the United States Department of the Treasury.  He is the recipient of the Douglas M. Freels Poetry Award and the Jacksonville-State Street Review Poetry Award, (judged by Donald Justice). His work is forthcoming in Barrow Street and The Massachusetts Review, and has appeared in New England Review and elsewhere. He blogs about poetry at http://teoppoet.wordpress.com, and you can connect with him on Twitter as @EFAmericana.

Tamara Pratt, Fiction Editor

Tamara’s short stories have been published in Australian and USA e-zines and anthologies. She has qualifications in professional writing, and has placed in several short story competitions, including the Glass Woman Prize. In 2011, Tamara was awarded a Fellowship by Eleanor Dark Foundation and stayed at the Varuna Writers’ House where she was mentored by Australian crime author Marele Day. Tamara has authored crime fiction and young adult novels. By profession, Tamara is an Information Technology Project Manager and resides in Brisbane with her husband and three children. Tamara is active in a number of writing groups, and is serving as Vice President of the Fellowship of Australian Writers Queensland (FAWQ).

Reem Al-Omari, Fiction Editor

Reem Al-Omari is an American freelance writer and editor living in Denver, Colorado. She holds a BA in Journalism. She has worked as a reporter, a columnist and editor-in-chief of a newspaper, and more importantly, a Literary Director at  Progenitor, an annual award-winning art and literary print magazine. And even more importantly, she is always working on perfecting her fiction. She is also a member of the awesome online community of feisty writers at Intrepid Media. You can find her on Twitter under @Reemawi, where her bio simply reads, “Tweeter of soliloquies.”

Suzannah Windsor, Managing Editor

Suzannah Windsor is a Canadian writer and editor whose work has appeared in Sou’wester, Grist, Anderbo, Saw Palm, Best of The Sand Hill Review, and others. She is the founding editor of Write It Sideways, and an associate editor at Anderbo. Currently, she lives in Australia with her husband and four children. You can follow her on Twitter @Writeitsideways and @SuzannahWindsor, or on Facebook.

Christi Craig, Editorial Assistant

Christi Craig lives and writes in Wisconsin. She facilitates a creative writing class at Harwood Place Retirement Community, leads a Roundtable at RedBird-RedOak Writing, and is a regular contributor at Write It Sideways. Her stories and essays appear online and in print, and she was a finalist in Glimmer Train’s Family Matters Competition. Check out her website at www.christicraig.com, follow her on Twitter @Christi_Craig, or subscribe to her Facebook page.

Tiffany Turpin Johnson, Editorial Assistant

Tiffany Turpin Johnson is a young adult novelist represented by Annie Bomke Literary Agency and the founder of TJ Writeography, a freelance writing and photography service. She regularly contributes to such blogs as AudiobookAddicts and 407Apartments, and maintains the all-things-fiction blog Fictiffous. Tiffany holds a Master’s degree and now spends her days writing kidlit and chasing her two (soon to be three!) small children. Connect with her at www.fictiffous.blogspot.com and on Twitter at @Fictiffous.

Lauren Ruiz, Editorial Assistant

Originally from the tropical island of Dominican Republic, Lauren I. Ruiz is a New Hampshire-based editor and writer. A member of the American Copy Editors Society and various other groups, she founded her professional editing service, Pure Text, in 2010, where she’s worked with countless established and upcoming contemporary fiction authors among others. Aside from editing, her main preoccupation is poetry writing and, after that, formulating her own fiction. You can find her writing tips on Twitter via @PureText.