07/07/2005

The Editor's Mug - July 2005

Our Journeys In Writing

I've said it before and I'll say it again...

I am continually amazed (shocked, really) at the reach of our little website.

Do you know how diverse our authors are? Most of you don't. If someone asked you, you may not be able to say that the youngest author we've pulished was eight years old. You probably couldn't offer information about the physicians we've had over the years. Most would not guess that we've had major corporate CEOs, college lecturers and professors, teachers, lawyers, and other professional types as guests of The Coffee Press Journal. They've been published right next to the grandmothers, the waitresses, the hotel cleaning staff person, the high-schooler, the jilted lover...and the hundreds of others of us who simply fit in the category "everyone else".

Let's not forget, also, the countries represented among us. North America is well represented (US, Canada, Mexico), as well as the UK (England, Scotland, Ireland); Sweden, Spain, France, Poland, Czeck Republic, Slovenia, Israel, Turkey, Iran, India, Pakistan, Poland, South Africa...and I think I might be missing some. (Please let me know if I missed your country!)

What do we have to offer? Is anyone interested in who we are, what we do, or where we live?

You and I, we are a special breed. We are not (just) construction workers, nurses, or IT professionals. We are not just who we are. We are the ones who, for better or for worse, journal our lives and the lives around us. Some write fact, some fiction. Some rhyme, some do not. Some write in textbook fashion, some randomly enter line breaks. Regardless of method, we are the writers of this era. Most of us will never be recognized outside of our circle of friends. Some of us will ascend the ranks, even to Poet Laureate, at institutions and state houses and become known beyond their hometown. A precious few will be recognized nationally or even internationally. Still we chronicle, at times whether we like it or not. At the base of our natural selves is the written word, and we were set in the time to write those words. We know it, and we cannot escape it.

We wouldn't want to, anyway.

As I'm prone to saying around anniversary time, I am thankful for each person who has deposited a little bit of themselves by allowing us to publish the works we've published since 2001. They weave through the history of this online magazine like a wisteria shrub, climbing and crawling, alarming us at its daily growth and breadth of reach. Some of these works have made us laugh in spite of life, some made us cry; they all make us think.

If you are one of the authors who've sent us a submission--even one--I say to you again, thank you. I count myself to be a very lucky person to be able to see so much of your work. I am honored by your interest in what we try to do here. I hope that in whatever you do today, you will find even greater successes as we continue, together, our journeys in writing.

Cheers!

=jb=

Posted by =jb= at 07/07/2005 10:09:59pm
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