Reader's Freebies 4 - LIQUID IMAGINATION Literary Magazine

Literary Magazines: What the Heck are They, and Why Should I Care?

Until I became a serious writer, I had no idea these hidden gems existed. Literary magazines/journals are publications that focus on creative writing and artwork: poems, short stories, digital art etc. that may otherwise not find a readership in commercial publishing. Universities and independent literary presses assemble and distribute them online or in print. Few contributors even get paid for their work!

So How are Literary Magazines Funded?

Well, usually by you—the reader—via monthly or yearly subscriptions. Sometimes the government or private subsidiaries, supporting the arts, fund them as well. They simply exist for the reader’s enjoyment.

Okay, Now You’re Thinking:

Wait a gosh darn second. I thought this was a series on FREE publications.

Slow down; I’m getting there. . .

As mentioned above, some magazines are funded by sources other than the reader. These are free to the public. You heard me, FREE. Let me just repeat that for those in the back.

THEY ARE FREE.

Some websites may require an email sign-up, but anyone can hop on the internet and get lost in a story, poem, or enjoy artwork without shelling out a dime. If you’re in the mood for a quick imagination “get away” do a Google search for free literary magazines. You can find ones geared toward audiences of all ages and in every genre. If you want paranormal young adult: yep, it’s there. How about horror or thriller? Yep, also there. Maybe you’re in the mood for a lyrical poem. Guess what?! You can find that TOO!!!

Your reading heart’s desire is just a search engine away. . .

*looks about suspiciously* Hey, what’s the catch? Do free literary magazines publish crappy stories? Do they have tons of grammatical errors?

I get your concern, but here’s the exciting part: free literary magazines have submission rules just like big publishers. They vet their stories to ensure the best quality of writing and most interesting storylines. So, rest assured, if you pick up a literary magazine or journal, you’ll more than likely find good, quality work.

Now, I can’t promise every magazine holds the same level of expectations, there might be some that don’t sort through the junk. But if you come across one of those baddies, don’t give up on magazines all together! Do another search and find one that appeals to your tastes. You won’t be sorry.

With all of that said, I wanted to showcase a FREE literary magazine website to share my honest thoughts on what I found. So, I closed my eyes, swirled my finger over a list of FREE literary magazines and found my pointer on:

Liquid Imagination: a free online literary magazine “where reality and fantasy blur.”

According to Liquid Imagination’s mission statement they: “…publish a wide variety of art, creating visually stimulating publications of the highest quality that combine many artistic avenues, including graphic and digital art as well as traditional illustrations, photographs and paintings; speculative and literary fiction, micro-fiction, and poetry; music and audio works; digital poetry and digital flash fiction; and other artistic forms.”

Liquid comes out with a new online issue the last week of February, May, August, and November.

What you’ll find in this magazine: A mix of everything really. Paranormal, science fiction, romance, and a conglomerate of other genres in the form of flash fiction, poetry, and short stories. They also have articles, book reviews, and some digital artwork as well. (But mostly fantasy-like creative writing—thus their tagline.)

After I read the magazine description, I moseyed on over to the “past issues” tab. Here you can find issues dating back to 2008. So, plenty of reading material. I sifted through the last three issues, reading a few paragraphs, maybe finishing a story or two. My first-glance take on this magazine as a new passerby was that the stories were just okay. In all honesty, I wasn’t “wowed” by the quality, or the plot lines. They were well written but dialogue heavy and lacking description—though I believe this is my personal taste. If I’m going to be in another world, I need to feel grounded first. I found a lot of “talking heads.” Meaning description without action. Just dialogue, dialogue, dialogue for days. Is this a bad thing? No way. Some readers love this. It’s just not for me.

I also found the stories more lyrical and poem-like, which is extremely hard to explain why I felt this way. Lol. But while reading, I had a hard time settling into a story.

I was a little disappointed.

What I did like: the number of free options you can read. I’m sure if I sat down and combed through past issues, I’m 110% sure I’d find a few stories, poems, or articles I’d really enjoy.

What I’d like to have seen: Better organization. The publisher doesn’t specify the story’s genre or even a one liner of what it’s about. When you open an issue, you scroll down, viewing titles and the first few lines of the story itself. However, I had no clue what to expect. I’d open one, read a paragraph or two, and then realize it was heavy on the science fiction… I’d hit the back button. Or that it was a poem or article when I was looking for a short story.

Liquid also has two books out on Amazon—for a price, about $3-6—that

they advertise in the side bar on their website. One is a creativity coaching book by one of their authors. I’m curious because creativity is something I’d assume would be hard to teach. But either way very cool.

The other book is a “best of collection.” Would I buy a best of collection from Liquid Imagination based on the few stories, poems, etc. that I read? Probably not. I think I’d have to read more free stories to judge.

My verdict on this free magazine, drum roll please. . . is a toss-up.

For me: Liquid Imagination is an, eh, skip it. But I truly believe that it’s a matter of what you like. So, here’s my recommendation: go onto Liquid’s past issues page and see for yourself. You might open February’s issue and fall in love with the first story. But if you don’t, that’s fine too! Like I said, there are hundreds of literary magazines out there. Some free; some not. If you’re not in the mood to start a novel and just want to sit out by the pool with a cold glass of sangria and a cozy story: look up a free literary magazine. OR even better, sign up to our mailing list to get FREE short stories and poems every six months! Here’s the first collection. There's a fun poem and a bunch of short stories! Everything from a dog’s POV of a Pavlov experiment to a twisted zombie, Cinderella story told by a clumsy mortician. Short, sweet, and just enough to satisfy your craving . . .