Knockout (literary magazine)
Encyclopedia
Knockout Literary Magazine is a bi-annual literary magazine
published in Minneapolis, Minnesota
, since 2007. Financed by its two editors, Jeremy Halinen and Brett Ortler, it is known for the wide range of styles it publishes, its nearly 50/50 mix of LGBT
and straight writers, and its dedication to social causes.
's Master of Fine Arts Program. They had previously served as poetry editors at Eastern Washington's Willow Springs
.
The first issue was all poetry and 140 pages long, with a print run of 1,000 copies. A second issue, which includes interviews, poetry, and fiction, was released Spring 2009.
winner (Robert Bly), former U.S. Poet Laureate (Billy Collins
), U.S. state Poets Laureate (Marvin Bell
, Iowa; Robert Bly
, Minnesota), as well as winners of many major awards, including the $100,000 Kingsley-Tufts Poetry Prize (Thomas Lux) and the Lamont Poetry Prize (Marvin Bell), among many others. In addition, many of the poets published in Knockout have been awarded the Pushcart Prize
. The second and third issues will include work by other notable poets and award winners, including a Nobel Prize for Literature recipient.
Among the poets featured in Knockout's second issue were James Bertolino, Willis Barnstone
, Louis Jenkins
, Rika Lesser
, William Baer
, Reginald Shepherd
, Nance Van Winckel, Christopher Howell
, Tim Nolan
, Elizabeth Bradfield, Robert Wrigley
, Todd Boss and Denise Duhamel
.
, an organization dedicated to preventing youth suicide
.
Literary magazine
A literary magazine is a periodical devoted to literature in a broad sense. Literary magazines usually publish short stories, poetry and essays along with literary criticism, book reviews, biographical profiles of authors, interviews and letters...
published in Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...
, since 2007. Financed by its two editors, Jeremy Halinen and Brett Ortler, it is known for the wide range of styles it publishes, its nearly 50/50 mix of LGBT
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
and straight writers, and its dedication to social causes.
History
Knockout was founded in summer 2007 by Jeremy Halinen and Brett Ortler after both graduated from Eastern Washington UniversityEastern Washington University
Eastern Washington University is an American public, coeducational university located in Cheney, Washington.Founded in 1882, the university is academically divided into four colleges: Arts and Letters; Business and Public Administration; Science, Health and Engineering; and Social & Behavioral...
's Master of Fine Arts Program. They had previously served as poetry editors at Eastern Washington's Willow Springs
Willow Springs
Willow Springs may refer to:* Willow Springs, California ** Willow Springs International Motorsports Park* Willow Springs, Illinois, United States* Willow Springs, a historic name for the location of Beloit, Kansas, United States...
.
The first issue was all poetry and 140 pages long, with a print run of 1,000 copies. A second issue, which includes interviews, poetry, and fiction, was released Spring 2009.
Work Published
Knockout's inaugural issue featured work by a National Book AwardNational Book Award
The National Book Awards are a set of American literary awards. Started in 1950, the Awards are presented annually to American authors for literature published in the current year. In 1989 the National Book Foundation, a nonprofit organization which now oversees and manages the National Book...
winner (Robert Bly), former U.S. Poet Laureate (Billy Collins
Billy Collins
Billy Collins is an American poet, appointed as Poet Laureate of the United States from 2001 to 2003. He is a Distinguished Professor at Lehman College of the City University of New York and is the Senior Distinguished Fellow of the Winter Park Institute, Florida...
), U.S. state Poets Laureate (Marvin Bell
Marvin Bell
Marvin Bell is an American poet and teacher who was the first Poet Laureate of the State of Iowa.Bell was born in New York City and raised in Center Moriches, Long Island...
, Iowa; Robert Bly
Robert Bly
Robert Bly is an American poet, author, activist and leader of the Mythopoetic Men's Movement.-Life:Bly was born in Lac qui Parle County, Minnesota, to Jacob and Alice Bly, who were of Norwegian ancestry. Following graduation from high school in 1944, he enlisted in the United States Navy, serving...
, Minnesota), as well as winners of many major awards, including the $100,000 Kingsley-Tufts Poetry Prize (Thomas Lux) and the Lamont Poetry Prize (Marvin Bell), among many others. In addition, many of the poets published in Knockout have been awarded the Pushcart Prize
Pushcart Prize
The Pushcart Prize is an American literary prize by Pushcart Press that honors the best "poetry, short fiction, essays or literary whatnot" published in the small presses over the previous year. Magazine and small book press editors are invited to nominate up to 6 works they have featured....
. The second and third issues will include work by other notable poets and award winners, including a Nobel Prize for Literature recipient.
Among the poets featured in Knockout's second issue were James Bertolino, Willis Barnstone
Willis Barnstone
Willis Barnstone is an American poet, memoirist, translator, Hispanist, and comparatist. He has translated the Ancient Greek poets and the complete fragments of the pre-Socratic philosopher Heraclitus . He is also a New Testament and Gnostic scholar.-Life:Born in Lewiston, Maine, Barnstone grew...
, Louis Jenkins
Louis Jenkins
Louis Jenkins is a prose poet from Enid, Oklahoma. He has lived in Duluth, Minnesota, for over 30 years with his wife Ann. His poems have been published in a number of literary magazines and anthologies. Jenkins has been a guest on A Prairie Home Companion numerous times and has also been featured...
, Rika Lesser
Rika Lesser
Rika Lesser is a U.S. poet, and is a translator of Swedish and German literary works.-Life:Lesser has produced three collections of her own poetry, including Etruscan Things , and her prose translations include A Living Soul by P. C...
, William Baer
William Baer
William Baer is an award-winning American writer, editor, translator, and educator.The author of sixteen books, he's a former Fulbright and a Guggenheim fellow, as well as the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts creative writing grant....
, Reginald Shepherd
Reginald Shepherd
Reginald Shepherd was an American poet, born in New York City and raised in the Bronx. He died of cancer in Penascola, Florida, in 2008.-Biography:...
, Nance Van Winckel, Christopher Howell
Christopher Howell
Christopher Howell is an American poet, editor, and educator. He has published eight books of poetry.Born in Portland, Oregon, Howell served as a journalist for the U.S. Navy during the Vietnam War. He earned a B.S. from Oregon State University in 1968, an M.A...
, Tim Nolan
Tim Nolan
Tim Nolan is a British-born bassist living in Singapore.-Early life:Nolan was born in Oldham, Lancashire, United Kingdom in 1960...
, Elizabeth Bradfield, Robert Wrigley
Robert Wrigley
Robert Wrigley is an American poet and educator.His most recent book is Beautiful Country'. Other collections include Earthly Meditations: New and Selected Poems Lives of the Animals ; Reign of Snakes ; In the Bank of Beautiful Sins ; What My Father Believed ; Moon in a...
, Todd Boss and Denise Duhamel
Denise Duhamel
-Background:Duhamel received her B.F.A. from Emerson College and her M.F.A. from Sarah Lawrence College. She is a New York Foundation for the Arts recipient and has been resident poet at Bucknell University...
.
LGBT Advocacy
Knockout is well-known for its support of LGBT causes, and specifically for the diversity of its writers. Knockout features a nearly 50/50 mix of queer and straight writers in each issue. Discussing this in an interview with The Minnesota Daily, Halinen said, "It's something that I don't see a lot of other magazines doing," having a diverse group of writers, working to "bring them all under one cover."Knockout and the Valentino Achak Deng Foundation
Knockout donated 50% of the proceeds from its first issue to the Valentino Achak Deng Foundation, a 501(c) nonprofit which aims to support educational opportunities for those in Southern Sudan.Knockout and the The Trevor Project
Knockout is donating a portion of its proceeds from its second issue to the Trevor ProjectThe Trevor Project
The Trevor Project is an American non-profit organization founded in 1998 and the leading national organization focused on suicide prevention efforts among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning youth. Through a toll-free telephone number, it operates The Trevor Lifeline, a...
, an organization dedicated to preventing youth suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
.
External links
- Knockout Literary Magazine website http://www.knockoutlit.org
- New Pages Review of Knockout #1 http://www.newpages.com/magazinestand/litmags/2008_02/litmagreview_2008_02.htm#Knockout
- Minnesota Daily Article About Knockout http://www.mndaily.com/articles/2008/03/24/72166133