Most places that publish both fiction and criticism seem to favor the fiction. They might have a print magazine that publishes fiction, and a web site that publishes more fiction, and then somewhere on the web site they’ll make a little space for book reviews. These publishers seem to believe that great fiction will emerge from a crowded field of lesser fiction. That’s not what works for us. We believe that great fiction emerges from a field of great criticism. The lesser stuff gets mowed down, recycled. To write something great you have to be thinking deeply and arguing passionately with a diverse group of friends.
