June 2012
Editor's Note
How To Read The Reader
Welcome to The Well&Often Reader. What is The Well&Often Reader? Well, firstly, it’s a literary magazine. It is also a website, which would make it an online literary magazine. Simple stuff, I know. But stay with me for a minute. The Well&Often Reader is also a resource for educators looking to bring contemporary literature into their classrooms. Before going into detail about that, I’d like to explain why we decided to build this little ship.
Although there are many small publishers, literary journals, and online magazines, there are still countless stories deserving of an audience. We want to do our part in getting these stories to you, the audience. You have found your way here because, at some level, you care about the written word. We care too. The Well&Often Reader is our way of showing it.
From its inception, we imagined The Well&Often Reader being a paired down reading experience, a mix of a printed book, a website, and an e-reader. Each issue will have a small number of pieces in the categories of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. The focus is not to publish a whole bunch of stuff. Rather, we want each issue to feel concise, a capsule.
Accompanying select pieces will be a lesson plan. Written by our editor, Caits Meissner, who works as a teaching artist and education program developer, these lesson plans allow educators to bring fresh, contemporary literature into the classroom. It is our hope that the stories being told in The Well&Often Reader become more than something that’s read and then filed away. We want the stories to live off the page, so to speak. We want them to help students learn to care about writing; to help them understand that having the ability to read, process and make real world connections to literature is invaluable.
We hope you enjoy The Well&Often Reader. Better yet, if you do, please spread the word!
– Tishon Woolcock, Founder and Creative Director