from Chris Heavener, editor / publisher of Annalemma:

I’d like to introduce our latest print effort, Annalemma Issue Seven: Endurance.

Earlier this year an exploded oil rig was gushing millions of gallons of crude directly into a fragile ecosystem, unemployment in the US was the highest in decades and the economy was at standstill. Things looked bleak.

I couldn’t stop asking myself, “Damn, how do people do it? How do we move forward when all the signs are telling us to throw our hands up and walk away?” I posed it to the writers of the world. The result is the latest issue of Annalemma, a collection of 13 stories, two essays and one photo essay all based around the theme of what it takes to keep going: endurance.

Authors in this issue include Joe Meno (Hairstyles of the Damned, The Great Perhaps) Patrick deWitt (Ablutions, The Sisters Brothers) and Matthew Simmons (A Jello Horse, The Moon Tonight Feels My Revenge).

The centerpiece of this issue is the photo essay ZORA! by Ted Hollins, a photojournalist who’s been covering the Zora Neale Hurston Festival of the Arts and Humanities for 21 years. Ted’s work highlights the endurance and influence of literary legend Zora Neale Hurston’s memory on the cultural consciousness.

And thanks to Harper Perennial and the Zora Neale Hurston Trust, we’ve published “Sweat” in its entirety from her collected stories.

As a gesture of respect, a portion of the proceeds from the sale of Issue Seven will go to the The Hurston Museum in Eatonville, Florida, an organization dedicated to showcasing works of artists of African descent.

Click here to check it all out.

Some months later, the gusher is sealed, jobs are slowly materializing and Americans are gaining the confidence that comes from learning lessons the hard way. We’re not out of the woods by any means, but there are signs of hope. It’s my hope that this issue can add a bit of light in the darkness.