We are delighted to publish our inaugural issue titled “Beyond Truth vs. Fiction.” For this first issue, we are publishing writing solicited from the members of the Advisory Board and Contributing Editors.  The range of submissions exceeded our expectations, as did the creative bold ways each writer responded to our call to action to explore the “speculative” in nonfiction; essay after essay reflects a vital core of creative excitement and discovery. 

We’ve also included a podcast discussion between Founding Editors Leila Philip and Robin Hemley in which they discuss their vision for the magazine and why they thought there was a need for such a journal. While we’ve also written a kind of speculative manifesto to set forth our goals and the identity of the journal, we try not to define too narrowly what a speculative essay is. To do so, would be not only futile but would also go against the expansive aims of this project. We’re here to advance the dialogue well beyond the truth versus fiction debate, to see what else we have to talk about when we talk about nonfiction.