Introduction to Poetry for Issue 39 by John C. Manone

First, I want to recognize the nominees for a couple prestiegious awards:

2018 Puschcart Prize
“Sakura” Rekha Valliappan Issue 37 May 2018
“A Postcard to Janice” William Doreski Issue 37 May 2018
“I will tell you only this” Babo Kamel Issue 38: Aug 2018
“The Psycho-Maid’s Dream” Mack W. Mani Issue 39: Nov 2018
“Cardinal” Patricia Hope Issue 39: Nov 2018

2018 Best of the Net
“Keeping Room” by Ann Thornfield-Long Issue 34: Aug 2017
“Bare Bones Band” by Wesley Sims Issue 34: Aug 2017
“Prehistoric Strigiformes” by Patricia Hope Issue 35: Nov 2017
“The Woman With Leaves in Her Hair” by Stephanie Smith Issue 35: Nov 2017
“This is Not a Poem of the Articulate Rain” by William Doreski Issue 37 May 2018
“Cataclysm Days: Arizona Conservatives Revert to Old Forms of Worship” by Chuck Von Nordheim Issue 37 May 2018

Second, please enjoy another group of talented poets for the November 2018 issue (39) over the holidays:

“The Never Dormant Sea” by Jennifer Ihasz
“The Plastic Woman” by Charles Leggett
“The Psycho-Maid’s Dream” by Mack W. Mani
“Requiem” by Anja Benevento
“Cardinal” by Patricia Hope

Issue 52 is the ultimate issue of Liquid Imagination. John Arthur Miller (we called him Jam back then) had a dream, and made it a reality. He dreamed of Sophia, his muse, and how she would help him create a fusion of art and stories and poems and music. Sophia was on the cover of Issue 1, published online in the fall of 2008, and in memory of those days, she is on the cover of this last issue. For fourteen years she has kept Liquid Imagination in her heart, but now it is time for her to rest.

It’s been an unbelievable journey for me, and I have made so many friends. Of course, number one is Jam. And Karl Rademacher who helped me build my first website and made Silver Pen come alive. Kevin Wallis was Liquid Imagination’s first Senior Fiction Editor and what a great job he did! His selected stories embodied the vision of Liquid Imagination. John C. Mannone, our Senior Poetry Editor, has been a powerhouse, selecting poetry that is both beautiful to read, as well as thought provoking.

Brandon Rucker composed music for the site and was a poetry editor, and Bob Eccles was the voice of Liquid Imagination for many issues. Past poetry editors also included Sherri Ellerman and Chrissy Davis.

We had a series of highly talented fiction guest editors between 2014 to 2019, including AJ Brown, Samuel Barnhart, Perry McDaid, Maureen Bowden, Edwin Riddell, Gary Fields, and Shah Khan. Edwin Riddell moved on to be Senior Editor from 2019 until this very last issue.

And I cannot forget the hundreds of authors and poets and photographers and artists whose work we were honored to publish. I hope you will browse through the old issues and enjoy experiencing once again the wonderful variety of stories and poems published over the years.

For fourteen years we’ve read thousands of submissions, struggling to select the best ones to publish from all the great ones submitted. I sincerely thank all who made Liquid Imagination such a success, and a great joy for me. I’m very proud of the magazine and of all of the people who contributed in so many ways. I wish every one of you the best that life has to offer.

Signing off with a full heart
Sue Babcock
Publisher, Liquid Imagination