Brigid Hughes on the Art of Editing a Literary Magazine
“You’re trying to understand what the author’s vision is, what they’re aiming for.”
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Episode Notes
This week, host Rumaan Alam talks to literary magazine editor Brigid Hughes, who started her career as an intern with the Paris Review and went on to be its executive editor before leaving and starting her own magazine, A Public Space. In the interview, Brigid explains what the editor of a literary magazine does and how she works with authors to unearth the story “underneath” the story. She also discusses how literary magazines can help new authors find an audience.
After the interview, Rumaan and co-host June Thomas talk about the importance of good editors.
In the exclusive Slate Plus segment, Brigid Hughes tells the story of how she came across the work of writer Bette Howland and decided to print some of Howland’s unpublished work.
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Podcast production by Cameron Drews.
