“Ascent Aspirations: Up, Up and Away!”
I recently discovered a gem: an online art and literary journal, entitled Ascent Aspirations (www.ascentaspirations.com), based in British Columbia. (It is also published semi-annually in print media—“hard copy”.)
I love the fact that Ascent Aspirations’ mission is to give aspiring writers, poets, and artists a chance to present their work online. All of us writers, artists, lovers of art and fiction, know that the world of art and literature is rapidly shrinking in “hard copy” format and is transitioning to a digital one. Ascent Aspirations aims to do just that—ascend from analog to digital—for those desiring a Web presence!
Since 1997 Ascent Aspirations has grown from a small electronic Canadian magazine of science fiction, fantasy, horror and darker mainstream fiction into a journal for edgy fiction and a wide array of art. In the spring of 2011 there will be an anthology focused on the theme of work and social issues related to work and daily life. You can bend and twist your material to fit the theme. In other words come at the theme from whatever direction you wish. This is a great opportunity so get the word out to all the artists and writers you know!
I enjoy the website’s archive for the artists and writers who have contributed over the past 13 years. To see art from past issues, for example, several of my prints featured in the September 2010 issue (https://www.ascentaspirations.ca/dianapaul1.htm), go to the main page (www.ascentaspirations.ca) and click on the right column, Art Archives, (or Fiction Archives), to see a range of past contributions. The work is edgy, sometimes disturbing, even in the writing/grammatical styles used.
One note about the web design in this world of instant gratification. The home page is on a black background. Granted it’s original, but also difficult to read. In addition, the top line of tabs leads only to advertising, and some of that advertising repeats unnecessarily. Ignore those tabs. Far better to focus on the left and right columns to read some very surprising flash fiction (“The Secret” by Michelle Bryan, and “The Blood Drop” by Spiel, for example). An easier-on-the-eyes, more navigable website of the journal can be found at: https://wordstorm-wordstorm.blogspot.com/2010/08/ascent-aspirations-magazine-spetember.html. Enjoy reading and looking at some great new work!