Editorial [CounterText, 6(2)]

Abstract

No. 5: 2 of CounterText carried a novella by John Kinsella, Notes from Under the Seas, a review article, and no regular articles at all. In the Editorial to that number, we explained the rationale for a format that might have appeared to be taking liberties with what an academic journal is supposed to be, with what it is for. There must have been a presumption that the rationale had some enduring, or at least renewable, cogency and sway. That’s because here, one year and three numbers later, the choices appear to be pretty similar. This number carries another novella (or short novel; its length keeps the point moot): Hotel Impossible, by the same author. There are, again, no regular articles. Instead there is an interview with John Kinsella and an essay, by Nicholas Birns, that serves as an introduction to Kinsella’s work. It would seem that as liberties-taking editors we are at risk of getting recidivist. And, also, that Kinsella’s recent work is particularly resonant for CounterText’s interests.