Her Plumage, edited by Christine Sloan Stoddard and Gretchen Gales
Quail Bell Press, 2020
Quail Bell Magazine began as a literary website with a mission to “publish work that values and critiques issues in the arts, history, folklore, and oddities not always carefully examined by mainstream magazines.” Since 2011, the website has evolved into a site that blends both the critical and honest Real with the more fantastic and challenging Unreal. As a female-run literary website and publisher, Quail Bell has always showcased feminist literary work that their website says includes “personal narratives, diverse voices, and expanded notions of creative expression.”
At the end of 2019, their newest anthology, Her Plumage: An anthology of women’s writing from Quail Bell Magazine, was released. Curated by editor-in-chief Christine Sloan Stoddard and executive editor Gretchen Gales, the anthology features some of the best poetry, fiction, and nonfiction written by female authors published over the last several years on the website. This includes folios of regular contributors and a few select pieces from outside contributors. Proceeds from the anthology also benefit RAINN (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network), the largest anti-sexual assault network in the U.S.
The collection is carefully crafted, even including essays that were written in response to timely events, such as the Surviving R. Kelly documentary and the 2016 presidential election. These pieces allow the book to remain a bit of a time capsule for some immediate reactions. While this may potentially date the book, the editors’ choice to mix these timely pieces with more evergreen poetry and fiction allows the book to have more staying power.
The staying power of Her Plumage also benefits from the collection of authors gathered in the anthology. The curated pieces often tie together to some of the authors’ most important and relevant subjects. One standout is the folio of Ghia Vitale, which includes many pieces about body positivity and her stance against fat shaming. Others, like Gretchen Gales, write about empowering women, such as Sophie Scholl and St. Clare of Assisi. Authors like Mari Pack and Erynn Porter use their contributions to discuss physical and mental health issues. Even work by outside contributors, like Allison Roepke’s essay about leaving a toxic sorority and Blair Novick’s essay about the Riot Grrrl movement, demonstrate the identity and strength of the website.
Her Plumage is an eclectic and resilient collection of female authors and a perfect encapsulation of the Quail Bell identity. Its appeal lies far beyond the fact that it’s all literature by women, but rather in the fact that anyone can read and resonate with the ideas and experiences these authors share. The pieces that are gathered to build this nest are strength, humor, sorrow, and resilience, and it’s clear that the base of this book will remain strong and sturdy, hopefully for future editions of this collection.
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Alex Carrigan is a writer, editor, and critic. His reviews have appeared in literary publications including Lambda Literary Review, Empty Mirror, and Gertrude Press. He currently lives in Alexandria, VA.