History
Housed at the University of Wisconsin – Fox Valley and published annually since 1974, Fox Cry Review is one of the oldest literary magazines in the nation associated with a two-year college. Now in its 33rd year of continuous publication, the magazine began as Foxfire, changing slightly to Fox-Fire in 1975. To provide a unique identity and avoid confusion with a different publication, the editors re-named the magazine Fox-Cry in 1976, eventually settling on Fox Cry two years later. In 1997, the magazine took its present title when it began to feature national as well as regional writers. The title has best been explained by Laurel Mills, a long-time editor, who wrote in the 25th Anniversary Issue in 1999:
“One contributor to Fox Cry Review questioned our title, asking, ‘Does a fox cry?’ I’m not sure, but certainly dogs yelp when they are in pursuit of a fox. And those of us who live in the Fox River Valley hear the echo of the Fox Indians who once lived along the shores of Lake Winnebago – their jubilant cries when they landed a sturgeon or bagged a deer, their love moans as they huddled in pairs during the dark winter’s night, the ceremonial talk of elders around the circle, the sacred prayers to Mother Earth and Father Sky, the music of their voices as they danced the pow wow, the anguish when they lost their land.
“Language expresses our human experiences; literature examines the meaning of human existence.”
Throughout its history, Fox Cry Review has been a collaborative effort among faculty members in the UW-Fox Valley English Department, UW Fox creative writing students, and participants in the UW Fox Writing Club. Although an editor coordinates the production of every issue, an editorial board of faculty and students takes an active role in evaluating submissions, selecting works for publication, and editing and designing the magazine. Mills praises the magazine as a “way of cementing the connection between the community and the campus” and as “a showcase of the work of writers and poets in an area rich with writers and poets.” Donald Hrubesky, the longest-serving editor of the magazine (1984-1997), credits the longevity of Fox Cry Review to strong support among local writers and readers and to the energies of students and volunteers. He especially commends Christine Van Ryzin, assistant editor from 1990 to 1997, for her dedication to the magazine. Along with publishing poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction, over the years the journal has featured original art work. Many of the covers and much of the inside art are photographs of creations by UW-Fox Valley students.
Today, Fox Cry Review enjoys a state-wide reputation for quality. While this reputation led to its inclusion in the Wisconsin Publishers’ Showcase at the 2005 Wisconsin Book Festival, the magazine’s principal value derives from its consistent ability to attract work from talented regional and national writers. Regional writers who contributed frequently include Kay Saunders, Barbara Germiat, June A. Zwickey, Mary Ellen Ducklow, Helen Farhrbach, and Peter Sherrill. Another frequent contributor was Shirley Anders, once poet in residence at Lawrence University and at UW-Fox Valley. The winner of the Shirley Anders Memorial Creative Writing Scholarship, awarded annually to a UW-Fox Valley student, has his or her winning submission published in the Review.
Numerous writers with national reputations have also been published in Fox Cry Review, including Abby Frucht, Virgil Suarez, Ryan G. Van Cleave, Simon Perchik, and Antler. In addition, the magazine has published work by former poets laureate of three states: Mary Crow, Colorado; Walt McDonald, Texas; and Ellen Kort, Wisconsin.
As this rich history demonstrates, Fox Cry Review serves a community of writers and readers by publishing high-quality literature and art work. Begun in the days of typewriters (Professor Hrubesky recalls manually setting type, and UW-Fox Valley mathematics professor Terry Nyman was long called upon to perform “paste up,” an activity that seems as quaint and obscure as churning butter by hand), now the Review establishes a presence on the Internet. We invite you to browse the archive, read the magazine when it appears every fall, attend on-campus readings by contributors, and even submit original work to:
Bill Gillard, editor
Fox Cry Review
English Department
University of Wisconsin-Fox Valley
1478 Midway Road
Menasha, WI 54952-1297
Submissions accepted September 1st to February 1st.
Copies of available back issues may be purchased by contacting the current editor.
Past editors
- 2006-2007-: Laurel Mills, Editor
- 2004-2005: Will Curl, Editor
- 2003: Valerie Jahns, Editor
- 2002: Darren DeFrain, Editor
- 1998-2001: Laurel Mills, Editor
- 1984-1997: Donald Hrubesky, Editor
- 1983: Mary Ellen Ducklow, Coordinator
- 1982: David P. Brunet, General Editor; Debra Schoenfelt, Poetry Editor; Emma Cullinan, Fiction Editor
- 1981: Debra Schoenfelt, Editor; David Brunet, Advisor
- 1980: Kim Hanshaw, Editor; David Brunet, Advisor
- 1979: Marie Dolan, Editor; David Brunet, Advisor
- 1978: Mitchell Lechter, Advisor
- 1977: Monroe Lerner, Advisor
- 1976: Richard Russell, Editor
- 1975: R. L. Bouquet, Coordinating Editor
- 1974: J. Wm. Davis, Coordinating Editor
Use the links below to see the covers and table of contents of past Fox Cry issues.
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