q&a.

What is footshooter.?

footshooter. is a literary mixtape.

Okay…I think I get it. Can you explain a little more?

No.

What the hell? Isn’t that the entire point of this article?

I’m just messing with you.

We all understand the concept of a mixtape: it’s typically literally a cassette, or more commonly a CD or playlist, that you or someone else makes compiling a tracklist of various songs. Sometimes there’s a recognizable theme running through or maybe it’s just a random selection of songs that you/they love.

Now, apply that to a literary zine. Pretty clever, eh?

It actually is, but let’s keep things grounded here — you didn’t invent mixtapes or literature.

Fair enough, but I am combing them, and I think it’s a pretty unique and rad idea.

Nobody says ‘rad’ anymore. Aren’t you a millennial, anyway?

Yeah. It’s probably more of a Gen. X term, isn’t it?

Also, don’t gatekeep language.

You’re right — sorry. So, it’s a zine with a mixture of different forms? Like short stories, poetry, CNF?

Yeah, but not just that. Not only does footshooter. publish various different forms:

Short stories

Novel/Novella/Novelette excerpts

Poetry

CNF(creative non-fiction)

Artwork

The variety within these is a mix, too.

Wait, so you don’t just publish — for example — strictly literary writing?

No. We’re open to most ‘genres’ of writing and artwork.

Literary

Speculative

Magical Realism

Transgressive

Dark

Sci-Fi

Western

Appalachian

Folklore

Horror

Avant-Garde

Experimental

Hybrid

Wow. Is there anything you don’t publish?

Yeah. Anything that is racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, or just hateful/discriminatory in general.

Also, extreme forms of violence(splatterpunk, gore), smut(sex is fine, but we don’t want erotica), etc. In short, we’re open to a wide variety of genres, but all writing ought to have a literary bend to it. We’re not interested in strictly genre work.

I see. That is very mixtape-like. What about themes? Sometimes mixtapes have a theme to them — will each issue of footshooter. be themed?

Great question. No, although we holdout the possibility of announcing themed calls in the future, but those would be more specific to a particular form than an entire issue.

For example, we might put out a call for an upcoming issue that requires all poetry submissions be themed around memory, short stories be themed around 90’s era punk, or CNF that is themed around a childhood memory, etc.

But generally speaking, footshooter. will not be themed.

CNF can cover a lot of areas — can you be more specific about what you’re looking for?

Yes!

Short stories about anything

Album reviews

Book reviews

Film reviews

Artist process statements

Essays

Interviews

Experimental

That sounds great. What is an artist process statement?

This is one of the categories that we’re most excited about receiving submissions for.

An artist process statement is a detailed description of a writer/poet/artist’s process in general or for a specific book/story/poem/collection/project/etc.

What books, films, albums, life experiences, art, etc. inspired you?

How did you prepare yourself to work on it — did you listen to certain music, did you only work at a certain time of day? Did you outline/plan ahead or did you operate as a discovery writer/artist? Did you ‘become’ the narrator/main character(s) or was there some sort of boundary? What were the emotions like when creating it?

We want details.

That’s pretty sick!

Nobody says ‘sick’ anymore.

Well played. What about the aesthetic of footshooter. — is there a theme or ethos behind it?

Yes.

footshooter. is aesthetically very rooted in a mid-90’s DIY/punk/alternative/indie look and feel. We want to evoke and encourage that sort of ethos in our approach and the kind of work we hope to attract.

Do submissions need to be about/themed in that way?

Absolutely not.

Ethos is the key-word there.

Submissions don’t have to be directly about the 90s, punk, DIY, etc.

What are your submission guidelines?

From our demos page:

“Send all submissions to footshooterzine@gmail.com

Please include a cover letter with a synopsis, word count, a third-person bio, any social media handles you would like included if published, and one song that is relative to your submission and/or really means a lot to you. You will get a response, either way, within 60 days of your submission. Simultaneous submissions encouraged - please let us know if your work is accepted elsewhere. Submissions in multiple categories allowed.”

Why the song requirement?

Because footshooter. is deeply concerned with the intersection of literature and music — plus each issue will come with a cassette mixtape insert. This will be the exact size of a standard cassette tape — 4” x 2.5” — and will look like a real cassette on one side and the other side will have a classic j-cut paper insert with the tracklist made of the songs submitted by each contributor that is published in that issue — plus one song from me.

That’s a genuinely cool concept. Wait, why do you get a song?

It’s my zine and I thought it would be neat.

Oh, I guess that makes sense. Will the rest of the masthead get a song, too?

There is no ‘rest of the masthead’ — it’s just me for right now, although if footshooter. is fortunate enough to grow, I’d be excited to add others to the band.

Why do you keep referring to footshooter. as ‘we’ then?

Good question…I guess it just feels ‘right’ for some reason.

Fair enough. When will the first issue be released?

November 1st.

Can people preorder an issue?

Yes — and we would greatly appreciate it. Preordering helps give a sense of how much interest there is in the zine and allows us to make a more targeted amount of copies for the issue before the release date.

Issue 01 can be preordered here.

Wait — you actually make each copy of every issue?

Yes!

footshooter. is completely handmade. From our website:

“Each copy of footshooter. is handmade at a painted-splattered desk in a one-bedroom apartment in Springfield, MO.

Issue details:

5.0” x 6.5” trim size

110 lb/300 gsm cover stock, natural color, matte finish

24 lb/90 gsm Accent Opaque interior paper, cream color, matte finish

Cover illustration by Cor_Impius_art

Cover design byfootshooter.‘s frontman Damn Jones