Finally! We’re at the end of this series on anthologies. Aren’t you excited?? I am! But really, I was getting a little bored.

Anyway, the collections I’m talking about in this post aren’t really anthologies, they’re student publications, but they can fall under the general “anthology” definition (refer back to first post).

The Cypress Dome is a literary magazine published by the University of Central Florida’s undergraduate literary organization, The Cypress Dome Society. I currently have Issue 17 (2006) and Issue 21 (2010). Each issue is formatted similarly and includes Editors’ Awards, Fiction, Nonfiction, Poetry, Graphic Narrative (Graphic Literature in Issue 17), and Art. The contents are listed by genre, but not in the order they appear. For example, in the Issue 21 contents section there are four Fiction pieces—pages 24, 28, 63, 73—followed by two Nonfiction pieces—pages 54, 83.

Student publications are great ways to gain practice and exposure. Going through the notes around these issues reminds me that I wanted to be part of The Cypress Dome at one point, but chose another route. However, the students who were actually published in these issues are talented.

The way I feel about these two books is the way I feel about all of my anthologies—I need to read them again. I really should just throw these in my purse and read them whenever I’m waiting in line somewhere (they’re thin enough). Unfortunately, I can’t do that with the other anthologies I own.

In my next post I’ll introduce you to the books that I am definitely keeping in my collection. There’s some Octavia Butler (my absolute favorite author so far), some Richard Wright, and some James Cañon, among others. Stay tuned!

Happy Reading!

Christine