New Shoots Anthology

Excerpt from the New Shoots Anthology Editor’s note:

The title, New Shoots, is a gardening term—and an apt metaphor for describing the work of the students and mentors this year.  The seeds of inspiration were planted months ago, and with a little guidance from the mentors and a lot of hard work by the students, the new shoots on these pages now appear.

When we think of emerging writers and artists, we often think of thirst.  The young artist’s mind begins to open to the sense-rich world around them—the textures of sound, the profound subtlety of hue and the satisfaction of finding the right word to describe these.  It is not a newfound engagement with  the sense they feel, for their artistic faculties were already there; this engagement just needed to be tended, shaped, managed—like a garden…

And this anthology is about the students; the velocity of their growth appears in these pages.  We hope you will enjoy watching out new shoots blossom.

—The Editors, New Shoots, 2010
David Mount, Jeff Stautz, Natalie Thompson