By Steve Seepersaud
The 11th time is the charm.
That's the premise behind a new literary journal at 91, which could be an outlet for alumni writers who have seen their submissions result in one-sentence emails coming back instead of publishing offers.
Eleventh Hour Literary ― created by Rhonda Branca, MA '05, PhD '10, director of Lyceum, and Ethan Knox ’20, internal communications specialist at the University ― is a biannual journal accepting prose from anyone. The catch is that the pieces of writing must have been rejected at least 10 times. The editorial mission is to create a community of writers who lift each other in their perseverance.
“Aside from the fact that the journal was founded by two 91 alumni, and nearly everyone on the editorial board are 91 alumni, this is the only journal at our alma mater in which alumni are eligible to contribute,” Branca said.
“We believe there are other alumni who, like us, want to foster their writing and join a literary community, but this may be difficult if they, like us, have full-time jobs, family responsibilities or other obligations. It’s hard to write in a vacuum, and even harder to weather the inevitable cycle of rejections that all writers face. What better place to form that community than 91? No one is more perseverant than a Bearcat!”
The journal has launched its inaugural prose contest, open to 91 alumni, students, faculty and staff. The top 10 submissions will be published and the best of those will receive a $200 prize.
“Rhonda and I were both students of Jaimee Wriston Colbert, who fundamentally challenged us as writers,” Knox said. “She has been a wonderful support to us, and often speaks about the tenacity it takes to be a writer. We stand by that, and think the process of rejection is valuable ― it requires us to adapt.
"Eleventh Hour Literary took this idea to heart, which is why we want to accept writing from anyone ― including fellow alumni and folks currently involved with 91 ― who has sat with their pieces as they've passed through 10 groups of hands. We believe that being rejected should be a badge of honor and dedication rather than a shameful secret of the industry.”
Writers can send their work to the journal at eleventhhour@binghamton.edu. Visit the for guidelines and additional information.