Front Porch
A perusal of the Front Porch archives reveals a history of publishing strong fiction that tends toward narrative driven by a balance of character and action, nonfiction often poignant in its play between narrative and reflection, and poetry sharp in its (usually) concise illumination of the layers under everyday existence. Where the most recent issue’s poetry reflects some degree of consistency with the journal’s established style and quality, the prose selections are not quite as memorable as what’s appeared in previous issues. Front Porch’s general strengths include its utilization of multimedia elements, such as featured videos of author readings and a design that is neither plain nor so flashy that it distracts from the content. The journal’s name is highlighted as a unifying visual theme, with photographs of front porches used for cover art and as background images for individual pages. The universal front porch then becomes personal, as each published piece includes an author’s statement about a specific front porch in her or his memory. Expanding on that sense of personalization, one interesting innovation the new editorial board has made for the summer issue is featuring blog entries written by several members of the board on various literary topics in lieu of new interviews, reviews, and videos. Judging from the journal’s history and the new board’s obvious enthusiasm, Front Porch is a journal worth checking back with despite some of the lackluster selections in the current issue.
Jennifer Colatosti
