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Meet the Interns

Emma Crockford & Emma Tzotschew

December 13, 2021

Meet the Emmas: Two Interns, Two Febs, Two English Majors. 

Emma Crockford: Hi, Emma! 

Emma Tzotschew: Hi, Emma. Fancy seeing you here, in person, in the New England Review office. Don’t you love the windows in here?

Emma Crockford: I’m also a huge fan of the seating. I love our window seat and our butterfly chair. Where are you from? 

Emma Tzotschew: Well, Emma, I’m from down south, from the land of the pines. North Carolina to be exact. What about you?

Emma Crockford: I’m from the south shore of Massachusetts.  

Emma Tzotschew: What brought you to the New England Review?

Emma Crockford: I joined the student submission group over Zoom a while back and I’ve been volunteering as a fiction reader for a little while now. I really wanted to learn more about how the New England Review and magazines like it operate, and the internship felt like the right way to do that. What about you? 

Emma Tzotschew: I think I became aware of NER during my Febmester while I was trying to discover organizations on campus. Last fall, I joined one of the Zoom submission groups and stuck with it through the spring and summer. I’ve wanted to learn more about academic and literary journal publishing, so I was pretty excited about the in-person internship this fall. What else do you do on campus? 

Emma Crockford: I’m a producer for the Middlebury MothUp, which is a student org that puts on live storytelling events on campus. I’m also a member of the sketch comedy club Middlebury Discount Comedy. 

Emma Tzotschew: I have a radio show about horse rhetoric in music, art, and literature and sometimes I even show up to MiddRuns. Right now, I serve as Editor-in-Chief at the Local Noodle, Middlebury’s only news source. We’re going to print this week if the printing press ever responds to my multiple e-mails. Now, speaking of the printed word, what’s your favorite NER story?

Emma Crockford: I heard an NER Out Loud episode where a Midd student read Jerald Walker’s essay “Breathe” and immediately bought a copy of his book of essays, so maybe that one. What’s yours? 

Emma Tzotschew: I keep returning to Lisa Taddeo’s “Forty-Two,” which I actually wrote a paper on for one of my English classes. In the nonfiction realm, I really enjoyed Ryan Dennis’s essay “Naming Fields: The Loss of Narrative in Farming.” It reads as a responsible portrait of the intimate relationship between labor, land, and purpose. What are you reading right now?

Emma Crockford: I just started Ray Bradbury’s The Martian Chronicles and I just finished Octavia Butler’s Blood Child and Other Stories. What about you? 

Emma Tzotschew: This semester, I’ve read a ton of geographic theory. While I haven’t had time to read much for pleasure, I’m working my way through Aria Aber’s poetry collection, Hard Damage. What’s your favorite thing about working at NER? 

Emma Crockford: I absolutely love reading submissions. I recently had a story that I found, Sam Wachman’s “The Right Way to Drown,” picked for publication and that was really exciting. I got to interview him. I also love when Oscar the dog comes to work. I’m going to miss the clicking of his little dog nails on the wood floor. What about you? 

Emma Tzotschew: The office has such a wonderful selection of black tea. And I, of course, enjoy laughing with Carolyn and Eli. 

Emma Crockford: I almost forgot about the emergency dark chocolate! That’s a big perk. 

Emma Tzotschew: It nearly makes up for the lack of a 401k! 

Emma Crockford: You have a really cool joint major. How did you end up combining the English major and geography?

Emma Tzotschew: Well, I came to Middebury under the impression that I’d be a French major. When I realized that I’d rather discuss books in English, I did some shopping around in other departments and experimented with economics, math, Arabic, anthropology, computer science, and art history. Ultimately, English and creative writing won out, though I wanted some quantitative skills, which brought me to geography. It’ll definitely spice up my joint thesis. Now, Emma, you’re an English major, too. Was that always the plan?

Emma Crockford: I took a class on the gothic novel my second semester and loved it. That was probably still my favorite class that I’ve taken here. Do you have a favorite Middlebury class? 

Emma Tzotschew: What a hard question. I really appreciated my art history class last semester, which was concentrated around the medieval Bayeux Tapestry. It definitely took me out of my comfort zone, and it was about an entirely different monument than I thought it was, but it was fun, funny, and rewarding. 

Emma Crockford: All right, Emma, I know leaving NER is gonna be sad, but what are you most looking forward to next semester? 

Emma Tzotschew: Hmm, a fresh semester. It’s been a long one. This internship has given me some skills and insight in how to run my own publication a bit better. Oh, and I am looking forward to enjoying lunch with friends on Mondays and Wednesdays. 

Emma Crockford: I’m excited for my classes—I’m taking one on folk fairy tales. Also, I love spring here, so I’m looking forward to that. 

Emma Tzotschew: That folktale class sounds really interesting! Keep me posted on it. Emma, it’s been a pleasure chatting with you today. Ciao!

Emma Crockford: Bye, Emma! 

Filed Under: Interns, News & Notes Tagged With: Emma Crockford, Emma Tzotschew

Meet the Interns

Yardena Carmi and Rebecca Amen

August 26, 2021

Our summer publicity and podcast interns worked from various locations near and far this summer, but here they are pictured in (or at least superimposed on top of) the NER office, among boxes of journals ready for shipping and comfy chairs for reading. While we hope to get to spend more time with them in person soon, here we get to learn a little more about who they are, what brought them to NER, and how they spent their summer vacations.

Q: Where are you from, and what are you studying at Middlebury?

Yardena: I’m from Cleveland, Ohio, and am studying English and German.

Rebecca: I’m from Pocatello, Idaho, and I’m studying English and Philosophy.

Q: What attracted you to an internship at NER?

Yardena: Early in my freshman year, I went to an NER Out Loud event and was blown away by the stories and talented performers. I made a mental note to check it out further at some point but, with the chaos of starting college and then eventually getting sent home early, I never managed. During this past year, my professor Karin Gottshall suggested I get involved with NER. I ended up joining the spring submissions reading group, an experience I really enjoyed (and would recommend!) for the chance to peek behind the scenes at how a literary magazine is run. I am a huge podcast fan and have been dabbling in audio production for a few years now, so I was really excited at the prospect of marrying those two interests when NER put out a call for podcast interns for the summer.

Rebecca: I’ve been considering publishing careers post-Middlebury, so when I was looking at summer jobs, I had it in mind that I wanted to gain some familiarity with the field. As I was looking, I felt really drawn to the idea of working for a literary journal; it seems like one of the freshest mediums for disseminating new creative work. My first thought was to apply to work at NER, but at that point, it was mostly because of its connection to the college. But now, I definitely regret not being very acquainted with NER—beyond picking up copies once in a while and leafing through them in the library—before applying for this internship! And the one kind of podcast that has really grabbed my attention in the past is podcasts about literary pieces; it is so beautiful to hear them read aloud in what feels like a pretty intimate setting. So, it seemed perfect when NER put out a call for podcast interns!

Q: What’s your biggest takeaway from working for a literary magazine?

Yardena: I think right now the biggest lesson I’ve learned is how much talent there is out there. As part of our intern duties, we read through a ton of incredible pieces and solicited audio recordings from authors to post on NER’s website. Those gifted writers were also able to provide beautiful, moving readings of their own pieces which have been such a pleasure to work with. I’m also learning that editing, whether for audio or text, is as instinctive and painstaking as writing.

Rebecca: Similar to Yardena, I think I hadn’t fully appreciated how many submissions journals like NER receive. And the quality of those submissions, too, is astounding to me. I’m not even sure how the selection process is possible, but I guess that’s owed to the staff and the volunteer readers at the journal; I value learning about and being able to see that process first hand. I’ve also learned that simpler is probably better in terms of producing a podcast, and that’s for the listener’s enjoyment and benefit, not just for the straightforwardness of editing. At first, I was thinking about finding ways to incorporate sound effects or trying to make it more elaborate, but I think a simpler and rather uncomplicated production foregrounds the piece and the discussion surrounding it really nicely. It feels like giving the piece all the room it deserves.

Q: How did you go about selecting pieces for the episodes?

Yardena: So much reading! We ultimately decided to go with pieces from the two most recent issues of NER, but we considered material from a year’s worth of back issues. Other important factors for us were the length and form of the piece—could we imagine it being read out loud?—and whether it inspired any questions we’d ask the authors if given the chance. We also knew that we wanted to pick one prose and one poetry piece, in order to make sure that the podcast would have something for everyone.

Rebecca: Yes, lots of reading! Yardena and I looked both read all the pieces in both 42.1 and 42.2 rather closely. It was quite difficult to pick two pieces—one for each podcast episode we worked on—out of all that amazing work. But ultimately, with the parameters of selecting one poem and one prose piece (and one piece from each of the two most recent issues), we settled on “Crash” and “From Questions for the Interrogation.” I think we are both interested in the work that literature and writing can do to interrogate memory, so I don’t think it’s any coincidence that both of the pieces we chose do that in their own ways.

Q: What’s a favorite NER piece that you’ve read in the past?

Yardena: That’s tough to answer, because NER publishes so many genres and kinds of writing. A prose piece I really enjoyed is “Driving Days” by Thomas Dai (42.2), and a poem I could not stop thinking about after reading was “Dream Ending in a Lover Burning My Mother’s Wedding Gown” by torrin a. greathouse (41.3).

Rebecca: Marianne Boruch’s piece “Every Available Blue No Reason the Sky Is Because” from NER 42.1 is among my favorites I’ve read. I love how Boruch chooses to give the bowerbird at the poem’s center a kind of human consciousness: a puzzling obsessiveness, a private life of its own. And, like Yardena, I was very much affected by “Dream Ending in a Lover Burning My Mother’s Wedding Gown.” The poems that have the most impact on me almost always possess a thought-provoking conclusion: a line that turns the reader inward to search for meaning. Both of these pieces do that beautifully.

Q: What most surprised you about working with audio?

Yardena: I was really surprised, and at times overwhelmed, by how many factors go into determining the quality of the end product on both the recording and producing ends. Also, how much freedom you actually have when it comes to the editorial aspect of processing audio from different sources for a podcast and deciding what to include, what to cut, and where to put everything in order to create a finished product. Not to mention picking music and writing a host script!

Rebecca: I think I would second what Yardena said about intuition. I thought that cleaning up the audio, freeing it of any breath sounds or background noises, was sort of the principal aim. But when I tried that out on the first file I worked with, I listened back and thought it sounded kind of stilted and awkward. At about that time, I started taking better notice of breath sounds in the production of songs, too. I had never noticed them, and it’s true that they do go at least consciously unnoticed if you aren’t actively listening for them. But ultimately, breath sounds are crucial to the audio seeming natural and unedited.

Q: What’s your go-to snack spot in Middlebury?

Yardena: Boba tea from Yogurt City is always a favorite, and super easy to get to from campus. I also recently got a vegetarian burrito from Taco de Town for the first time, which was excellent.

Rebecca: I’m a big Royal Oak (and maple latte) gal, but if it’s the afternoon when I probably shouldn’t be drinking caffeine and I’m wanting something more substantial, I love to go to Noonie’s!


Yardena Carmi ’23 participated in the student reading group during the Spring 2021 term and throughout the summer, in addition to working as a summer intern. Her episode of the NER Out Loud podcast, with Michael McGriff, will be released in September. Rebecca Amen ’22 also participated in the student reading group while working as an intern throughout the summer. Her episode of the podcast, with Jess Lee Kercheval, will be released in October.

Filed Under: Interns, News & Notes Tagged With: Rebecca Amen, Yardena Carmi

Meet the Interns

Georgia Vasilopoulos & Haeun Park

May 24, 2021

Our two spring interns, Georgia Vasilopoulos and Haeun Park, connect over Zoom and talk about their experience at NER.

Q: Tell us a little bit about yourself. Where are you from, and what are you studying at Middlebury?

Georgia: My family is from Greece and I was born there, but grew up in Queens, New York City. I am majoring in Literary Studies at Middlebury, but I’m pretty heavily steeped in humanities classes so I try to supplement literature classes with religion, political science, and philosophy courses. 

Haeun: I’m from Houston, Texas! At Middlebury, I’m studying English and American Literatures and also planning to minor in Sociology. Like Georgia, it’s a pretty humanities-heavy course load, but that’s where most of my interests lie anyways, so I’m okay with that! 

Q: What attracted you to an internship at NER?

Georgia: Besides the free merch and obvious clout (haha), I felt a bit nostalgic for my high school’s literary magazine scene. I guess I’ve taken some strides to explore other interests since my days sitting around with a ragtag group of kids on Wednesday afternoons, drinking Yoo-hoo chocolate milk and offering a hesitant thumbs up or down in response to submissions, but I’m still drawn to lit lovers and I definitely found some at NER! I really wanted to contribute to the literary scene beyond my classes, and interning at NER was a chance to actively engage with current writing production rather than only reflecting on works that have lasted the test of time. Finding a home for the writing of authors from different parts of the world appealed to me. The literary magazine world is in a special position to capture a picture of the cultural scene—what is captivating people’s thoughts and attention at any given time—through the process of putting together new issues.  

Haeun: I think what Georgia said about capturing a cultural moment is spot on. It’s such an honor to be even a small part of the process in publishing and promoting the myriad of voices in NER. I imagine their words rippling through time and space to touch some unsuspecting reader and feel amazed that some aspect of what I did helped it get there. Literature is constantly evolving and changing before our eyes, and I think part of what attracts me to literary publishing is the chance to be on the front lines of it all. It’s both exciting and humbling to know that we have some sway in determining what kind of stories get told, knowing that every issue adds something to the conversation. As a reader and writer, it’s an amazing feeling to be surrounded by other readers and writers all working towards the same mission.    

Q: Of the things you’ve done at NER what was your favorite, or most challenging? 

Georgia: I really enjoyed the freedom I had to pitch new ideas and promote writers’ work. I started highlighting writers’ work spaces, which was a window into what inspired them and what they surrounded themselves with to produce the writing that ended up in NER. I also liked posting about new books published by NER authors because I got to see how their journey as writers progressed since NER and all the accolades that came along the way. The most challenging task was definitely articulating my impressions of submissions. Considering the high caliber of work published by NER, there was always pressure to be very selective in my review of submitted pieces but I also had to pinpoint exactly what felt compelling or what was lacking. 

Haeun: The author book posts were always fun! As part of my research process, I loved going through the archives to find the issues where the author published with NER, reading their past pieces, and then returning to their latest release. Every title was like going through a small journey through their career, and I loved being able to celebrate and promote their progress and accomplishments. Speaking more generally, I loved every opportunity to connect with the readers and writers of NER— exchanging e-mails, conducting interviews, discussing submissions. Working remotely can feel a bit isolating at times, but being able to talk about literature with such thoughtful and enthusiastic people on a regular basis inspired me immensely. Also—the collaborative nature of the work here at NER made it so that it never felt like I was doing it alone!

Q: Did anything surprise you about working at a literary magazine?

Georgia: I have honestly been amazed at the community NER brings together. Every re-Tweet and emphatic thanks from NER authors for highlighting their work always brings out my dimples. 

Haeun: I’ll have to second that! The vibrancy of the literary community really blew me away. Running the social media channels made me realize just how present and engaged everyone is online, and it made me all the more excited to work on and publish the next post.

Q: Of the pieces you’ve worked on/read at NER which was your favorite, or most memorable to you personally? 

Georgia: I had a chance to read Vida James’s “Storm King” over the pandemic summer of 2020, and it ended up being published in NER 41.4. The particular moment in time that I was introduced to it will remain memorable due to the nature of quarantine culture, and it was a nice source of relief—it immediately stood out to me from the slush pile and I had a lot of faith in its publication. It felt good to finally see it in the pages of the magazine when I started working as an intern in the fall.

Haeun: I find myself returning to Marianne Boruch’s “The Lyrebird, Hidden. His Dance, Hidden. His Wish,” published in NER 42.1, again and again. I’m in love with the humor and life at the heart of the poem, its lyrical twists and turns, how the lyrebird is rendered as both delightfully strange and achingly human. But most of all, I love how Boruch balances this vibrancy with a subtle thread of melancholy at the end of the poem: “But me, a life member, / the World Congress of the Disappointed, I understand hope.” Poetry during the pandemic has acted as a particular kind of lifeline for me, and this line with all of its resonances has stuck with me ever since my very first encounter with it.


Georgia Vasilopoulos ’21 participated in the student reading group in summer 2020 and served as an intern for the entire 2020-2021 academic year. She graduates this May with a major in Literary Studies. Haeun Park ’23 participated in the spring reading group and will continue working for NER during the summer, before heading to Oxford in the fall.

Filed Under: Featured, Interns, News & Notes

NER Interns: Where are they now?

Thomas Kivney

April 16, 2021

Thomas Kivney ’13 talks to NER intern Rachel Horowitz-Benoit ’21 about his work at a literary scouting agency and getting his MFA in screenwriting.

Rachel Horowitz-Benoit: When were you an intern at NER and what was a highlight (or anything you remember doing) of your experience?

Thomas Kivney: I interned at NER over winter term 2013 and it was a wonderful experience that I’m so thankful to have had. The people there were all an incredible mix of hyper intelligent and super welcoming and I remember the office having this warm, almost magical atmosphere—full of old NER volumes, lots of comfortable places to read, and there always seemed to be snow outside. I really looked forward to going into work every day. I especially loved the Friday meetings where we got to discuss some pieces that had been submitted to the journal and give our input. It was an informative peek into the editorial workings of the journal that taught me a lot about how to articulate and defend my opinions about what makes a story work. 

RHB: What was one skill you developed as an undergraduate, either in school or any internships, that most benefits you today in your professional work?

TK: Middlebury and NER really taught me how to think critically about narrative while also opening my eyes to a wider world of stories out there. I like to think that I’m a more adventurous and more reflective reader and storyteller because of my time at Midd.

1937217_1218676113025_3151518_n.jpg

Thomas Kivney at Middlebury, where he double majored in English and film

RHB: Where are you now, geographically and professionally, and what were some of the steps in between?

TK: I’m in Los Angeles getting my MFA in Screenwriting at the American Film Institute Conservatory. Before that I spent six years in New York working in publishing. I started off at Macmillan in the audiobook department, which was just a fantastic crash course in the industry as a whole because it meant working with tons of people across multiple imprints and genres—literary, thriller, romance, sci-fi, YA, you name it. For anyone looking to get their start in publishing I can’t recommend audiobooks enough. From there, I transitioned over to a literary scouting agency for four years, which is where I started becoming more involved in film. It was a rewarding experience that meant getting to work closely alongside Warner Bros and Netflix, advising them on the acquisition of books for adaptation to TV and film. 

RHB: What is the focus of your Master’s, and why did you decide to pursue this field?

TK: I’m getting my Master’s in Screenwriting. I’m just a massive movie nerd through and through. 

RHB: What do you read for pleasure? Have you read anything good lately?

TK: Working at a scouting agency meant reading two or three books a week for work, and much of this past year has been about slowly rediscovering the love of reading for its own sake. I recently really enjoyed Piranesi by Susanna Clarke, which was a great little puzzlebox of a book. On the opposite end of the spectrum, Jason Lutes’s epic but very entertaining three-part graphic novel Berlin was a behemoth I happily devoured while stuck inside this summer. And a little less recent—but the best thing I’ve read in years—remains Elena Ferrante’s Neapolitan series. They’re just fantastic and the HBO adaptation is really good too. 

RHB: Thanks for your time, Thomas, and the best of luck with your degree!

Filed Under: Interns, News & Notes, Where Are They Now Tagged With: Rachel Horowitz-Benoit, Thomas Kivney

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Vol. 43, No. 2

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NER Digital

David Ryan

Behind the Byline

David Ryan

NER’s Elizabeth Sutton speaks with 43.2 contributor David Ryan about juxtaposition, character development, and writing around gaps in his story “Elision.”

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