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QB Editor Alive and Well in RVA

9/30/2013

Adieu to Peru and home again!

Dear fledglings,

I have never been so grateful to step barefoot on my hardwood floor, dig into my refrigerator for odds and ends, and plop onto my fluffy bed. I am finally at home after 17 hours of traveling and feeling blessed in my little Richmond, Virginia. Learning and serving in Piura—a medium-sized Peruvian city grappling with poverty and the forces of nature in a desert climate—has, predictably, changed my perspective on many things.

This was my first real-world encounter with the struggles people in a developing country face every single day. The poverty I saw in Puerto Rico in 2011 or in Mexico in 2012 does not truly compare to what I witnessed in Peru this past week. No amount of reading could make up for actually encountering naked children and cardboard houses in real life. I'm glad I went mostly because I'm less likely to take the relative ease and convenience of my life for granted. That alone will change how I approach volunteer projects and simply relate to people on a daily basis. I am also happy I had a chance to meet the family I'll be sponsoring.

As promised, my adventure has also yielded some original art and writing. That includes a community art project, Palabras a Dios, which I did with children at a Catholic school and teens at a girls' orphanage in Piura, as well as Poems from Piura, a more personal project. More on those soon. Until then, check here at QuailBellMagazine.com as we post away this week. And don't forget to visit our table at the Richmond 'Zine Fest on Saturday. We'll be hosting a workshop at 2:30 p.m. that day, too.

Feathery hugs,
Christine Stoddard/ “Luna Lark”
Founder/Editor
QuailBellMagazine.com

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QB Editor Good-bye; Going to Peru

9/20/2013

Farewell, North America! Hello, South America!

Dear fledglings,

Today I leave for Piura, Peru. As many of you are already aware, I am going as a missionary through the non-profit, Commissioned by Christ. Of course the word “missionary” is slightly deceiving. My group is not going to convert anyone. This is, after all, South America, where Catholicism reigns supreme. Instead, we are going on a service-learning trip, where our goal is to grow as individuals who are better able to bring about positive change in our own communities upon our return. Obviously we plan to help the Piura community in whatever way we can while we are there, but we have no delusions of grandeur. There is only so much we can accomplish in nine days and it also not our role to impose our values and tell a whole city what's “best” for them.

Over the course of nine days, our group will be presented with a variety of tasks to complete for a local parish. While I hope to spend a lot of that time teaching English and perhaps doing an art project like Guadalajara in 35mm or The Children of Jackson Ward, anything is possible. If I'm called to mend a fence, I will mend a fence. If I'm called to distribute food to neighboring villages, I will distribute food. I'll do what I'm asked to do with an open heart and an open mind. You can also bet I'll keep my eyes and ears open for great stories and photos, too. Upon my return, I'll have a lot to share with the Quail Bell community.

While I'm away, art director Kristen Rebelo and managing editor Misty Thomas are in charge. Should you have any questions, please email them. I will not be checking my email until October 1st. I trust that Kristen and Misty will serve up a healthy daily dose of the imaginary, the nostalgic, and the otherworldly to loyal readers like you every day during my absence.

Feathery hugs,
Christine Stoddard/ “Luna Lark”
Founder/Editor
QuailBellMagazine.com

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New Managing Editor: Misty Thomas

9/19/2013

Welcome, Misty!

Dear fledglings,

It is with great pleasure that I introduce you to our new and fabulous managing editor, Misty Thomas of Atlanta, Georgia! Misty is a writer and aspiring educator who moved to Richmond, Virginia's historic Church Hill neighborhood earlier this year. By now, you've probably read several of Misty's sparkling stories on the website. You can also look forward to the debut of her 'zine (an excerpt from her fantasy novel) at the Richmond 'Zine Festival on October 5th. As if that were not exciting enough, I recently named Misty the co-author of Images of America: Richmond's Cemeteries (Arcadia Publishing), as well.

It seems that my meeting Misty was divine providence. She embodies the Quail Bell spirit and has already been a great asset to our team during her two-month tenure with The Quail Bell Crew. Watch out for Misty's arts and history coverage on the site, and definitely stay tuned for her other Quail Bell projects!

Feathery hugs,
Christine Stoddard/"Luna Lark"
Founder/Editor
QuailBellMagazine.com

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The Richmond Times-Dispatch features Richmond's Dead & Buried

9/15/2013

Our Kickstarter got some press today.

Today the Richmond Times-Dispatch covered Quail Bell's original documentary, Richmond's Dead and Buried, because of the success of our Kickstarter campaign. Read the article here and also check out the poster art director Kristen Rebelo made for the film:

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Quail Bell Meets Brooklyn Community Access Television

9/10/2013

Our 2013 Brooklyn 'Zine Festival Interview

Editor Christine Stoddard and art director Kristen Rebelo were lucky enough to be interviewed by Brooklyn Community Access Television for a special show about the 2013 Brooklyn 'Zine Festival. Check it out! And thanks for the exposure, BCAT!

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New WorldOfChristineStoddard.com

9/8/2013

Getting her act together!

Well, well, well, our editor Christine Stoddard has finally sat down and revived her portfolio site. Curious about some of the projects she's done? Check out her website at WorldOfChristineStoddard.com.

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Vol. 1 Brooklyn Reviews Quail Bell Magazine: Issue 3

9/8/2013

Sometimes we find out good news a little late.

Dear fledglings,

As you may know, we tabled at the 2013 Brooklyn 'Zine Festival, where we premiered the third print issue of Quail Bell Magazine. It was an excellent event and proved to be a positive experience for us. That was all the way back in April, which we have trouble believing was already five months ago. (Our summer was full of so many successes!)

Today our editor Christine Stoddard was looking up places where the QB article, "Anacostia—the next H Street? Try Old Town," had been linked. In researching that, she found this great review of our mag in Vol. 1 Brooklyn. Needless to say, we're stoked. This is simply proof that we need to continue doing what we're doing. Thanks again for all of your support. Our greatest success is counting you as our readers.

Feathery hugs,
The Quail Bell Crew

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The Children of Jackson Ward Manuscript

9/8/2013

We're seeking a publisher. Can you recommend one?

Anyone who follows The Quail Bell Crew knows that Quail Bell Press & Productions, LLC. has an ever-buzzing hive of unique arts and journalism projects. Our latest? The Children of Jackson Ward, a poetry and photography collection, is ready for its shiny, new jar. All we need is a small publisher ready to put a lid on it.

The Children of Jackson Ward features poems by Quail Bell Magazine editor Christine Stoddard about her experiences as an AmeriCorps volunteer at an elementary school serving downtown Richmond, Virginia's historically black neighborhoods. The poems focus on the children of the community, from their complicated home lives to the legacy of their ancestors in the former capital of the Confederacy. Quail Bell Magazine art director Kristen Rebelo designed and illustrated the collection. Her drawings make up the front and back covers, while her digital photography documents real sights and scenes in the neighborhoods of Jackson Ward, Gilpin Court, and Carver.

The Children of Jackson Ward is an art project with a social justice perspective. As such, we hope that the publisher who picks it up would be willing to donate a portion of the proceeds to a high school senior in Richmond City Public Schools who 1) attended G.W. Carver Elementary as a child, and 2) demonstrates creative promise in art or writing.

If your company or foundation would like to consider publishing The Children of Jackson Ward, please contact us today. We also appreciate recommendations from our readers. Please like the project on Facebook and receive regular updates.

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September 2013 RVA First Friday

9/8/2013

Thanks for helping us kick off an incredible fall!

Editor Christine Stoddard and Art Director Kristen Rebelo tabled for Quail Bell Press & Productions, LLC. at First Friday Artwalk, a monthly public art event in Richmond, Virginia. We sold Quail Bell Magazine, "Guadalajara in 35mm," Comicality, and our new The Persistence of Poe DVD. It was a beautiful evening, ripe with gallery openings, musical performances, food vendors, and other excitement. We're glad we had a chance to bring ourselves out into the community. Thanks to everyone who stopped by our table; we'll see you at October's First Friday for sure. Happy fall!

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A Virginia Literary Magazine with a Global Perspective

9/6/2013

From the Mother of Presidents and Far Beyond

“In my writing, I have been inspired by being 'Virginian,' but I never set out to do a commercial for Virginia. It was just that the background of my growing up there was so inherent in my character that praise and gratitude to Virginia came out.”

- Earl Hamner (novelist/screenwriter/creator of "The Waltons"

Dear fledglings,

I am an Old Dominion dame, though I didn't always identify that way. Growing up in the shadow of Washington, D.C., I called myself a Washingtonian all my life until I moved to Iowa's “amber waves of grain” for one year. Suddenly I began to recognize the traits that had always made me a Commonwealth girl. I longed for the magic of a place where the North merged with the South. I missed the morning mist that hovered over the Blue Ridge Mountains. I missed Westmoreland's clay cliffs. I missed the clip-clop of horseshoes on Williamsburg streets. I was nostalgic for a Virginia I had mostly gotten to know through the occasional weekend get-away with my family. The truth was that, at that point, I knew our vacation spots like Camden, Maine and Miami, Florida better than I did Roanoke or Hampton. But nostalgia is a powerful, hallucinogenic drug.

When I moved to Richmond in 2008, I knew I would write and make art. My desire to start Quail Bell Magazine in 2010 became an obsession that's ebbed and flowed over the years, largely because of the complicated feelings Josephine Stone's death left me. When Josie was killed in 2011, I was afraid to continue with Quail Bell. I feared it wouldn't be the same without her. I almost abandoned the project completely. I never thought I'd find another kindred spirit. While it certainly has not been the same without Josie, re-launching the website with Kristen Rebelo has been a cathartic process. Since the re-launch in June, I've had the chance to revisit old Quail Bell plans and envision Quail Bell's future.

Quail Bell is a publication that started in Virginia and, like Virginia, Quail Bell is deeply rooted in history and folklore. But Quail Bell does not only belong to Virginia. It belongs to a global, online community. The original plan was to never make it known that Quail Bell was even based in Virginia, but then I developed such strong Commonwealth pride that I thought it would be foolish not to point out what treasures and potential my home has to offer.

Kristen and I enjoy submissions, social media engagement, and letters from all over the world. I'm proud that I started Quail Bell in Virginia, but I also know that it'd be selfish to keep all of this within Virginia boundaries. So no matter where you're from—even if you've never even set foot in Virginia before—welcome to Quail Bell Magazine. We've been waiting for you for three whole, turbulent years.

Feathery hugs,
Christine Stoddard
Editor

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About Us

Welcome to our staff blog, where you can learn more about The Quail Bell Crew.

History

Christine Stoddard conceived the idea for Quail Bell in late 2009 after writing a children's story by the same name, and launched the website as a college blog in 2010. In June 2013, Christine and former art director Kristen Rebelo officially launched Quail Bell Magazine as a global web magazine. Read our editorial mission statement to learn more.

The QB Crew

Christine Stoddard, Founding Editor

Art, media, and language have enchanted Christine Stoddard since the days of her early upbringing in Arlington, VA. While still a mere fairy flutter from D.C., Christine dove into creative activities, hoping that her artistic talents would distract her teachers from learning of her mathematical inability. Luckily, her plan worked. Her non-math skills have been recognized by regional and national organizations. In October 2011, Style Weekly Magazine named her one of the "Top 40 Under 40" in Richmond, VA, while she was still a VCUarts student. Christine currently lives and works in her native Virginia. Email her at: [email protected].

Gretchen Gales,

Executive Editor
Though Gretchen first dedicated her life to being a veterinarian and a best-selling writer on the side, her lack of technical abilities helped guide her towards a literary and art career. Gretchen has published work in Ms., Bustle, The Establishment, and over 30 other publications. She also has been interviewed in Dear English Major and Her Campus. More of her work can be found at writinggales.wordpress.com.