Editor’s Note

NYQ is back. After a decade-long hiatus, the magazine is back online—quite literally. A lot has changed in those ten years and although the presentation has changed to a combination of digital and print, I assure you that we are back with the same mission that we have always had. For both those of you who are new to NYQ and those of you who have known us for years, I think it is worthwhile in this new beginning to nail that which guides us to the door of poetry once again:

“It is the mission of The New York Quarterly Foundation, Inc. to be the independent voice for all things poetry regardless of any concern other than the craft of the poem itself; to publish prominent and emerging writers; to create an awareness that the benefits of poetry are accessible to everyone; and to provide education and resources for all who want to write and read poetry.”

Out of this mission statement grow the five core values that we have steadfastly stood behind for many years and make NYQ’s return timely and necessary:

1. Free Speech—We will not make any associations or editorial decisions that will limit our or our authors’ right of free speech.
2. Editorial Voice—The uniqueness of The New York Quarterly Foundation’s publications lies in the editorial voice established by William Packard. Some see it as gruff, some as typical New York, but hopefully you will come to know it as authentic.
3. Poetry for All—NYQ holds that everyone is capable of understanding poetry—it is that simple. Despite what your seventh-grade teacher told you, if you read it or write it and it makes you feel—you get it.
4. Education—The New York Quarterly Foundation, Inc. holds that we need to educate all ages in the enjoyment and understanding of poetry.
5. Cultivation of Social Consciousness—NYQ strives to explore and inform the juncture of society and poetry.

We will be presenting four quarterly issues containing only poetry. We will also be posting one or two interviews and essays at various times throughout the year, and we will be collecting all of this into one annual print edition to come out every April. We also have a number of projects coming up like getting all of the past interviews and essays online and building an online library containing the works of William Packard.

NYQ, then, returns to join all of the other literary voices in concert with arts and music to put the humane back into humanity via the humanities, to help spark inward journeys that create thought—and inspire. This country has had its setbacks of late, but now is the time to look forward again. This is why NYQ had to come back now – not to rage against a machine but to provide a platform for poems that, through their craft and insight, grow society one step further toward the future.