Pictures to follow.

(If you haven't subscribed yet, this week you can still get free stuff, & be entered into a drawing to win even more free stuff.)

And of course there will be pictures.

Subscribe here.

In fact, we still need 18 subscriptions to reach our goal of 50!

So, for this last week of July, we'll be sweetening the pot even more than we already have by entering every new or renewing subscriber we get this week into a drawing to receive the following Prize Pack of Awesomeness. The drawing will be held on Sunday, August 1.

PRIZE PACK OF AWESOMENESS

Annalemma #6

Drain by Davis Schneiderman (Northwestern, June 2010)

Sententia #1

Early copy of Daddy's by Lindsay Hunter (Featherproof, 2010)

Big Lucks #2

PANK #5

Early copy of Save the Assistants by Lilit Marcus (Hyperion, 2010)

Hobart #11

ACM #50 (All Chicago Issue)

(More awesomeness to come. And if you've got something you'd like to donate to the Prize Pack of Awesomeness, shoot us an email at editors AT artificemag DOT com.)

My roommate just said to me, "I see the fanny pack has come out." She does not like my fanny pack. But I was just looking for my credit card, so I could check which account I wanted to pledge $20 with.

Because I decided to pledge $20 towards gas money for the High Emission Book Tour.

Because I believe in book tours, and I believe that travelling on the road is rewarding, and I believe in communities working toward larger goals together, like having more book tours.

And because I totally have a crush on Aaron Burch (who's going on the tour), and another one on Amelia Gray, who is also going on the tour and who I saw read at Quickies last summer on the Dollar Store Tour, where she read a piece that was recently mentioned here, to great note, and another one on Lindsay Hunter, who is also going on the tour, who has been one of the nicest people I've met in a long time and who co-hosts Quickies, which is easily my favorite Chicago reading series. (And: secret coming: we're planning an East Coast tour for Issue #2 over here at Artifice, and I have tours on the brain.)

Anyway: Amelia Gray put together a Kickstarter project for the tour, and they're trying to get $350 for gas money and the rental of a Ford Focus.

If you don't know about Kickstarter, it's actually a pretty great tool for getting funded for things like smallish book tours.

People (like me!) can pledge money, and if the project doesn't get fully funded, no one pays up. But if it does, everyone's credit card (like mine, in my fanny pack) gets charged for the amount they said they were willing to pay. And then Aaron and Amelia and Lindsay can represent in California.

So here's my pitch.

Go watch the video Aaron Burch put together and see if you can't dig up some spare change or a dollar bill or two that got washed in your jeans pocket. It will make you feel good. And if it doesn't, that's OK too. You did the right thing.

Christopher Heavener of Annalemma is putting together a table for this weekend's Brooklyn Flea (Brooklynites represent!). We've been really excited to see a general effort on the part of the literary (and particularly the indie lit) community to get books and lit journals in places one wouldn't normally expect. Other examples include Vouched Books in Indianapolis and Chicago's own Book Bike (which, for those of you who've been following the story, is back in business thanks to the Chicago Public Library).

Artifice will be sharing the table with Hobart, Publishing Genius, Mud Luscious, Ampersand, X-ing, fellow Chicagoans Featherproof Books, and of course Annalemma. Stop by, New York, and give us some love.

Readers: Likewise, there's a little over two weeks left to take advantage of our July Subscription Drive. Free, beautiful screenprints are involved. Info here.

Everyone: Have a beautiful weekend. Some of us plan to spend it outside, listening to loud noises.

2. We are very much looking forward to Printer's Ball.

3. We are working on layout for Issue #2. It is exciting. Rebekah talked about Artifice's design here.

4. We are trying to collect our thoughts on this.

5. This is a nice response to #4, although we're still not sure what we think about it.

6. We hope you had a nice weekend.

We want to get 50 new subscriptions in July. We think we can do it. You can help us, and get free stuff, too.

If we make it to 50 new subscriptions in July, August 1, 2010 will be declared Artifice Pizza Party Day. All Artifice subscribers will be welcomed to treat themselves to a Pizza Party.

LET US COUNT THE WAYS:

Way 1. If you're one of the first five.

Each week in July, starting on Monday (7/5, 7/12, 7/19, 7/26), the FIRST FIVE NEW SUBSCRIBERS will receive a free limited edition screen print of their choice ($15 value). No, we will not tell you when the five-subscription limit each week has been exceeded.

Way 2. If you're subscribed, and get someone else to subscribe. 

July, any CURRENT SUBSCRIBER (as of June 30) who refers a NEW SUBSCRIBER in July will receive a free limited edition screen print of their choice. New subscriptions may be for either Issue 1 and 2 or Issue 3 and 4. Current subscribers must email us at editors AT artificemag DOT com with print choice AFTER their referred subscriber has made payment.

Way 3. If you renew your subscription.

During July, any CURRENT SUBSCRIBER (Issues 1 and 2) who renews their subscription for Issues 3 and 4 will receive a free limited edition screen print of their choice. Current subscribers must email us at editors AT artificemag DOT com with print choice AFTER they have renewed their subscription.

Way 4. If you subscribe because someone who's already subscribed referred you.

During July, any NEW SUBSCRIBER (during July) referred by a CURRENT SUBSCRIBER (as of June 30) will receive a free limited edition screen print of their choice. New subscribers must tell us in the notes section of their PayPal payment who the referring current subscriber is. They must email us at editors AT artificemag DOT com with their print choice following payment.

Way 6. If you live in a US state where no other subscribers live.

During July, any NEW SUBSCRIBER with a mailing address in a state where Artifice does not currently have any subscribers (on the date of payment) will receive a free limited edition screen print of their choice. No, we will not tell you what states are not yet represented. If your subscription mailing address qualifies as as not-yet-represented-state, we will email you upon payment to ask for your print choice.

>>>Screen prints were created in limited edition; please note that prints will be available while supplies last. All the prints can be seen here. Limit five (5) free screen print illustrations per person.<<<

Don’t ask me how it worked or how anyone got oxygen because what did I care? Everyone was so sincere and sincere is sex, so no, no one minded living underground, in our burrow or anywhere else, since violence went away forever and life was a boudoir mall cave: rock, and open-faced people, and things people bought before the underground time.

Kirsty Logan, "Queer Zombie Disco," from Zombie Summer at Nothing to Say:

I finally find Mara, mostly in one piece, but with someone's ankle bone imbedded in her temple. I take that as a sign that it's time to go. I hoist Mara up onto my shoulder, climb over the slow-breathing bodies in the doorway, and prop her up in the backseat. I work on digging the ankle bone out of her skull until Tukie and the babydyke stagger out and start up the van.

Caleb J. Ross, "Sarah Palin, 12, Strikes for Workers," from Oprah Read This:

Tell Sarah that someone bought her feces flag piece. She’ll know what piece that is.

(Have you checked out Oprah Read This, generally? It's a pretty wonderful project.)

Audra Puchalski, "Four Poems," from > kill author:

I have a small mouth       and a protective urge
     sometimes

And if you haven't yet, check out the Orange Alert Podcast Smiths-i-sode, featuring a variety of indie writers (Amy Guth! Mel Bosworth! xTx!) reading the Smiths, plus some pretty excellent Smiths covers from the likes of the Welcome Wagon and Spanish Prisoners.

Ori Fienberg works as a Writing Center Coordinator for WriteBoston, a citywide initiative to promote a culture of writing in Boston's public high schools. To fall asleep each night, he closes his eyes and counts Iowans. Find him online here.

The above image, by Sanya Glisic is part of our Issue 1 Special Edition, created in collaboration with Spudnik Press, and can be purchased as a handmade, limited edition screenprint here.