About

The West Marin Review is an award-winning literary and arts journal founded in the rural town of Point Reyes Station, California. Its first issue was released in 2008. Each volume is printed with the support of artists, writers, poets, and readers who share a passion for literature and learning. The publication is a grassroots collaborative effort by a dedicated team of volunteer editors and designers, Neighbors & Friends. Point Reyes Books and Commonweal are proud supporters.

The Review now attracts submissions from around the world, from artists and writers of all ages and persuasions. The journal has been nationally awarded.

GDUSA American Web Design Award 2017
One Show Award, NY 2017
Communication Arts 2017
New York Book Show 2016 and 2011

COLLABORATORS

Steering Committee
Myn Adess, Madeleine Corson, Doris Ober

Co-Publisher/Managing Editor: Doris Ober, managing editor of the Review since 2009, is a veteran independent book editor and author’s collaborator in the Bay Area. She has written two memoirs: The Dogtown Chronicles and The Alzheimer’s Years: A Mother and Daughter Reunion.

Co-Publisher/Associate Editor: Myn Adess’s editorial specialties are in social change, nonprofit functioning, and health care. Active in the nonprofit community for 40 years as volunteer, board member, executive director, and fundraiser, she has served on the boards of the predecessor to the Coastal Health Alliance, the Jack Mason Museum, the West Marin Music Festival, and the Community Land Trust Association of West Marin.

Co-Publisher/Designer: Madeleine Corson co-founded the Review after responding to an ad in 2006 about starting a literary publication. She has been on board ever since, collaborating with the editors on content and with her MCD team on the creative direction/design and printing of each issue. Madeleine lives (and stores Review issues) in an old farmstead just north of Point Reyes. MCD enjoys helping poets and authors self-publish, and also works with organizations such as Stanford University, National Geographic, Yosemite National Park, and artisanal wineries. corsondesign.com

Gratitude

It Takes a Village

Many thanks to Steve Costa and David Miller who, while serving on the board of the Tomales Bay Library Association, in 2006 suggested locally producing a new literary journal. As a co-publisher, Point Reyes Books, then owned by Steve and his wife Kate Levinson, provided longtime support for the West Marin Review. After they sold the bookstore, Steve and Kate’s support continued through their nonprofit Black Mountain Circle.

Many hands helped the Review evolve, especially during its formative years. Early volunteers included steering committee member Ann Pring; Susan Miller, who stirred the pot of ideas; Ellen Serber, who provided creative management; Mark Caballero, who helped coordinate readings; Suzanne d’Coney provided early logistical support, followed by Kamala Tully, who enthusiastically supported the Review for several years.

Donations large and small have ensured that the Review made it into print, and we are grateful for major support from the Lucid Arts Foundation and from several other donors who wish to remain unnamed.

Warm thanks to Point Reyes Books for hosting numerous readings and fundraisers that featured poets Robert Hass, Jane Hirshfield, Kay Ryan, and Forest Ganders, as well as essayist Peter Coyote.

Lastly, we thank you, our readers, for joining us on this journey, engaging with the artists and inspiring our curation.

From Readers and Contributors

I was thrilled that the first edition of the West Marin Review included “Seasons,” the first story I have ever published. Although I am a veteran filmmaker with 6 independent films under my belt, I was extremely happy that WMR chose to publish my story, particularly because it is one of the most visual, best laid-out literary magazines out there. The WMR editors helped me refine the writing, and the process was productive, even enjoyable. I helped organize a series of readings, including one standing-room-only event during San Francisco’s annual Litquake. In the process, I got to know a number of the writers, editors and supporters of the WMR and came away with an enduring sense of community.
—Nancy Kelly, Writer/Director/Producer

The West Marin Review journal has greatly supported the submission of rural student artwork both at the elementary and secondary level through the years. Being able to share artwork in this forum has been a unique, memorable, and exciting experience for our students. From Pinhole photography to mixed media design, the West Marin Review has shown an appreciation for the creative process of students. It has been an honor to work with such a visually beautiful journal and to expose students to the professional process of being published.
—Rachel E. Somerville, Fine Arts educator, Tomales High School (2010)

I have been honored to be published in the West Marin Review. As an author with well over 500 published pieces to date, my experience with the volunteer group producing this publication has been uniformly positive, and the journal itself is a beautifully-produced publication. I find both the written and graphic presentation to be very nicely done, and I really enjoy the mix of contributors, from the renowned to the first-published. I truly hope it thrives, even if I never appear there again—and yes, I have had work rejected there as well!
—Steve Heilig, author, epidemiologist, environmentalist, and ethnomusicologist

I have the West Marin Review to thank for re-affirming my long-dormant poetic strivings. I was lucky enough to have one of my poems selected for the first issue. Energized by that validation, I went back to poetry as one of my too-many sidelines and have enjoyed the relapse quite a bit. Aside from benefitting my life, the WMR has obviously done a lot of good for others as well. Just as consuming locally grown greens makes sense, so does consuming locally produced prose, poetry, and visuals.
—John Korty, documentary filmmaker