Chatting with Kevin Murphy, editor of Dark Sky Magazine

Kevin Murphy, editor of the online literary magazine Dark Sky, was just about to pack up and move to Vashon Island, Washington when I met with him in downtown Charleston. Originally from Boston, MA, Murphy has spent the last five years in the Low Country area interacting with the literary community.

Q: What inspired you to create Dark Sky Magazine?

A: I studied English and writing at USC Berkeley, and then I attended Emerson for graduate school. I also do a lot of writing myself—fiction, poetry, journalism. I started Dark Sky in March of 2007. Back then, online magazines were still relatively new. I recognized the fact that literary journals were probably headed in that direction. I wanted to be a part of that.

Q: What kinds of things does Dark Sky publish?

A: When we first started the magazine we published original literature, as well as art and photography. Since then, we've discontinued the art and photography and focused more on the literary side. We currently publish short stories, poetry, book reviews, and literary interviews. We update the site daily with literary news as well. We also have a regular column, by our friend Charlie Greer, who lives in Spain right now, called "Noted Abroad."

Q: How do you select submissions to publish?

A: I look for things that evoke a certain feeling … for example, if a poem translates an individual's impression of something, then that is quality. Really, we just want stuff that is interesting and different. I'm a writer myself, so I encourage people to submit things. All writers have to deal with rejection. I strive to always be kind, honest and encouraging.

Q: How has the Charleston community treated you?

A: Charleston as a city has been very supportive of the magazine. This is such a good city for just exploring—my fiancé and I love walking around and checking out all the history and all the places to eat! I've met a lot of great friends in the years that I've been here. Our contributing editor, Andrew Greer, still lives in Charleston though, and so the magazine still has a Charleston connection. We've published some local work—Jonathan Sanchez, for example. He was very supportive of Dark Sky and we actually hosted the Piccolo Fiction Open with him back in 2008. Overall, Charleston has a thriving arts scene.

Q: What are some future ventures for Dark Sky?

A: We've been talking about having a contest and publishing the winning manuscript. We're hoping to do that probably in the fall. Also, we're trying to start a small press for writers. We want to combine the book agent and the press responsibilities—kind of like cutting out the middle-man. Our website has also gone through some recent changes. We went from a traditional "magazine style" format to more of a fancy blog format. That way, we can easily keep it updated with the daily news et cetera.