It is hard to believe that four years have gone by since The Copperfield Review was first published. Four years ago I had just published my first historical novel and I couldn't believe that there were so few markets specifically for historical fiction, especially since historical fiction is one of the most beloved genres. On a whim I decided to take on my grad school dream of creating a literary journal, and I believe that it's CR's focus on historical fiction that has brought us our loyal fans. We are fortunate to have been the first published credit for a number of up-and-coming authors, and we hope to continue being a respected publisher of historical fiction.

In this edition you'll find more of what you've come to look for in CR, more great historical fiction and more great non-fiction. We think you will particularly like "Gorki in New York", a creative non-fiction piece by J.B. Hogan. Though it reads like fiction, it is based entirely on first-hand accounts from Maxim Gorki's visit to New York City in the early 20th century. Now we are even delving into the scholarly realm with "The Tests and Sacrifices Within Two Worlds of Courtly Love" by Jonathan Wolf, a Harlem, New York scholar. It is different than what we normally publish in CR, but we appreciated its look at the past in literary terms. We also have two new interviews by acclaimed historical novelist Wendy J. Dunn. In this edition she speaks to C.W. Gortner and Elizabeth Chadwick. We think you'll find their insights into their craft inspiring. We've also made improvements to the layout of CR. The Links and Writers' Resources pages have been combined into one Writers' Resources page bursting with new links and other useful information, and we've made it easier to find new reviews and interviews. Just look at the top of the Reviews and Interviews pages for the latest additions.

Now, after four years of being a steady presence and gaining a loyal fan base, we are ready to begin striving towards the next phase. In our spring edition we are beginning a new column called Book Selection for Spring where we give our readers and contributors a chance to sound out about books that are important to us as readers and writers. Our first book selection is Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi, an amazing teacher among teachers who understands the intrinsic value of literature. If you would like to join us in our book selection discussion, please read our submission guidelines. Beginning in April we will even have a Book Selection dialogue on our CR Forum.

Our summer edition will be a special edition with the theme "In Praise of Books". We are looking forward to hearing from our readers and contributors about the books that tickle our fancy and the books that make us stare longingly in Borders. Right now I am reading Ahab's Wife by Sena Jeter Naslund. It is one of those beautiful novels that you read slowly, savoring the language the way you savor Christmas dinner, knowing that something that special comes around once a year at best.

As if that weren't enough, the editors at CR are hard at work putting together a new subscription newsletter that we hope will be the first and last word when it comes to news about the publishing industry in general and historical fiction in particular. We will be able to share more information in April.

As you can see, though CR has been on hiatus we have been busy getting ready for the next edition and beyond. We hope to continue to create a home for readers and writers of historical fiction.

Sincerely,
Meredith Allard
Executive Editor
The Copperfield Review