Electric Lit’s Smaller Numbers Tell a Larger Story

Dear Reader,

In my first letter as Electric Literature’s incoming Director of Operations and Fiction Editor, I am tempted to dazzle you with numbers. EL has such an impressive array of them—3.5 million readers! 300,000 social media followers! Upwards of 6,000 published writers!—and numbers are an easy way to quantify success.

But as I sit down to write, it isn’t the big numbers I want to talk about. They’re not why I’m here, and I don’t believe they’re what make Electric Lit special. The real numbers—the numbers that matter—are much smaller.

For me, the most important number is the smallest. Zero is the number EL is committed to protecting. It’s the number driving every fundraiser, and the number every donation supports.

Many other magazines charge readers, levy submission fees, or pay writers less (or not at all). Frankly, it would be easier for Electric Lit to do any one of those things. But without access points, without opportunities to read and fall in love with literature free of charge, our community suffers. It becomes less inclusive, less relevant, less exciting. Electric Literature was built on the dream of a vibrant literary ecosystem; by giving literature away for free, we ensure it remains vital and valued. 

Electric Literature must raise $35,000 by April 15 to cover our expenses, and we need to reach $10,000 by Monday to stay on track. I hope you’ll donate what you can, and I hope you’ll spread the word. Tell your friends! Share on social media. Fight for writers and readers and free access to literature. And, of course, keep reading.

Gratefully yours, 

Wynter K. Miller
Incoming Director of Operations and Fiction Editor

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