Porchlight: A Journal of Southern Literature

Porchlight: A Journal of Southern Literature

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Talk Pretty: A Craft Essay

Talk Pretty: A Craft Essay

One of the biggest pitfalls for writers is dialogue. Dialogue should be a busy tool in fiction. The legendary crime writer Elmore Leonard famously said his most important rule for writing was that if it sounded like writing, he rewrote it. Leonard, who is considered one of the greatest writers

This Edition

Porchlight is pleased to offer new monthly content to paid subscribers, featuring acclaimed authors, newer voices making names for themselves, and aspiring writers you may be seeing for the first time in our Journal of Southern Literature. Following are members of the Porchlight family who have shared their work with

Southern Bookstores Byway

Southern Bookstores Byway

Bookstores tell their own stories—especially the independents that pepper the Southern landscape and become special, almost revered safe havens for lovers of the written word. Can you imagine a world without them? In a time when some of the greatest literary works are under attack, being pulled from library

Southern Bookstores Byway: Landmark Booksellers

Southern Bookstores Byway: Landmark Booksellers

Maybe it’s become a familiar story—book lovers open a bookstore—but Landmark Booksellers in Franklin is an exceptional difference, and their name suggests why. With twenty years of experience behind them now, Carol and Joel Tomlin have built another landmark in Middle Tennessee, a place that serves as

Author Spotlight & Interview with George Singleton

Author Spotlight & Interview with George Singleton

Porchlight is pleased to feature George Singleton in our Author Spotlight segment, and to publish a new story of his, “Why I Quit Caring,” for subscribers. We asked George if he would take time to answer a few questions about himself and his craft, and his response was a quick

Attitude

We all need to create John Gardner’s vivid and continuous dream. We need characters that have their own voice and walk their own way and drink their own drinks. We need setting and scene and plot and tension and all those other things you’ll find in any book

The William Gay Memorial Prize in Short Story

The William Gay Memorial Prize in Short Story

Porchlight is proud to announce the 2025 William Gay Memorial Prize in Short Story which will present $500 to the first-place winner, along with a featured presentation on Porchlight. Three runners-up will be published by Porchlight, and all four winners will be included in a planned printed anthology in 2026.

The Power of Sensory Detail in Literary Fiction

The Power of Sensory Detail in Literary Fiction

At the heart of great literary fiction lies the ability to immerse a reader fully—transporting them beyond the page and into a world that feels lived-in, tactile, and true. This magic often stems from one of the most overlooked tools in a writer’s kit: sensory detail. The best

Author Spotlight

Author Spotlight

David Joy At Porchlight, we’re thrilled to shine our porch light on David Joy, a masterful voice in contemporary Southern and Appalachian fiction whose work grips the heart and doesn’t let go. Roots in the Mountain South A 12th-generation North Carolinian, Joy grew up along the Catawba River

Welcome to Porchlight

Shining a Light on Emerging Southern Voices When we first began thinking about an online literary journal—when it was just an unrealized whim—we couldn’t have imagined the welcome and support so many writers have offered through encouragement and shared submissions. After settling on our name, which just