About Arboreal

Arboreal Literary Magazine came about when two friends sought to create something of value, something for pure enjoyment, something to encourage creativity.

Why “Arboreal?”

ar·bo·re·al (adj.) — from Latin arboreus: pertaining to trees, tree-like

Initially, the name Arboreal didn’t have any deeper meaning beyond the lyrical beauty of the word and its relevance to our names (Crabtree and Woods).

Yet, after long discussion, we realized it is the perfect title for a publication committed to artistic growth and a “big picture” mission to help our readers, our contributors, and ourselves see the forest for the trees.

Our Values

There are three key values we always have in mind when doing the work of Arboreal.

Heteroglossia (“Many Voices”)

The term heteroglossia was coined by Russian literary theorist Mikhail Bakhtin, its Greek roots meaning literally “different tongues”—or, in Bakhtin’s Russian, translated as “varied-speechedness.”

At Arboreal, though, we take the term to mean something closer to “many voices.” And that’s precisely what we hope to publish: a plurality of voices.

Out on a Limb (Creative Risk-Taking)

It seems clear to us that the best artistic creations arise when we try new and unexpected things.

This doesn’t mean we’ll never publish a sonnet or include a landscape painting in Arboreal. In fact, we believe traditional forms can be potent vehicles for unconventional and radical expression. Consider a sonnet by Claude McKay—there’s certainly nothing conventional about his use of that time-worn poetic form.

In short, we’re looking for works that surprise us and their creators in equal measure.