In an interview with SmokeLong Quarterly, former Black Warrior Review editor Zach Doss sums up his creative process: “Magic? I’m going to say magic.” Brandi Wells, in her introduction to this publication, writes that Zach’s work (or, his magic) displays his longing — “not just for love or happiness, but for a wilder, stranger world.” As Editor, my hope is that this tenth edition of Boyfriend Village magics us all closer to a wilder world, one which would make Zach proud.

Playground Boyfriend is a love letter to play and imagination. I sought works which surprise themselves, works experimenting with formal expectations, and works vividly textured with image and emotion. Works that swing high enough to put your feet in the clouds, or dig carefully enough to observe each wiggle of every worm. The result is this collection of work from fifteen contributors, each piece its own playground. You’ll find poems which echo across the page, grief in the shape of texting lingo and Wii games, an erasure turning colonist voices on their heads, a choose-your-own-adventure golden shovel, Floridian real estate developers thwarted by children and mosquitoes, experiments in voice, form, color, and so much more. Alongside these artifacts of play is the vibrant work of featured artist Danielle Byington, whose watercolor collages exude the bold, semi-conscious expression and imagination that defines play itself. I could not have pictured a better visual accompaniment for the Playground. 

As you get to know the newest Boyfriend in our Village, I hope you’ll find inspiration to play towards your own magic, surprise, and radical future worlds. This Playground belongs to the people, and here, all expectations of so-called real life are far-off whispers. Forge your own grounds for play, swing from tree tops, spin as fast as you can, then sit awhile in the dizziness. 

Playfully yours,

Tillie Lefforge
Editor, Boyfriend Village: Playground Boyfriend