Folly wins something, for representing the underrepresented
When US platform Chill Subs announced their incubator winners this week, they framed the choice as supporting ‘underrepresented communities.’ Five journals from around the world were selected. Out of 128 applicants, Folly was one of them.
And I can already hear the literary gatekeepers choking into their $7 flat whites as they write angry Instagram posts. Folly? Underrepresented? Isn’t that the journal that talks about drinking champagne and holds ticketed parties? The elitism! Because amongst the local gatekeepers we are seen as representative of white middle class privilege. And what do we plan to do with the prize money, ChillSubs asked in our application: Launch champagne-fuelled membership, we replied.
They places us first on their list of winners.
The irony.
But here’s what many on this small island at the bottom of the world forget: underrepresentation isn’t the same as underprivileged. You can be middle-class, you can be working, you can even be someone who enjoys fancy bubbles in a glass - and still be underrepresented on the page. For Folly this is about voices, stories and characters that don’t fit the narrow mould of what gets sanctioned as ‘literary’ in New Zealand. Socially we’ve equated underrepresentation with a single, saintly image of marginality. But art isn’t about virtue signalling or ticking demographic boxes. I haven’t seen stats, but I read a Substack recently that claimed it was near impossible for a middle-class white dude to get published these days. We don’t discriminate at Folly. Hell, I don’t keep demographic data. Couldn’t care less if you spend your days slogging it out on billables at a law firm to pay for your multimillion dollar mortgage in Herne Bay and annual European holiday. If your writing fits our vibe, we will publish it.
Folly is proof that art can rise above political division and classist nonsense.
This year we have a story about ethnic marginality, written beautifully by Aucklander Kaanti Raju about serving rich Parnell dwellers in an Indian restaurant. And it is here based on merit, along with the rest of the strange curation that veers from economic policy to genital grooming habits of unemployed business consultants. At Folly we are curating content for entertainment, not to meet the local establishment’s box ticketing demands.
Folly was never built for them anyway. It was built for readers who wanted intellectually rigorous writing that also happened to be fun. And that audience exists.
Our print runs in New Zealand sell out. Our parties sell out. Our events sell out. Seventy-five percent of our readership is international, and next month we’ll be representing New Zealand at the Frankfurt Book Fair. Folly has become a cultural export – because it has filled a niche that allows us to take New Zealand stories to the world, even if they aren’t the sort of New Zealand stories the local establishment want flaunted to the world.
People would do well to remember that art doesn’t belong to one side of the political spectrum, or one social class. It belongs to the people who value it, who show up, who buy the tickets, who drink the wine and who celebrate success. It can be champagne at a luxury hotel or an open mic in a school hall. If it moves people, it matters. And when done well art will find an audience of people who care enough to put their money behind it.
The good people of local Kiwi start up PressPatron are partnering with us to create a membership platform for our publication. The International Community of Literary Magazines and Presses will be helping us, along with ChillSubs and other international counterparts. Because they too see the need for a different approach to sustainable publishing.
So yes: Folly is proud to be one of Chill Subs’ incubator winners. Proud to be representing New Zealand at the Frankfurt Book Fair next month. And proud to be exporting our cultural product to the world.
Raise a glass. We’ll see you at the party (speaking of which, tickets will be on sale this week…keep an eye on the newsletter)
Great going, folly! And, thank you for reclaiming for me that, indeed, underrepresented is not the same as underprivileged. We could all use that reminder.