NEIU’s SEEDS Literary & Visual Arts Journal is envisioned as a diverse network and fellowship of artistry for the NEIU community and beyond. I became involved with SEEDS as part of my journey to pursue publishing, and after meeting the friendly and accepting editorial board from the last team, I was asked to be the Editor-in-Chief and President of SEEDS. We strive to emphasize the arts in both literary and visual mediums, created by the students, faculty, staff, and peers of NEIU’S abundance of talent.

As President, I hope to continue the amazing growth SEEDS has already accomplished, while collaborating with the many other important programs in betterment of an artistically expressive community at NEIU. SEEDS has been known to work with WZRD (free form radio), The Independent, and the English department among many other organizations, highlighting the organization’s “open door” attitude. This year, we plan on creating workshops, having poetry slams, and other events as an extension of SEEDS. We are always welcoming and respecting of our fellow peers and their artistic goals.

I am currently pursuing a degree in English and Journalism, in hope of a bright future in the publishing industry. I have interned at The Real Chicago Magazine, writing short feature articles and show reviews, as well as some self-published writings of my own. I plan on taking this experience and utilizing the experience of our editorial board to continue the groundwork the old team created—in fact, most of the old team has joined us for the new year. But we are always open to more editors for any section or adding team members.

This is a collaborative effort that is not possible without editors, submissions, layout artists, and anything in between. We accept submissions for poetry, fiction, non-fiction and visual art. The journal is published once a semester, except for summer, and for the second year in a row, we are getting rid of the reading fee. However, we are limiting submissions to four pieces, which can be a combination of any category or only one category.

We also contribute the SEEDS Corner in the Independent, and we want to use the other mediums offered at the university to further showcase the talent at NEIU.

Email [email protected] for any inquires or guidelines.
Also follow us on Twitter.com/SEEDSneiu or Facebook.com/SEEDSjournal to stay in the loop.

Becoming a part of SEEDS has opened many important relationships with my fellow students and I, and in this new year, feel our hard work will not be unnoticed. I am glad to call myself a member of the SEEDS family. I have been given the opportunity to reach for the stars, and I extend that invitation to you—whether it is with SEEDS or any other media organization at NEIU.

With Respect,

Brian Thalhammer