Letter From the Editors

Dear Reader,

Welcome to the 23rd issue of Spirit Lake Review presented by Dr. Kara Candito’s Literary Magazine Production class. Our 2026 team has curated an unforgettable collection of poetry, prose, and visual art that aims to foster reflection and connection within our readers. We offer special thanks to Editor-in-Chief Shayla Trautsch; Social Media and Event Planning Manager Isabel Peterson; and Web Design Manager Michele Eaches for their unyielding devotion to the success of this issue.

Many of the pieces in the issue grapple with the socio-economic pressures that pervade daily life. Alex Jansen’s “Notes for My Betterment as an Employee” and Gretta Droessler’s “In Order to Get a Job You Have To...” use comedic absurdity to convey the difficulties of landing and keeping a job in 2026. The complexities of quotidian moments in rural life are captured by other works, such as David Anson Lee’s “At the Fleet Farm Checkout,” Maria Streif’s “My 4:00AM Thoughts,” and Richard Jordan’s “Mayfly Season.” Other pieces, such as Scott Davidson’s “Maytag Repairman” and Donna Castañeda’s “A Child’s Blue Plaid Shirt,” enact the nuances of domestic life and relationships. Broadening the scope, Bänoo Zan’s “Taraneh’s Song” and Chuck Rybak’s “MRI For a Bullet Yet to Arrive” probe the personal and collective impacts of social and political upheaval and posit art as a site of resistance to oppression and the normalization of violence.

Spirit Lake Review’s 2026 cover image, Trigeminal Neuralgia, by Megan Hageman evokes a theme of shrouded psychological and physical struggle, which underpins the issue and is evidenced in Huina Zheng’s “Motion Sickness” and Caroline Huckeba’s “The Maid’s Ledger.” We would also like to highlight the works of emerging authors Kaz Bresnan, Scout Dodds, Julie Patzlaff, and Broderick Vaclavek, who lean into emotional vulnerability by exploring and critiquing societal pressures that illicit powerful emotional responses. We also praise visual artists Anna Carper and Casey Wang for their unique evocations of whimsical yet striking subjects and embodied experience.

Spirit Lake Review is made possible by the UW-Platteville faculty, staff, administrators, and community members who support our work. Special thanks to Humanities Department Chair Dr. Katie Kalish; Academic Department Assistant Sara Koeller; and Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Education Dr. Travis Nelson. Most importantly, thank you to our readers and contributors for trusting us with your creative work and giving us your attention and support.

Until next year,

The 2026 Spirit Lake Review Team