Join Our Team!

The EIC is responsible for all the journal’s content, both in print and online. The EIC oversees the editorial board and coordinates how the individual editors’ work comes together to create IMR.

Responsibilities:

• Head and coordinate the editorial board, making everyone’s responsibilities clear and offering support when needed
• Aided by the section editors, fulfill the mission, standards of quality and editorial policy of IMR in all published content
• Aided by the Communications Manager and Events Manager, coordinate the distribution and outreach strategy of the journal
• Actively pursue opportunities of growth for IMR, including but not limited to new channels of distribution, quality improvements and image improvements
• Perform the final read-through for all content published by IMR
• Support section editors as needed in all their activities
• Foster a rewarding and productive working environment for the journal’s editorial board and contributors
• Manage the in medias res budget with the journal’s mission in mind
• Liaise with St. Thomas More and secure faculty associates for the journal
• Coordinate recruitment for the editorial board, as well as the next Editor-In-Chief

Key Characteristics:

• Strong capacity for leadership and motivation
• Strong organizational skills
• Knowledge of all the types of content published by IMR (poetry, fiction, non-fiction, visual art, etc.), and desire to pursue further learning
• Knowledge of other literary journals and their conventions, and desire to pursue further learning
• Collaborative attitude and teamwork skills
• Self-reliance and dependability
• Good communication skills and ability to provide constructive feedback
• Focus on detail and a strong grasp of proper grammar
• Strong editorial instincts
• Ambition to improve the journal

The Associate Editor is a flexible but indispensable position that plays a vital role in actively supporting the Editor-in-Chief. The Associate Editor oversees aspects of administrative and editorial work and will have significant creative control and leadership over several facets of the magazine and its branding.

Responsibilities:

• Work closely with the Communications Manager and/or the Events Planner to oversee outreach and collaborations with other university and/or community organizations
• Oversee the Staff Writers as they pitch and write articles for the magazine
• Assist the Editor-in-Chief to oversee the in medias res editorial board and editorial work when needed, including making final editorial decisions and ensuring deadlines are being met by all involved
• Actively pursue opportunities of growth for in medias res, including but not limited to new channels of distribution, quality improvements and image improvements

Key Characteristics:

• Strong organizational skills and ability to navigate a flexible role
• Focus on detail and a strong grasp of proper grammar
• Knowledge of other literary journals and their conventions, or desire to pursue further learning
• Appreciation for the liberal arts and passion to promote them
• Collaborative attitude and teamwork skills
• Self-reliance and dependability
• Ambition to improve the journal

• Attend board meetings and contribute to IMR events and planning
• Read all submissions to your category (fiction, nonfiction, or poetry) and approve select pieces for publication
• Work with other editors in your category, if applicable, to determine which pieces should be accepted for publication
• Communicate to rejected contributors their rejection in a constructive way per IMR protocol
• Collaborate with accepted contributors to prepare their work for publication
• Edit submissions independently for grammar and in conjunction with the author for larger revisions

The Events Manager oversees organizing events for IMR and integrating into the university and literary community through outreach. The Events Manager will collaborate closely with the Editor-in-Chief and the rest of the board to plan events for the magazine.

Responsibilities:

• Attend board meetings and support all collective efforts to publicize and improve IMR
• Develop and plan events for IMR, including collaborations with literary and/or artistic organizations, workshops, write-ins, and launch parties
• Following university and St. Thomas More College policies while arranging spaces for events
• Collaborate with the in medias res editorial board to integrate the magazine into the collective university and literary local community via outreach efforts to relevant organizations
• Assist the Editor-in-Chief in finding and pursuing opportunities to publicize IMR

Key Characteristics:

• Thorough knowledge of event planning and outreach, or desire to pursue further learning
• Basic knowledge of other literary journals and their strategies, or desire to learn more
• Appreciation for the liberal arts and passion to promote them
• Collaborative attitude and teamwork skills
• Self-reliance and dependability
• Good communication skills
• Ambition to improve the journal’s presence in the community

The Communications Manager oversees the IMR social media and website, creating materials to advertise IMR events and submission deadlines, as well as reaching out to the campus community. Part of this role includes designing posters and social media posts on Canva and updating the website through a simple drag-and-drop editor (no previous experience needed!).

Responsibilities

• Attend board meetings and contribute to IMR events and planning
• Develop and follow a social media strategy and outreach strategy for IMR
• Manage IMR’s social media presence ensuring its visibility to the student body
• Update the website when necessary, including uploading digital copies of new magazine issues and editing pages when deadlines pass
• Communicate with the respective section editor about how to post on social media about any given published piece and make decisions independently if necessary
• Assist the Editor-In-Chief in finding and pursuing opportunities to publicize IMR
• Continually seek to improve your knowledge of social media and outreach, and literary journals, to uphold the quality of the journal.

Key Characteristics

• Thorough knowledge of and fluency in social media and content-creating platforms like Canva or similar, and desire to pursue further learning
• Willingness to learn how to use WordPress and Elementor to update the website
• Basic knowledge of other literary journals and their strategies, or desire to learn about them
• Appreciation for the liberal arts and passion to promote them
• Collaborative attitude and teamwork skills
• Self-reliance and dependability
• Good communication skills; focus on detail and a strong grasp of proper grammar
• Ambition to improve the journal’s presence in the community

The Layout and Design Editor brings IMR to life by preparing the journal for print and online publishing using InDesign. The Layout and Design Editor will collaborate closely with the Editor-in-Chief and other board members to best arrange and display the journal’s contents.

Responsibilities

• Work with the Editor-in-Chief and other board members to design journal sections within the provided template
• Work with staff advisor Linda Berry to ensure the journal has no errors prior to printing and online publishing
• Collaborate with the visual art team to determine which written pieces will have illustrations 
• Ensure that the journal is ready for print and online publication by deadlines

Key characteristics

• Knowledge of InDesign or familiarity with other Adobe programs. If there is no previous experience with InDesign, time must be devoted to learning the basics of the program
• A focus on details and consistency
• Creativity and an eye for composition
• Collaborative attitude and teamwork skills
• Self-reliance and dependability
• Ambition to improve the quality of the journal

The Chief of Visual Art is responsible for determining which pieces of visual art will be published in the magazine and for coordinating the efforts of the Visual Art Team. 

Responsibilities:

• Attend board meetings and contribute to IMR events and planning
• Sift through all visual art submitted to IMR and approve select pieces for publication
• Communicate to rejected contributors their rejection in a constructive way per in medias res protocol. 
• Communicate with approved contributors that their pieces have been accepted and, when necessary, work with contributors to acquire a better quality image of their work in a file type that works for InDesign
• Collaborate with the Layout & Design Editor to determine which poetry, fiction, and nonfiction pieces need illustrations, and ensure that a member of the Visual Art Team is assigned to creating that illustration
• If desired, contribute illustrations to the magazine alongside the Visual Arts Team

• Thorough knowledge of and appreciation for visual art in all its forms and desire to pursue further learning
• Knowledge of other literary journals and their conventions, particularly relating to layout, or desire to pursue further learning
• Collaborative attitude and teamwork skills
• Self-reliance and dependability
• Good communication skills and ability to assemble and manage a team of contributors
• Ambition to improve the journal

Members of the Visual Art Team collaborate closely with the Chief of Visual Art and Layout & Design Editor to illustrate written pieces for enhancement upon publication. Visual Art Team members will, at the discretion of the Visual Art Editor, have extensive creative control over the journal’s visual elements. Members of the Visual Art Team are welcome to vary in their level of contribution to the magazine.

Responsibilities

• Attend board meetings and contribute to IMR events and planning
• In conjunction with the Visual Art Editor and Visual Art Team, provide illustrations that will enhance each written work in two yearly issues of IMR
• In conjunction with the Visual Art Editor, Visual Art Team, and the Editor-in-Chief, establish an appropriate, continuous visual style for IMR

Key Characteristics

• Knowledge of and appreciation for at least one form of visual art that can be expressed in a publication format (e.g., digital, drawing, painting, etc.) and desire to pursue further learning
• Collaborative attitude and teamwork skills
• Self-reliance and dependability
• Ambition to improve the journal
• Appreciation for the liberal arts

Staff Writers will be responsible for contributing at least one short piece of nonfiction to the magazine during the year, to be published in either the first or second issue as their schedule allows. This piece can be an independently written piece (e.g., an op-ed, a photo essay, etc.) or written with another person (e.g., a “Pro et Contra,” a “Gadfly” article collecting student/faculty/staff responses to a question, an edited interview, etc.). While the Staff Writer will have the freedom to write a piece that interests them, the piece should be related to the central question or theme of the issue in which it will be published.

Responsibilities:

• Attend board meetings and contribute to IMR events and planning
• Pitch your idea for a piece related to the theme of one of the magazine’s issues to the board
• Complete a polished draft of the piece by a set deadline
• Work with the Nonfiction Editor to make any necessary changes to the piece before the final draft is included in the magazine by the Layout Editor
• Follow journalistic standards and practices, including gaining permission to publish quotes from other people and ensuring any information in your piece is factually correct

Key Characteristics:

• Experience with writing nonfiction in an engaging and clear manner
• Self-reliance and dependability
• Ambition to improve the journal
• Appreciation for the liberal arts