Four years ago, in the breast of a then 37-year old Los Gatos businessman, there beat a nagging desire somehow to express himself in literature. So he did something about it.
Jon Robertson, owner of the Los Gatos Office Equipment, is a writer whose work had never been accepted by any of the literary magazines. So Robertson, now 41, did the logical thing: he started his own magazine. But Ellipsis... (the three dots are part of the name) is no ego trip. It was not begun for the purpose of displaying Robertson’s rejected stories. “It’s not a vanity press,” he says with a grin.
Not as yet a quarterly, the four issues published since its inception in 1988 contain a few of Robertson’s editorial comments, but none of his literary efforts. Instead, Ellipsis... is intended to provide a forum for those frustrated writers whose short stories, poems, or essays don’t fit the requirements of other markets.
Robertson displays a sense of humor that explains his tolerance for whimsy, types of writing that some literary rags look upon with disfavor. He is an incurable fan of P.G. Wodehouse and would like to find writers to make him laugh as much as the creator of Jeeves and Bertie Wooster.
From the first issue, published in 1988 after a year’s preparation, he has sought for “a balance,” lighter things along with the more serious stuff. “We want to get the writers who fall between the cracks, “he said. “There aren’t as many magazines around for creative writing as there used to be, and many of the established quarterlies have fairly rigid standards. The popular magazines like the old Saturday Evening Post or Collier’s aren’t publishing short stories anymore. Redbook still does, but its horizon seems quite narrow.”
As for the literary quarterlies, “some seem pretty heavy going to read, sort of like plodding through molasses.” Top-paying markets for short stories and poetry like The New Yorker are tough to crack. Ellipsis... can give new writers a foothold and a chance to try new forms and ideas. “We don’t take ourselves too seriously, although we will publish serious work,” he said.
Editor Joy Oestreicher, who helped get the first issue out and until recently co-edited with Ruth McCue, is pleased with the manuscripts selected for the four issues. A San Jose resident, she is the wife of an executive and mother of a grown son and two smaller children. A writer herself, she is interested in spotting unusual talent. “I think one of the best things we’ve done is a short story in the latest issue, “The Pink Cadillac,” by Frances Roberts of Los Gatos,” she said. “It’s both funny and touching.”
With a small Southern town for its locale, “The Pink Cadillac” tells of two church ladies who must collect an amputated leg at a hospital and return it to its owner. The author walked into the Robertson’s business one day to make some copies and came across Ellipsis... for the first time. “I’ve done a good deal of poetry, but this is my first published short story,” Roberts said. “I grew up in Georgia, so it was natural to write about it, though the story is entirely imaginary.”
One of the poets in Issue No.1 was Jim Dilles, who lives in the mountains above Los Gatos and writes poetry and plays. The three verses in Ellipsis... are his first poetry publication. Ellipsis... also published his poetry collection, “To see the World Again As Earth” (1990). Ellipsis... reached writers through the Writer’s Connection (now online) and Poets and Writers Magazine.
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