When a man gives himself up to the government of a ruling passion,--or, in other words, when his HOBBY=HORSE grows head-strong,--farewell cool reason and fair discretion!

—Laurence Sterne, The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman

The Hobbyhorse aims to publish writing on two distinct hobbyhorses: literature and film. Instead of writing about the newest works covering the trendiest topics, we are looking to draw attention to strange, formally ambitious and, as a result of those two qualities, likely lesser-known and underappreciated works—old and new.

We aim to focus on the kind of books and films that evoke impressions that linger with you for weeks or months or years, to the point where all that is left to do is to leap down the rabbit hole. This is where the greatest criticism comes from, the essays that you read with mounting excitement, experiencing secondhand the passion the writer felt—be it joy or disdain—that then makes you feel the need to experience the work that provoked these feelings yourself. That is what I hope your response will be after reading the essays we will be publishing here.

Pitch/Submit to thehobbyhorsemag@gmail.com

Rates

Capsules (200-650 words): $25

1000-2000 word pieces: $100

2200-3000 word pieces: $200

3000+ word pieces: Let’s chat!

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Literary & Film Digressions

People

Duncan Stuart is an Australian writer living in New York City. He writes about literature, politics and philosophy.
Twitter: @CuriosoTheGreat
Founder/Editor of The Hobbyhorse.
don't get lost in heaven... here's your map (a cultural calendar for LA's finest angels)
A writer from Brooklyn, with work in Los Angeles Review of Books, Dirt, and other places.
filmmaker, marxist, lesbian
Film writer living and working in the northern suburbs of Chicago
Musician, filmmaker, chess player living in Kingston
Daniel Fraser is a writer from Hebden Bridge, Yorkshire. Find him on social media @harmlessfires
Jake Tropila is a Los Angeles based film writer, editor, licensed troubleshooter, and problem eliminator.
Colin Mylrea lives in Ottawa. His poetry and prose have been previously published in Still Alive, minor literature[s], and NY Tyrant.
cut-rate surrealist. fake marxist.
no audio, just lights.
Esmé Holden is a transgender writer and editor based in Manchester, England. She has written for Cinema Year Zero, Little White Lies and Bright Wall/Dark Room, amongst others, and is obsessed with Judy Garland, Barbra Streisand and Bugs Bunny.
Writes stuff. New novel, EX-MEMBERS, is out now. www.tobiascarroll.com
Yugoslav-born, Wales-raised film critic and programmer specialising in Eastern European cinema.
Jason Christian was born and raised in Oklahoma. He has written for The Bitter Southerner, Gulf Coast, Scalawag and other publications. He lives, teaches, and ruminates about his aging body in New Orleans.
Ryan Swen/孫天行/Sun Tianxing is a Los Angeles-based freelance film critic and a member of the Los Angeles Film Critics Association.
"And why does child Ernesto refuse to learn what he doesn't know yet?" "Because it's not worth learning."
Aaron Casias is a San Francisco-based podcaster and film critic. He is the producer and co-host of Hit Factory Podcast, exploring the films of the 1990s.
Filmmaker, writer. Fan of the highly digital and the highly classical.