As the title says, there have been lots of recent developments with LONTAR, so let’s dive right in!

1. The first one is that issue #4 (Spring 2015) is now out and available! You can order the print version ($14.90 SGD) directly from Epigram Books, or buy it at Books Kinokuniya; or if you want to purchase it at your favourite bookstore, ask them to order it for you!

If you prefer the electronic version (ePub or Mobi: $2.99 USD), you can pick up the ebook from Weightless Books.

And don’t forget that you can read a sample for free!

2. Weightless Books is also now offering a one-year subscription to the ebook issues of LONTAR! It’s one US dollar off the cover price, and you’ll get an automatic email notification once a new issue is available. (Back issues are, of course, still available for purchase as well.)

3. Issue #4 was also recently featured at The Straits Times and Singapore Poetry (where Ng Yi-Sheng’s story “No Other City” was also excerpted).

4. We’re very happy to welcome Adan Jimenez to the LONTAR staff as Comics Editor, starting with issue #5 (Autumn 2015)! We’ve been wanting to include short sequential art stories from the beginning, and Adan is incredibly knowledgeable about comics in general, and comics being produced in Southeast Asia specifically. We’re really looking forward to seeing the graphic narratives he’ll bring to our pages.

5. LONTAR is now a proud member of the Community of Literary Magazines and Presses (CLMP). We’re extremely jazzed to be part of an organisation that also boasts membership by A Public Space, Black Clock, Tin House, Virginia Quarterly Review, and a number of other innovative and respected journals.

6. In case you hadn’t noticed, the LONTAR website has been revamped! It was overdue for an overhaul, and we hope you’ll find that it’s much easier to navigate. So take a look around! If you have feedback, please send it to the query email address on the About page.

7. The editors are all hard at work this weekend finalising the contents for issue #5 (forthcoming in October), so expect an announcement very soon!