Toothcut is St. John’s self-described “newest and weirdest literary journal” currently working on their debut edition. Pioneered by four students writers, Caleb Browne (Editor–in–Chief), Jenna James (Managing Editor and Secret Keeper), Nick Corcoran (Editor and Obituary Writer), and Tanner Hudson (Editor and “Business Guy”) sought poetry, short stories, and secrets for their upcoming first edition set to come out this summer.
What is ‘Toothcut’?
The name ‘Toothcut’ comes from the phrase “to cut one’s teeth,” which is when someone gains a particular skill set, or other words, to learn by doing. This is reflective of the journal’s mission: to highlight local emerging writers, especially BIPOC and queer writers from Newfoundland, and create a space for people to experiment with their writing.
While there are opportunities for Newfoundland writers who are just starting out, ‘Toothcut’ aims to be a mouthpiece for the nonconformists – giving the weirdos, and “freaks” a chance to get work published that other journals might be hesitant to take. As student writers, the ‘Toothcut’ team knows how intimidating publishing work for the first time can be, and identified barriers to entry for people just starting out.
Toothcut’s Beginnings
The Muse spoke with editor–in–chief Caleb Browne and ‘business guy,’ Tanner Hudson on Muse News on CHMR FM about how the journal came to be, and upcoming plans for their first edition.
The Toothcut team all found one another through writing. Browne spearheaded the idea of the journal, and brought it up in passing to Hudson before they were good friends. Toothcut ‘secret keeper’ Jenna James caught wind of the project through Hudson and said “I need to be a part of this!” They then added their fourth and final member Nick Corcoran.
The Toothcut executives come from a variety of creative backgrounds, making their team well–rounded to best suit any type of local writer. James and Corcoran hail from a music and theatre background, Hudson from an English Literature and theatre background, and Browne from philosophy, courtesy of their studies at MUN. This brings a great deal of passion to the editor’s meetings as each member offers a unique perspective on submitted pieces.
A Fascination with Secrets
In addition to poetry, short stories, and multimedia artistic elements, Toothcut also asked people to anonymously submit their secrets. There were limitations placed on the secret submissions to prevent any precarious or incriminating situations. Thinking about secrets as poetic, or as a type of literature is very intriguing, and in the podcast interview Browne and Hudson discussed the connection between secrets and literature.
“Every piece of literature has a secret in it,” Hudson said. “Every really strong piece of literature I find has one component about the location, a line, a character, always has something that if you ask the author about, they squirm a bit … It comes from a very deep and personal perspective.”
“There’s something freeing about [submitting a secret anonymously] and not having to have your name attached to something and being able to just share something discreetly like that. [We’re] having people read it alongside poetry and fiction because that’s what literature is,” said Browne. According to Toothcut, to share your writing with others is to reveal secrets about yourself, whether intentional or not. Part of their philosophy is to do things scared, take risks, and put yourself out there creatively – all emerging writers are learning.
Submissions for written work closed on March 1st, but visual artists can still submit secrets, and greyscale work for the cover of Toothcut’s first edition until March 15th. Stay tuned for their first edition, set to come out this Summer, and support emerging writers.
Listen to the full Muse News interview on YouTube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts.
