Matchbook is a new-ish online magazine from Brian Mihok and Edward Mullany that seems to have been named in sympathy with the matching Ms of their last names. It’s doing some sweetly innovative stuff in a way that’s crisp and smart, not puffy or attention mongering. Each story is paired with commentary from the author. That’s the big thing. This makes each piece feel curated, foregrounds process. I guess you could say Matchbook is a real writer’s magazine, all the emphasis on thoughts “behind the story,” but I feel that might not be giving readerlyness the right credit, because I know that I am often even more interested in the procedures of art I can’t fathom: basketball, sculpting, scalping, etc. Matchbook also has the most popular group on Fictionaut thanks in large part to Mullany’s thoughtful discussion facilitating. These boys are in it for the haul. Scott Garson’s hyperlinked story “About Me and My Cousin” is the newest piece up at Matchbook, and it weirdly reminds me of the Small Worlds game that Matthew Simmons posted here a few days ago. Or yesterday? It is still raining? Have I given up completely on socks? This is the kind of glug juice that’s normally in my head. Kudos to Mihok and Mullany for giving me things to read that are far more interesting than what’s usually in my head.

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