Literature fans come in all shapes, sizes, and most importantly, persuasions. The Copper Nickel release party at Matter Studio on March 7 will appeal to both the latte lovers and the cup-o’-joe Joes. The party has two acts, with decidedly different but complementary objectives.
     From 7-8:30 p.m. there will be readings from the issue by local writers. From 8:30 on, Copper Nickel aims for a more casual environment. Guests can have a T-shirt designed and screen-printed by Matter’s Rick Griffith. Musicians will be playing live, and guest author Ander Monson will be around for conversation. The event is free and open to the public. Copper Nickel 9 will be available for $10, a $2 discount from the list price.
     Copper Nickel is published twice yearly by UCD students and faculty. Funds for publication come primarily through fundraising and advertisement sales, with some additional support from UCD. The ninth issue is the biggest yet, with well over a hundred pages of fiction and poetry, and photography by UCD professor Bill Adams.
     Winners of the first Half Nickel Undergraduate Writing Contest, Stephanie Smith and Emily Cervantes, contributed fiction and poetry. They and one other winner were selected by Copper Nickel faculty editors from over a hundred entries in December. The winners and other notable entrants will read original works April 15 at UCD’s first student literary festival. This event, which is open to all students, will be in the St. Cajetan’s center on campus.
     Copper Nickel 9, as with past issues, also contains work by professional writers throughout the country. Generally, undergraduate journals publish work only by students within their own school. This allows student artists to find a readership within the school, but doesn’t give them a leg up in the wider publishing world, where their work may be largely ignored.

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     By publishing new coins along with the work of established artists, Copper Nickel shows the legitimate value of the student work. Work by novelist/critic Molly Giles and by National Poetry Series winner Oni Buchanan were selected for publication in this issue just as students’ work was—by a team of student and faculty readers searching for value in submitted pieces.
     “We want to create an environment where the true value of the best work our students create will be visible in a broader context,” editor Jake Adam York said. “No one can say, ‘Oh, that’s only a student publication.’”
     By collaborating with faculty, Copper Nickel student editors attract established writers like Giles and Buchanan. The staff receives hundreds of unsolicited stories and poems each year, from across the country and around the world, and read for two issues at a time. Writers and visual artists can submit year-round at www.copper-nickel.org.
York said, “It’s really a compliment to the students who make this magazine. People who don’t need us like what we’ve made here.”
     The next issue is dedicated to women writing on the American West, and 11 will be open to all subjects and themes.

The Copper Nickel 9 release reception is from 7-10 p.m. at Matter Studio, 2132 Market St.