Chaotic Merge is a literary and multi-media magazine that is home to obscure and honest work from the new and rising artists around the world. When choosing the name of this magazine, we wanted to find a name that included the diverse voice we search for and capture the beauty of an artist’s thought process. We thought these two went hand in hand. When an artist’s mind is clouded with so many thoughts, they might want to capture it. At first, it might seem messy, even chaotic, but when playing with structure and balance, it can become something beautiful. We believe this idea with the community too. If we put all our diverse and different stories together, we can create a knowledgeable and authentic portrayal of our world, creating a beautiful Chaotic Merge.
Synovia Roberts
Fiction Nominee
Synovia Roberts (she/her) is a queer, Jamaican American trying to infuse her culture into the literary world around her. Her favorite stories to tell are the ones that make you heartache, even if you’re smiling. She has previously been featured in Purchase College’s Gutter Mag and Brown Sugar’s debut issue.
Renee Keele
Poetry Nominee
Renee can’t remember a time she didn’t love to write. Back to 2rd grade she won a poetry competition for a poem about Care Bears. She currently has a poem published in Neuro Logical literary magazine. She is an Arizona native, a rare breed, who lives on a small farm raising chickens and ducks with her husband of 23 years, and three children
Shome Dasgupta
Nonfiction Nominee
Shome Dasgupta is the author of i am here And You Are Gone (Winner Of The 2010 OW Press Contest), The Seagull And The Urn (HarperCollins India), Anklet And Other Stories (Golden Antelope Press), Pretend I Am Someone You Like (Livingston Press), Mute (Tolsun Books), Spectacles (Word West Press), and a poetry collection, Iron Oxide (Assure Press). His fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction have appeared in McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, Hobart, New Orleans Review, Puerto Del Sol, Necessary Fiction, New World Writing, Parentheses Journal, Magma Poetry, and elsewhere. He is currently the series editor of the Wigleaf Top 50. He lives in Lafayette, LA and can be found at www.shomedome.com and @laughingyeti.
Luise Mörke
Fiction Nominee
Luise Mörke (She/her ) is a writer and graduate student of art history based in Berlin.
William Doreski
Poetry Nominee
William Doreski (he/him) lives in Peterborough, New Hampshire. His most recent book of poetry is Dogs Don’t Care (2022). He has published three critical studies, including Robert Lowell’s Shifting Colors. His essays, poetry, fiction, and reviews have appeared in many journals.
James B. Nicola
Nonfiction Nominee
James B. Nicola’s poems have appeared in the Antioch, Southwest and Atlanta Reviews; Rattle; and Barrow Street. His full-length collections (2014-21) are Manhattan Plaza, Stage to Page, Wind in the Cave, Out of Nothing, Quickening, and Fires of Heaven. His nonfiction book Playing the Audience won a Choice award. His poetry has received a Dana Literary Award, two Willow Review awards, Storyteller’s People’s Choice award, and eight Pushcart nominations—for which he feels both stunned and grateful.
