Black Rock & Sage Launch Party 2026!

Come join us for the release of our 2026 number on September 24 at 4:30 in the Wood River Room of the SUB! We’ll have free food, live music, an art exhibit, and readings of this year’s selected pieces.

A Conversation with Novelist Julie Zhou

Creative Writing at ISU is pleased to host writer Julie Zhou! This class is open to all ISU students. Zhou will discuss the publication process of her upcoming novel and her other writing projects. Session will include Q & A. All levels of creative writing experience welcome, including none!


Julie Zhou was born in Madison, WI, and despite summers in Shanghai and a fleeting love affair with New England, she has always found her way back to the Midwest. These days, she lives with a household of chosen family in Minnesota, where she serves as a freelance writer for organizations working towards gender justice, food sovereignty, prison abolition, and the many intersections of those movements. She cultivates plants poorly, recipes well, anxieties often, and social media not at all.

Sneak Preview!

Here’s a sneak preview of what our 2026 issue will include:

Editors’ Interview with KISU

Recently, Black Rock & Sage Editor in Chief, Klaus Graham, and Poetry Editor, Wilhelm Haydt Richter, were interviewed at KISU about BR&S‘s upcoming submissions deadlines, the professional role of creative writing, and other relevant topics. You can listen to the interview here.

Idaho State University land acknowledgement

Instagram! @brs_isujournal