The Fall 2012 issue of Ploughshares, guest-edited by Patricia Hampl. Ploughshares, a journal of new writing, is guest-edited serially by prominent writers who explore different and personal visions, aesthetics, and literary circles.

Award-winning memoirist and author Patricia Hampl (The Florist's Daughter, I Could Tell You Stories) compiles this all-essay issue of Ploughshares. Showcasing the diversity and range of nonfiction in English, the issue contains family memoir (“My Mother’s Story,” by Xu Xi), travel writing (“What the Desert Said,” by Kimberly Meyer), a graphic essay by the cartoonist L. K. Hanson (from “The Story of My Hand”), and everything from science writing to reflections on faith.

Featuring acclaimed authors like Phillip Lopate, Charles Baxter, and Dani Shapiro, the issue also contains Hampl’s thoughts on the art of nonfiction and the American love for the first person voice.