Last week Lit Mag News ran a short article about AI by New Pop Lit’s Editor (myself). My co-editor Kathleen Crane– this site’s conscience and objective intelligence– liked the article but said there wasn’t enough hope in it. An apt criticism, because this literary site was built on hope. One of our missions is to be a positive force in the culture amid a mass of literary negativity and complacency. I’m an optimist– a realistic one who knows the world is a tough, chaotic, often hellish place, but there are stray gems of goodness and beauty to be found in it.

Which might be the appeal for us– and hopefully our readers– of the poem “Little Church” by Dominik Slusarczyk, presented at our Fast Pop site. An aged structure serving as a reminder of humanity’s past– of human decay and weakness, as well as humanity’s hopes. A marker of those who went before us on this mad planet.

This church has stood strong for centuries
But we will be here to see it fall.

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(Why am I an optimist? Culturally this civilization is at the bottom of a wave. The only direction we can go is UP. –KW)