The Artificial Selection Project is California’s breakout new literary ART publication featuring the work of authors and artists that the literary world has deemed unfit for publication. The Artificial Selection Project was born from a creative writing masters program in which students found themselves being berated for pushing envelopes and challenging literary traditions. This stifling of creativity in a program that was designed with creativity specifically in mind was a travesty, so the students decided to do something about it.

All too often, writers are told that their work is “too extreme” or “too experimental” and that they should tone down their writing. Perhaps focus on traditional frames of thought or some more well-defined story archetypes. The Artificial Selection Project have a better idea. We say write the madness in your head. Explore the darkest corners of humanity. Scream and cry dissent in ink on any surface you can get your hands on. And bring us along for the goddamn ride.