This week, Nan Gefen--editor of Persimmon Tree, "an online magazine of the arts by women over sixty"--discusses age, emerging writers, a few basic pieces of advice, and the persimmon tree itself.

1. Tell us the story of how PT came to be:

In the summer of 2006 I finished a major teaching and writing commitment and was thinking about what to do next—a scary, exciting time. I kept coming back to the idea of starting a magazine, something I’d done with great satisfaction two decades earlier. But what would this magazine be? In those days I was hearing a lot of stories about older women having a really hard time getting their work published. This concerned me because these were women I knew and respected. Putting together my concern about this and my desire to do a magazine, I came up with the concept for Persimmon Tree, a magazine of the arts by women over sixty.

After doing a lot of research, I pulled together five outstanding women as my contributing editors, and we brainstormed about how to move ahead. Because of cost concerns, the magazine would have to be online only—but we puzzled over whether older readers would feel comfortable with online reading (turns out they do!). To give us legitimacy, we chose an advisory board of well-known women writers and artists, and we formed an association with Mills College. We were ready to go, except we didn’t have a name. One late autumn day, looking into my neighbor’s garden, I noticed the beautiful orange spheres hanging on the bare branches of a persimmon tree. This tree, which produces the last fruit of the season, was just the right image for the magazine.

2. Why do you think, as you say in your About, that “Too often older women’s artistic work is ignored or disregarded, and only those few who are already established receive the attention they deserve”?

It’s really clear that the marketplace values youth over age. Younger is considered sexier and better, and older is less desirable—this holds true in TV, films, etc., so it’s no wonder that it shows up in publishing. In a culture where there is prejudice against age, older women’s work does not garner the same interest as the work of younger artists and writers. Period. We know this from talking to publishers and hearing countless stories from older women who have been unable to get their work out.

Not only is the marketplace slanted against older women, but publishers sometimes say that the subject of their art is not of interest to a broad audience. Older women have had a lot of experience with the hard subjects of life—death, illness, disability, disillusionment, etc.—and they write about them. Publishers often think these subjects will turn off readers, although we doubt this. If this were true, what about the great classics, many of which include these themes?

3. What are some of the stories, essays, or artwork you’ve published of which you are most proud?

I’m thrilled with publishing the work of emerging writers. These are women who’ve had careers in other fields and are now just getting their work out. An example is “Gypsy Skirt,” by Drema Berkkheimer (check it out in the Archive). This writer, who was published first in our magazine, has gone on to publish several short stories in other places and now has an agent for her novel. She gives us credit for being the first to see her talent.

We’ve also had several poetry contests through the years and published the winners’ work. Many of these are excellent unrecognized poets. Before Grace Paley died, we published many of her poems, which pleased her (and us.) Our art section, with artists like Joan Snyder, Faith Ringgold, and Yolande Lopez, is a personal favorite because it lets readers see art they wouldn’t see anywhere else.

4. Are many of your readers under sixty? How can a magazine like PT help to raise the profile of its contributors in the broader cultural conversation?

Persimmon Tree’s mission is “to bring the creativity and talent of women over sixty to a wide audience of readers of all ages.” But we know from a survey we took last year that a majority of our readers are women over fifty. Still, I recently heard from a high school teacher that he has his students read the magazine, and more men are reading it now. Younger women, and especially young mothers, often write me, saying they appreciate it.

By increasing the presence of the magazine in the broader cultural conversation, we help our contributors. We work hard to get people to know about us in the usual publishing ways: contacts with other publishers, publicizing the magazine through events, etc. Fortunately for us, we’ve been able to publish many of the best-known older women writers, poets, and artists—these “big names” (e.g. Vivian Gornick, Mary Gordon, Maxine Hong Kingston) give the magazine a certain prestige that rubs off on the unknown contributors. When they say they’ve been published in Persimmon Tree, it means more if people have heard about the magazine.

5. What advice do you have for women over sixty who are just beginning to explore their own creativity through writing or art?

I asked my contributing editors (all women over sixty) to help me answer this question. Here is the advice we came up with:

Set up a time each day to work.
Look for a teacher or mentor to guide you.
Show your work to others. It helps to get feedback.
See everything you do as exploration.
Allow your imagination to roam.
Do it for the love of it, rather than to publish.
Be compassionate to yourself and have patience. Learning takes time.
Keep a sense of humor.