Welcome to The New Xanadu

The New Xanadu is the home for writing and writers at Doane University. It is an interdisciplinary reimagining of an art and literary magazine that has been published continuously since 1956 by the English department. 

They have never been more important, the stories we tell in our fields and the stories we tell ourselves about who we are and what we can be.  In the introduction to Writing Fiction, Janet Burroway writes, “In Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, Yuval Noah Harari points out that it is not language itself but the related capacity to imagine what is not immediately present that distinguishes the human species.  To imagine what is not immediately present allows us spirituality, nationhood, commerce, and law, and it is of course the essence of story” (xvii). 

Honoring the essence of story, in all its forms, is our purpose at The New Xanadu.  We celebrate craft and creativity in all its forms, striving to embody Doane’s enduring interdisciplinary spirit and liberal arts identity.  We pay homage to our history by publishing original stories, nonfiction essays, poetry, vignettes, paintings, sketches, photography, and so much more.  We look to the future by embracing new media, such as student films and musical performances, and by expanding our mission to include collaboration, discussion, and instruction.  This new mission includes new programs like Xanadu Fireside and Wounded Healers, a narrative medicine workshop for students and faculty to explore the links between healthcare and the arts.

The New Xanadu, or TNX, is a dynamic embodiment of higher education at its applied and experiential best.