N+1

n+1 is a New York–based American literary magazine that publishes social criticism, political commentary, essays, art, poetry, book reviews, and short fiction. It is published in print three times annually with regular articles being published online. Each print issue averages around 200 pages in length.

n+1 began in late 2004, the project of Keith Gessen, Benjamin Kunkel, Mark Greif, Chad Harbach, Allison Lorentzen and Marco Roth. The magazine is described by Gessen as "like Partisan Review, except not dead". It was launched out of a feeling of dissatisfaction with the current intellectual scene in the United States, with the editors citing The Baffler, Hermenaut, and the early years of Partisan Review as inspiration for their magazine. Each of those magazines embodied the age where the "little magazine" was a veritable institution and a major center of innovation in arts and politics.

Their outlook is most frequently summed up by the last lines of their first issue where the editors proclaimed: "it is time to say what you mean". Yet in the third issue, critic James Wood responded to criticism of his negative criticism and, singling out this quote from issue 1, stated: "The Editors had unwittingly proved the gravamen of their own critique: that it is easier to criticize than to propose."

The name n+1, conceived in a moment of frustration, comes from an algebraic expression. Haarbach recalls that "Keith and I were talking, and he kept saying, 'Why would we start a magazine when there are already so many out there?' And I said, jokingly, 'N+1'—whatever exists, there is always something vital that has to be added or we wouldn't feel anything lacking in this world."

Their mission is somewhat informed by critical theory, to which they readily admit the attraction and limitations. In an article on theory, the editors said: "The big mistake right now would be to fail to keep faith with what theory once meant to us."

Their stance embraces theory but keeps a careful distance from the academicization of theory: "Theory is dead, and long live theory. The designated mourners have tenure, anyway, so they'll be around a bit. As for the rest of us, an opening has emerged, in the novel and in intellect. What to do with it?" In this vein, they make frequent references to the Frankfurt School, often criticize the commodification of culture, and speak positively of writers such as Don DeLillo.

Each issue of n+1 opens with a section called The Intellectual Situation, which criticizes aspects of the current intellectual scene. For example, in the first issue, they called McSweeney's a "regressive avant-garde"; in Issue 18, the editors criticize "the Rage Machine" in which "tech corporations beg you to say your piece for the sake of content-generation, free publicity, hype, and ad sales". They have also criticized The New Republic, The Weekly Standard, and literary figures such as Dale Peck. This is followed by a short Politics section. Most of each issue consists of fiction and essays. Issues then close with a review section, which consists of reviews of books, intellectual figures, and pop phenomena.

The magazine has received mixed reception. Generally, n+1's detractors decry the editors' youth and perceived elitism. As the magazine is purportedly an effort to engage a generation in a struggle against the current literary landscape, such elitism seems counterintuitive to the ideals upon which the magazine was founded. The New Criterion critically asked, "is your journal really necessary?" and accused them of exaggerating their own importance. The Times Literary Supplement wryly satirized Kunkel's quote, "We're angrier than Dave Eggers and his crowd", and compared that quote against their third issue's unsigned article about and titled "Dating". Literary editor Gordon Lish has called the magazine a "crock of shit".