IVF – Eugene O’Hare praying to the God she never thought …vicious with want. … baby.don’t float away. your word…speechless When I first read this poem, it made me slightly uncomfortable. Grading poems or deciding which one should be published is a complex process. As an editor, you have a responsibility to ensure that there… Continue reading Autumn 2022 – Poetry
Tag: Poetry
Spring 2022 – Poetry
Cornwall – Lily Rose Winter drinking wine on the beachfront it’s that time between light and dark when the sea begins to look like an untuned television screen noise among silence pixelated, out of focus, flickering, i listen with one ear to what you say while the other is drawn to the sea, as if… Continue reading Spring 2022 – Poetry
Autumn 2021 – Poetry
Open Roads and Roadblocks “Sun streaking a face full of melody, hair dancing to the music of the wind and sunglasses reflecting mirrors on this brush-stroked morning. Her hands playing the strings on my battered blue jeans and our bodies clicking and jazzing along with the weaving back road.” Matthew McGuirk The Autumnal Issue of… Continue reading Autumn 2021 – Poetry
Writing Routes
The literary arts is a very broad field which this post will attempt to navigate. This is designed to encourage you to experiment with different forms and submit work to our magazine that does not fall into the more common categories of the short story and the poem, although we love receiving these too! Poetry… Continue reading Writing Routes
Summer 2021 – Poetry
Heartsong Oh, you’ve done it now, you chancer;You’ve burrowed all the way downAnd set up shop in my warm and sticky centre. Your filthy crackling laughRattles my bones awake each morning,And your honey-thick hum soothes them to sleep each heavy evening. Sinéad Mooney We published many memorable poems in our last issue, so it was… Continue reading Summer 2021 – Poetry
Halloween and Valentine’s combo
Writing for a particular occasion is always fun and provides a useful cultural touchpoint to get your imagination flowing. In this post, I will suggest a number of activities which groups can do near to Halloween and Valentine’s day. First we will look at the genre of horror which is apt for Halloween-inspired writing. Thinking… Continue reading Halloween and Valentine’s combo
Spring 2021 – Poetry
Doll Strings I pulled her out of my headand snapped the doll strings, one by one. Her intestines slap-stung my knuckles like spiteful elasticand I pulled and pulled them,trying to hurt her back. Then I tried to send her away,but the doll strings coiled upand tightened around my neck. She was out of my headbut… Continue reading Spring 2021 – Poetry
Spellbinder and ENIGMA in collaboration: Tips from the Editors
This is a very special blog post to celebrate the collaboration of Spellbinder magazine with Exeter University’s creative writing society and their literary journal, ENIGMA. Spellbinder has been fortunate enough to receive a number of submissions from the talented student community in Exeter, a number of which have been published in the Winter and Spring… Continue reading Spellbinder and ENIGMA in collaboration: Tips from the Editors
In the Bleak Midwinter
Through this post, I hope to offer some suggestions of how you can respond to the following Spellbinder Instagram prompt, and point you in the direction of some works of literature and art that you can consider for inspiration. Write or draw about a snow day. What does the air smell like? What colours do… Continue reading In the Bleak Midwinter
Winter 2021 – Poetry
Atlas A clock is watched in expectation but stars are watchedto see what’s been; not till, past. In the pauses betweensleep cycles they, in their dogged runs, lull us into assuming thattoday’s experience is tomorrow’s promise. Which is what I’m doing now, watching remembered morningturn the redbud suckers thin and bright as crazes in glass, anticipating… Continue reading Winter 2021 – Poetry