editorial

It’s with a sense of profound gratitude that I welcome you to issue 79 of The Interpreter’s House. Gratitude because it truly is an honour to edit this magazine. Gratitude because we receive such an excellent standard of submissions and because our contributors are so responsive to the hands-on collaborative approach that we take to editing their work. Gratitude for those submitters who are so gracious and professional when we decide not to publish their work*. And gratitude for working with Lou and Lizzie. I’ve said this before. I’m sure I’ll say it again. Their insight, humour and keen eyes for great writing nurtures and inspires me.

Yet I am also concerned. Why? It’s an understatement to say that right now is a tough time for literary magazines. Editing a poetry and fiction journal takes time and energy, especially when the editorial team carry out their duties on a voluntary basis in addition to other, often fulltime, professional or familial responsibilities. None of us are complaining about the workload. We do it because we want to. We do it because we are passionate about finding and sharing excellent writing. However, in recent years the costs of running a magazine have increased. A lot. Recently the precious Ambit Magazine and Jellyfish Review, among others, have taken the sad decision to close. These losses are not insignificant and the writing community is poorer as a consequence. If we are at all able to support the journals we love, then now is the time to do so.

Being an online journal, it is relatively inexpensive to keep the House going, however it is not free and I am a little anxious about footing the bill for this year’s website costs. Want to help us? If you are able, we’d be hugely grateful if you chuck a coin or two in our Paypal hat. Seriously, if each of our readers donated the price of a cup of coffee, the House would be secure for at least two years.

But not everybody can afford to make a financial contribution. That’s the harsh reality of the world we live in and the core reason why The Interpreter’s House will always be free to read and free to submit to for as long as I’m the editor. There are still important non-monetary ways to support us: share our social media posts; write about us in your own socials - links to our site always help; tell your friends about us; and if you’re a writer, submit to us.

As I write this, I see that Butcher’s Dog magazine, another poetry great, has put out a request for help in the face of financial pressure. They are an excellent journal. You can help them here.

And so to Issue 79. The newest issue of The Interpreter’s House is certainly worthy of much talk, many tweets and multiple posts! We’re delighted to feature poets and authors who are new, exciting finds for us and also to welcome back some beloved familiar faces. Some of these poems and stories are pieces that you’ll want to down in one; they have the kick of a chilli tequila shot. Others demand that you luxuriate in their complexity. Take these in slowly and return to all of them often.

Thank you for your support in whatever form it may take.

Happy reading.

Georgi x

*Let’s not call it ‘rejection’. Rejection has overtones of spurning or refusing another person. The decision not to publish a writer’s work always leaves space for the possibility of the next submission being successful.