editorial

Welcome to Issue 84!

At the time of writing this, my first ever editorial, I keep finding alarming traces of silvery blue glitter everywhere. I usually make very little effort in the way of Halloween costumes. Contrarily, I think it’s because I am a horror aficionado (every day is a wee bit Halloween-y) and also because I am already someone who likes dressing up a little in her day to day. But my pals had sourced a 4k restored version of Hammer’s Curse of Frankenstein for our annual scary movie viewing. I thought I should at least add some garish, sparkly eyeshadow to proceedings.

I digress. I’m good at that.

When Georgi Gill approached me to be poetry assistant for The Interpreter’s House in 2019, she’d already held the role of Editor of Chief for a year following an intermittent period as guest editor. In a remarkably short space of time, I could see that Georgi had already set out an exemplary editorial practice. She was thoughtful, dedicated, and a thorough and sensitive curator of other writer’s work. She communicated beautifully and empathetically with contributors which helped to foster a collaborative and warm space, one based on mutual respect. This was a space I very much wanted to be part of, a way of working that felt right. I have learned so much from Georgi.  

Then, a short while back, when Georgi told me over a coffee in the National Museum Cafe in Edinburgh, that she had decided, after many successful and assured years to give up editorship of the magazine to concentrate on her own writing, I started to tear up. She asked me if I wanted to take over as editor, and it wasn’t just her confidence in me that moved, it was also because I would miss working with her so much.

Georgi and I worked tother effortlessly and openly, ever mindful of each other’s ebbs and flows due to other work, writing and life commitments, not to mention our health and well being. And we had. such. a. laugh – Oh my goodness! Award-winning writer Lizzie Fowler came on board to co-edit fiction with Georgi shortly after I started. She proved to be an excellent editor, with a discerning and expert eye for selecting quality fiction, and working so incredibly hard over the years. I am so grateful to count Georgi and Lizzie as my dear friends. I just know they will go on to do remarkable things. Georgi is continuing with her own amazing poetry and has recently taken up a position as IASH Public Engagement Fellow at the University of Edinburgh. Lizzie is working on her first novel. I’m so excited when I think about what the future holds for their creative endeavours.

So, me – Editor in Chief? At first, I was hopeful, nervous but definitely enthusiastic. But then … procrastination, distraction, avoidance: the paralyzing trinity that arrives with self-doubt. I started to worry and shirk. I slept a bit too much and a bit not enough. My eyes felt strained – I couldn’t look at my screen anymore without donning a pair of reading glasses I got off Temu which made me look a bit like Henry Kissinger. I became slightly obsessed with the actor Jared Harris and went down a rabbit hole of his oeuvre from the sublime (The Terror, Chernobyl) to... well … Lost in Space. The ‘f’ key stopped working on my laptop suddenly and if autocorrect didn’t come up with the goods I had to painstakingly cut and paste the letter ‘f’ from online.

I literally had no ‘f’s left to give.

Then something shifted.

I started to get excited again. It was the writing that was coming in, the standard of it. See that’s the thing, sometimes you need to be reminded. That you are part of something that can showcase some of the best examples of contemporary writing out there. That’s not a hardship. It’s a privilege.

And its helps that I had such help. Georgi and Lizzie have been above and beyond in the handover period, from the reading of submissions, to training, support, morale boosts. And this issue would not have been possible without the immense dedication, hard work and conscientiousness of guest editor of Issue 84, acclaimed poet Jo Bratten. Jo has been a marvel, her keen eye for quality poetry, her dedication and support. I was thrilled to work with Jo and delighted when she agreed to continue to edit poetry for The Interpeter’s House for the near future. I have totally struck lucky here – Jo is an absolute star, a joy to work with.

Conscious of the fact that this is a long editorial, ahhh (am hoping people will be charitable as its my first one) I need to highlight one major change to the magazine moving forward. You will notice that Issue 84 does not contain any short fiction. Georgi and Lizzie did not receive enough submissions last time to confidently include a selection of short fiction pieces. For this current reading window, open until November 14, I will be carefully considering the fiction submitted with a view to publishing it in Issue 85. After 85, however, I don’t think I can dedicate the adequate time required to read fiction submissions in addition to poetry. Something has to give. This is not a decision I have made lightly, but after Issue 85, The Interpeter’s House will only be open to poetry submissions.

Jo and I are very proud of this current Issue. It’s surprising and fresh. It’s full of grace notes and heart stopping lines. My last thank you in this editorial has to be to our wonderful contributors. I am also proud to continue the legacy of a free to view, accessible poetry magazine. The world is a frightening, confusing place. It can feel so hopeless. But we have poetry. It must, has to count for something.

We can keep finding those ‘f’s to give. Keep finding the glitter.

With love and gratitude,

Lou x