Who would have thought it that the love of eating a delicious sandwich would turn in to a poem and then eventually be published online in a literary journal; well that’s what happened with my Ode To A Gourmet Sandwich, a poem I had written one day in a coffee shop in Galway after eating probably the most delicious cranberry, bacon, turkey and salad sandwich I have had so far, prompting me to embed it in to memory through the ink of my pen.
So, I am very pleased indeed to have this piece published in the new and exciting Emerge Literary Journal alongside two other up and coming Galway poets Sarah O’Toole and Ruth Quinlan. Emerge now has two online issues with a third due soon that will be a print issue which is exciting news.
Emerge Literary Journal caters for new up and coming poets and aims to publish poets who may have had just a few publications or none at all, so I urge, if you are new to poetry and would love to have your first publication, read the two brilliant issues online to get a feel for what type of poetry the journal requires and get your best poems in.
Ariana D. Den Bleyker is the hard-working editor of this journal and the preferences for outstanding poetry lean towards free verse with strong imagery. When I read the first issue I was blown away by the quality especially by poets such as Matthew Hemmerich, Sheri Grutz but especially the two poems of Alejandra Olavarria which are quite brilliant, spurring me on to get published in this new journal, which I did.
So it’s a privilege to have a poem published alongside up and coming talent in this second issue. Kevin Ridgeway kicks off issue two with Ceadersprings Drive, a beautiful ode for a dead grandmother. Other poems that grab and pull me in are fosforos by Coop Lee, i wander a street clung in mothed-lamps/thinking of all the words I want to say, Faith Counter by Samantha Duncan Sleeping restlessly in the cellulite of Gulliver’s upper leg/I close my eyes to count the stars, The Carousel Room by Robert Cantrell, The Other by Stephen Myers-Yawnick, Still Here by Ruth Quinlan, a poem in memory of a loved one, The clothes he left behind/An oversized jumper, a woolen scarf/Worn in college when the loss was fresh/The imprint of his shape becoming mine, and New Year’s Day 2011 by Sarah O’Toole, just some of the amazing writing I can mention from this outstanding journal that you should dig into and enjoy.
In the next issue, Ariana plans to open the publication up to flash fiction up to 750 words, with a limit of four stories per issue, helping this journal grow and grow into a quality must have literary magazine. In a time of hundreds of online and print journals it is great to see that there is a demand, that people still love to read poetry, short stories etc, that there is a lot of competition out there but there is also a great flow of amazing talent, willing to add to the hungry market, and with the likes of Ariana and others working their socks off to get the journals out there, it is up to us to spread the word and support the arts.
Check out Emerge Literary Journal, spread the word, Facebook spread it and so on, but most of all, find your best poem and contribute.
Ruth Quinlan
Nice one Stephen. Lovely article. Ariana and Emerge are putting in great work in introducing brand new poets to the wonderful world of being published. It’s validation like this that keeps us going through all the dark days of rejections.
sherbet
Thank you Ruth, yes I think the journal looks amazing and can only grow, and as you can see from my site I’m a fan of supporting journals/magazines aswell as independent book stores. I can’t wait to see the print version.
Summer
I would like to see more sites like Emerge Literary Journal. These sites are great to promote new poets and writers. It is a great place to share and interest among writers too!
sherbet
That is true, it is a great place.