Some Poetry Magazines
I’m aware of four poetry magazines – The South, The Frogmore Papers, The Echo Room & Boscombe Revolution - based along the south coast (I’m guessing there are probably more). They are an eclectic bunch and designed to appeal to different audiences.
The South is clearly the most conservative, (lots of poems about drinking red wine on holiday and wry takes on domesticity), but it does its work in a very honest fashion. Contributions are reviewed blind by a selection panel which changes for each issue, There are book reviews and an appreciation of a featured poet. The South will shortly celebrate its 50th issue.
The Frogmore Papers seems to have been around forever and yet I always seem to struggle when trying to describe its content. It’s edited by Jeremy Page out of Lewes and I’m convinced its geographical positioning reflects upon the tone of the magazine. Generally darker and more sophisticated than The South it also seems to favour poems that stress a degree of regret…
The Echo Room, edited by Brendan Cleary, was originally published out of Newcastle upon Tyne in the late 80’s & 1990s. At that time it was very much an antidote to the oppressive darkness that Margaret Thatcher seemed to herald. The magazine was relaunched in 2012 with support from Pighog Press in Brighton and it retains its distinct political and social standpoint. It invariably publishes poets with a very direct voice; often urban, often very funny and very often in conflict with the status quo.
Finally Boscombe Revolution. Only one issue of this tiny but beautiful magazine has been produced to date. The magazine seems the most globally orientated of them all despite its clear groundation in the streets of Boscombe, with a particular emphasis on the tone of more experimental American literature. I’m really looking forward to seeing issue 2.
I like poetry magazines for all sorts of reasons, but mostly because they only really survive on the basis of determined, bloody-minded editors putting in time and effort in the face of very little material return. So obviously you should buy all of these.