Image by María Victoria Rodriguez
Dear writers, readers and friends,
Here in the Northern Hemisphere, we are able to socialise again. The sun is shining and the air is a-buzz with energy. It is particularly enlivening to feel a sense of community once more and to be part of a place. Culture, food and the spirit of people can give us so much. That’s why this month’s image felt just right.
María Victoria Rodriguez (https://victoriarodriguez.com.ar/) , an Argentinian artist and animator living in Berlin, created this artwork for a small artisan food business in Shropshire, UK, called Pueblo. They sell handmade foods from South America and bring a taste for empanadas to their local British community. It’s these small, independent initiatives that bind us and keep the spirit alive.
A small side note before we announce our three lead writers. We have opened up our internships again and are looking for two or three new team members, to help us edit and publish pieces each month. We invite applications from anyone, anywhere, with any level of experience. We welcome entry level applicants and those who are looking for a career change or just some “behind the scenes” publishing experience. You can apply here (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfjCuLjjso6W0MU6fQvvv8MpA2YZ91vWotga7tt59EUNjDDcg/viewform) until 9th July.
Now, to our lead writers for the July issue of Visual Verse. These three have been on our radar for some time, as each of them has contributed some excellent writing to our publication.
Our first piece is by Carl Burkitt (https://carltellstales.com/) , who likes to tell tales. He tells long tales, short tales, silly tales and sad tales. He likes to tell them online, behind a mic, in books, in schools or on the sofa with his young family in Manchester. His debut collection What Does A Baby Think It Is? And Other Questions (https://carlburkitt.bigcartel.com/product/what-does-a-baby-think-it-is) was published in 2020 by Enthusiastic Press.
Page two features Megha Sood (https://meghasworldsite.wordpress.com/) , an award-winning poet, editor, author and blogger from New Jersey, USA. She is the recipient of the 2021 Poet Fellowship from MVICW (Martha’s Vineyard Institute of Creating Writing) and a National Level Winner for the 2020 Spring Mahogany Prize. Sood is an Associate Poetry Editor for literary journals Mookychick (UK) and Life and Legends (USA), and is Literary Partner with Life in Quarantine, Stanford University. She has authored a chapbook My Body is Not an Apology (Finishing Line Press, 2021) and a full-length work My Body Lives Like a Threat (FlowerSongPress, 2021).
Our third piece comes from New York City resident Kerfe Roig, who enjoys transforming words and images into something new. Follow her explorations on her blogs methodtwomadness.wordpress.com/ (which she does with her friend Nina) and kblog.blog/. You can read more of her work on her website (http://kerferoig.com/) .
And so, dear writers, the blank page of possibility awaits you. The image is the starting point, the text is up to you.
Kristen
with the VV team, Preti, Lucie and Isabel
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