Dear Readers,
Welcome to The Lumiere Review‘s second issue. The support from all our contributors, submitters, readers, and staff members has been overwhelming, and we’re so grateful for every one of you. The amount of submissions we received, amassing almost 1,300 writing and art pieces, almost makes us question whether we are still a fledgling publication that is navigating their way into the realm of literary journals.
But navigate we did, often running into cul-de-sacs and crossroads. Our publication made a u-turn from a biannual to quarterly publication in the hopes of amplifying more creatives. Too many times were we at the junction between an acceptance and rejection, wondering whether the road not taken had been the better choice. We’d like to think that Issue 02 is the culmination of our journey, but we know well it is not.
In fact, Issue 02 is more like the map itself. In this issue, we have compiled works that explore the intersections between reality and fantasy, express a yearning to transcend spatial and temporal boundaries, and bring readers to unforeseen but gratifying destinations. Though our current situation has made travel quite impossible, Sara Dobbie’s “WALKING IT OFF, IN MONTREAL” transports us to France and Heath Joseph Wooten brings us to the sea in “WHEN WE FIRST MET THE OCEAN.”
As much as our pursuit of travel manifests in our desire for interactions with physical places, our contributors go on to probe at their identities and inner workings. Martins Deep merges the exterior facade of human figures with subtle emotion in his collection, “WEEPING SILENCES OF FRAGILE THINGS.” Timothy Ojo’s “TO EVERY GIRL WHO SEES ME AS HUSH HUSH” blurs the relationships between humanity and the supernatural. Issue 02 is all-encompassing as much as it is perplexing, and we hope that as readers, you will embark on a new adventure, perennially losing and discovering yourselves on the way.
Get your suitcases and binoculars, and have a wild time exploring our second issue!
All my best,
Jessica Kim
Founder and Editor-in-Chief, The Lumiere Review