ISSUE 02
June 2024
Symposia Magazine
Te Whanganui-a-Tara
Online Edition
June 2024
Cover Artist
Emily Robbie
Illustrator
Georgia Wearing
With work by
Sara Al-Bahar
Kata Brown
Theo Castle-McLean
Krysana Hanley
Tessa Keenan
Rachel Lockwood
Nadezhda Macey
Jackson McCarthy
Joshua Toumu’a
Jedidiah Vinzon
Zephyr Zhang 张挚
Letter from the Editors
We’re so excited to present the second issue of Symposia. You might have noticed some changes — we’ve redesigned the website so it can continue hosting many issues to come. We still have our signature gradients and scrolling format, but now with easier navigation and a shiny new interface! This new issue also comes with stunning new cover art by Emily Robbie, an oil painting based on Rachel Lockwood’s poem Razed.
A lot of things have changed since we first created this magazine. We launched our first issue at Good Books and sold out of our first zine run. It was so special to encounter such support, and we’ve continued to be supported by an incredible community of writers, readers, editors, and literary magazines. Through these experiences, we’ve all grown as editors, continually honing our process.
Even though many things have changed, some things are very familiar: our contributors Rachel Lockwood and Jackson McCarthy have now appeared in both issues of the magazine. As editors, we also continue to hone particular themes throughout the issue, grouping together poems that mould and respond to each other. In particular, Issue 2 contains many seasonal motifs — Jedidiah Vinzon’s acerbic yellow summer; the ‘scientific winter’ in Theo Castle-McLean’s Law Case Poem; the chill of Sara Al-Bahar’s Monday Morning. A vast range of different but complementary forms are showcased, such as prose poetry, a script format in Krysana Hanley’s Hugh Grant, and numbered sections in Tessa Keenan’s At the Kura Reo.
We’re really thrilled to continue our mission of uplifting new poets by providing a platform that bridges established and emerging work. Go ahead and delve into this collection of poetry: we hope you enjoy the journey.
- The editors: Amelia, Cadence, Maia, and Pippi
Our Contributors
Sara Al-Bahar (she/her) is a third year student at from the Waikato. Her work featured in Mayhem Literary Journal and in Poetry Aotearoa Yearbook 2024. She clutches onto the dream of a peaceful world and a quiet home overlooking a large body of water.
Nadezhda Macey (she/her) is a student from Te Whanganui-a-Tara living in Lyon. She misses living by the sea, but walking by the metropolitan river is good too. Some of her poetry is in issue 17 of Starling.
Kata Brown (she/her) is a recent Fine Arts graduate, wondering what to do next. She is currently working at a library, spending her time trying to look busy at work and staring out the window.
Theo Castle-McLean (he/him) lives and studies in Te Whanganui-a-Tara. He likes bookshelves, gardening and hay fever pills.
Krysana Hanley is a writer and poet based in Tāmaki Makaurau. She wrote a poem everyday for over 2 years just to prove she could do it. She dreams of writing something that will outlive her.
Tessa Keenan (Te Ātiawa) is from Taranaki and is now based in Pōneke. You can find her writing in various Aotearoa publications including Starling, Poetry Aotearoa Yearbook, and Pūhia.
Rachel Lockwood (she/her) is a Hawke's Bay gal and a High School teacher. She has been previously published in Starling, Mayhem, and the 2023 Poetry Aotearoa Yearbook, among others.
Jackson McCarthy (he/him) is a poet and musician from Auckland currently studying in Wellington. He is of mixed Māori and Lebanese descent. He was a finalist for the Schools Poetry Award 2021, and was recently one of the Starling Micro-Residents at the New Zealand Young Writers Festival 2023. You can read more of his work at linktr.ee/jacksonmccarthy.
Joshua Toumu'a (he/him) is a poet from Te Whanganui-a-Tara. He was the winner of the 2022 Schools Poetry Award and a finalist in the 2023 Mansfield Short Story Competition, and his work has been published in Starling and The Spinoff. He has yet to find a pair of sunglasses that don't make him look ridiculous.
Jedidiah Vinzon (he/him) is currently studying Physics at the University of Auckland. In his spare time, he writes poetry and fiction, listens to jazz and makes those two his personality. His works have been accepted by Tarot and Circular Publishing.
Zephyr Zhang 张挚 (they/them) drives everywhere. They have poems published in various literary caves and crevasses including Starling, Sweet Mammalian and The Spinoff. You can find links to their work at zephyrzhang.com.
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank the Wellington City Council Creative Communities Scheme for supporting our magazine. We would also like to thank our donors for their generous support, which will help us keep creating issues. We’re grateful to Anna Jackson, Rebecca Hawkes, and Francis Cooke for their editorial insights, as well as to everyone who has shared, supported, and submitted to Symposia Magazine.
