My vision for issue two was and still is for it to be a collaborative, life giving communal process among writers. Sustainability, the theme of issue two, had been on my mind a lot as the pandemic loomed and climate change did as it does. I wanted for the creation of this issue to be an artistic process from beginning to end, suggestive of its own theme as I work to sustain a balance between myself and my work. This process turned slow as my will and functioning depleted, during which time the graciousness and patience of each of the contributors truly saved me. This, too, was part of the artistic process. I learned the anxiety and responsibility of being handed a little thing to cradle, a little piece of writing that contains within it a little piece of the writer. That anxiety and responsibility had a stronghold on me for a period of time, but I’ve learned to trust myself and we’ve started moving forward once again.
I hoped that in submitting literature to a small online magazine each of the contributors could feel that they are part of a growing community of mycelial threads, connecting us in the field of our interests. I saw an issue on Sustainability as being a poetic guide for living during a pandemic and global climate disaster. It turned out to exceed my expectations, becoming a guide that recognizes when no instructions can be given, when no comfort is left to receive. There are stories about fighting back, poems about giving in, experimental pieces that question the concept of the theme. There is writing about mushrooms, and how we will all feed their great system one day. There are vampires, lovers, haters, and creatures. There is hopelessness and despair, radical futurity and unfolding enthusiasm. There is something for everyone.
Issue two will be coming out during the month of September, featured right here on Mycelium’s website. It’s been a process of love and frustration, but I want to thank each and every contributor for taking the theme of Sustainability and making it their own. Thank you for your courage in submitting your work to us. We are lucky to have received it.
With much love, Mycelium.