Lo and behold... a new magazine
And hopefully a new dawn.
Wales can today celebrate a new cultural periodical in English. Folding Rock will release its first issue in the Spring of 2025. It’s funded by the Books Council of Wales, which has been widely criticised (and even investigated) for its handling of the dishing out of funding for English language magazines earlier this year (which saw the end of Planet, New Welsh Review, and Wales Arts Review).
I couldn’t be more happy that Folding Rock exists, and I am fully confident Wales will once again have a serious cultural magazine for its writers and readers.
Here’s some more info from the press release…
Co-founders of the publication – editor and designer Robert Harries and writer, editor and creative producer Kathryn Tann – describe it as ‘a magazine to pay attention to’, analogous with the likes of The Stinging Fly in Ireland, England’s Granta, and Gutter Magazine in Scotland.
‘Folding Rock: New Writing from Wales and Beyond will be the catalyst needed to usher in a new era for Welsh literature – one, we believe, that we are already on the precipice of. Representing a creative culture we are exceedingly proud of, this magazine will do much more than publish new writing. Using our position to tirelessly develop talent, grow skills, advocate for authors and open as many doors as we can, this magazine will give the UK-wide publishing industry – and reading population – no choice but to pay attention.’
The Books Council of Wales announced [today] that funding has been awarded for a period of four years, up to March 2028, following the advertisement of an open tender for a new English-language literary magazine in March 2024. The process was concluded over the summer and Folding Rock will publish its first issue in March 2025, with subsequent issues to follow every four months.
Follow Folding Rock on social media or go to foldingrock.com to find out more.
I’ve known Kathryn Tann and Rob Harries for quite a long time. Kath is a friend who I first met when she did the marketing for one of my books, and Rob has designed the covers for a few of them. I have no doubt they will create a very strong magazine. I hope it gets the support it deserves and needs.
Sounds promising, but I will reserve judgement until I see it. However, best wishes to its editors etc. (I used to subscribe to Granta, which I enjoyed, but I can`t quite see it as a model for what we need.)