Issue 34

As a senior barrister then as a judge Paul Girvan wrote extensively on legal matters during a long career and he now enjoys the freedom of creative writing particularly poetry which is often inspired by his travels, by nature, by his sense of place, history and time and by his career in law. A keen amateur artist his work is influenced by an artist's eye for colour, form and atmosphere.  He contributed a prose piece Affairs of the Heart  to The Heart of the Matter  Imspired P

Johanna Gallagher is a Belfast-based playwright, performer, and former nurse whose work explores contemporary issues through a rich blend of lyrical language, folklore, and realism. After seven years working in healthcare, Johanna transitioned into full-time theatre making - in January 2024, and has since been creatively active and gaining recognition across the Northern Irish theatre scene. Her debut solo show  Queen of the Bees  had its debut run at The Sanctuary Theatre –

Gary Devenney is a poet whose journey with spoken word began during lockdown.Though life pulled him away from poetry, he found his way back to the page after the heartbreaking loss of his partner, Fiona, to whom he dedicates all his writing. His work delves into love, grief, and mental health, weaving raw emotion with the influence of Dermot Kennedy’s poetic intensity. Beyond poetry, he is the Head of Football Development, an avid reader of psychology, philosophy, and romanti

Avery was born in Canada and grew up in London, with Northern Ireland his adult home. He studied philosophy and literature at Ulster University (Coleraine) before becoming a social worker. Active in his profession and the voluntary & community sector, he currently leads a fostering service for a national children’s charity. Avery is a member of Portglenone Writers, having joined online during lockdown, and much preferring the face to face world that has returned. Writing poet

My name is Phil Boyce and I live in Belfast, Ireland. In my mid-40s I decided to attempt to fulfil a lifelong dream of becoming a writer. I’d been writing a website called the OiNK Blog for a few years about a classic 80s humour comic which proved a success and so I began to diversify to cover other titles. Through this I’ve got to know lots of individuals in that industry whose positive feedback on my work inspired me to take the next leap. I am currently co-writing a book a

Heidi Edmundson is originally from Portrush As a child she loved telling stories and always wanted to be a writer when she grew up. She studied medicine at Dundee University and currently works as an Emergency Consultant in London. She also spent one summer trying to be a stand up comedian. Both things have equipped to performing in front of a hostile audience. She has had two books published. One , a crime novel called Darkness in the City of Light, is a classic Whodunnit se

Ken Gosse generally writes light poetry using simple language, meter, and rhyme in verses filled with whimsy and humor. First published in The First Literary Review–East in November, 2016, his poetry is also online with Academy of the Heart and Mind, Lothlorien Poetry Journal, Home Planet News, Spillwords, Impspired, and others. He is also in print anthologies from Pure Slush, The Coil, Truth Serum Press, Peking Cat, and others. Raised in the Chicago suburbs, he and his wife

Had four kids but now just three.  Zen and Love.

Michael Igoe, neurodiverse, city boy, Chicago, now Boston. Numerous works appear in journals and anthologies( available at amazon.com , lulu.com , barnesandnoble.com ). National Library of Poetry (Owings Mills, MD) Editor's Choice 1997; Best of the Net nomination 2023. Twitter(X) MichaelIgoe5. Dialogue Revisited

Morgan Laidler is a junior at Boston College studying Secondary Education, English, and Creative Writing. However, she will be spending the year abroad, studying at Manfield College at the University of Oxford. She was born in Atlanta, Georgia, and then moved to Parkland, Florida, where she began writing poetry and prose. She has been published in The Laughing Medusa, Stylus, The Wilderness House Literary Review, The Crossroads Review, Mouthful of Salt, and Girls Right The Wo