Call for submission: Magma 97, Diasporic Dialogues

The West in me wants the mansion
to last. The African knows it cannot.

— Nicole Sealey

This issue of Magma aims to highlight and celebrate the best of Black poetry in the UK and across the African diaspora. By creating a space solely for Black poets, we want to demolish any imagined boxes that Black writers might feel they must create within. What we are asking for is relatively simple: we want your best.

We want poems that centre Black perspectives and that are in dialogue with: the legacies, consequences and lived experiences of those in Africa and the diaspora. We welcome poems across time periods and temporalities that express the under-explored breadth and depth of Black experiences. There are some great poets out there waiting for an opportunity to be seen; here’s your chance.

i knew your name before you had a name
i learnt all of your bars even the freestyles the leaks test me

— Gboyega Odubanjo

So, send them. Send your thoughtful political poems, your angry eco-poetry, your surreal lyrics and everything in between — send us your best. Send us the best that the continent and diaspora has to offer. We can’t wait to see the rich work that you’re crafting.

The 97th issue of Magma Poetry, edited by Zakia Carpenter-Hall, Elontra Hall, and Nick Makoha PhD, is in partnership with the Obsidian Foundation and focuses on Black poets from across Africa and the diaspora.

The submission window for M97: Diasporic Dialogues is open from 1st July – 31st July 2021. We welcome poems from writers of Black African, Caribbean, Afro-Latinx, and African American heritage, including those of mixed-Black heritage. These poems must not have been previously published, either in print or online.

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