Welcome to the Summer 2026 issue of Reading into Culture. This is our third issue, and both Chris and I are so pleased with how it turned out. 

This is the first issue we are putting together after launching the podcast. It has been so wonderful to connect with the authors, and it has completely changed our relationship with the pieces we publish, both in our preparation for the interviews and during the conversation itself. It has been so inspiring for both of us, and we have received some very lovely feedback from people  who have also been inspired. Thank you to all writers who took time out of their days to talk to us and share not just their pieces, but their perspectives on the world and on literature. 

What is also changing with this issue is that we are offering a printed version of the magazine from now on. We think it is a great way to celebrate the authors and their wonderful writing and although the internet is a great thing, it is nice to hold something in your hands in the real world.

Also, we have gotten Olivia North on board to help us with the graphic design of the cover. Like with the previous edition, Tooba Azfar created the artwork, but this time, Olivia turned it into a magazine cover. Tooba and Olivia have never met, but we feel honoured that they agreed to this artistic collaboration, and we are so happy with how it turned out. 

Now to the real meat of this, the pieces. We have shortened this issue to 10 writers to allow for more detailed editing and more focus on each podcast episode. There are five poems by four poets, four essays, and two fiction pieces. Themes span across displacement, artistic ownership, violence, love, the creative process, political oppression and fundamental topics such as truth and death. 

I am so excited for you to read this issue. I look forward to speaking to this round of writers and having the way I see these pieces be forever changed. We are truly passionate about this magazine and the podcast and we hope that you take something away from it. So much effort has gone into this issue by everyone involved. It is such an incredible honour that these writers have sent these pieces for us to publish, to connect with them over our passion for literature and most of all, of course, to be able to read their wonderful work. 

Sara Frisch
Co-Editor-in-Chief

Koblenz, June 2026

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