WSL Alchemy
But before you put on your wizard hats, let us explain.
Not just the attempt to turn lead into gold, the concept of alchemy has been adopted by everyone from nuclear physicists to thinkers like Carl Jung to describe a process of physical, personal or spiritual transformation. It is magic, it is chemistry, it is science and pseudo-science. It is the snake-oil salesmanship practiced by modern-day politicians. It suggests both synthesis and subterfuge, fakery and fate.
Though we've left feudalism, lead type and (much of) medieval thinking in the middle ages, in many ways modern life remains a relentless search for some mythic Philosopher's Stone. For some folks, it's the pursuit of youth or immortality, for others it's a moneymaking scheme to turn straw into gold (or market share). For many artists it's a muse chase not a rat race, but the search and the ache are universal.
We want transformation and magic, in our lives and on the page. We want the results that spring, not just from all that toiling (although there is a lot of it), but from that little bit of extra who-knows-what from who-knows-where. We can't explain it but we must work and wait for it to appear.
Our Almost issue was all about process. Alchemy is about that extra push from the intangible that gets us further than we ever imagined.
We think Alchemy evokes one of We Still Like’s founding principles: Just because something is impossible, it doesn’t mean we shouldn’t do it anyway.
With this in mind, we're seeking fiction, poetry, creative non-fiction, essays, reviews, rants and raves, visual art, magic tricks and anything else alchemy conjures up.
Not just the attempt to turn lead into gold, the concept of alchemy has been adopted by everyone from nuclear physicists to thinkers like Carl Jung to describe a process of physical, personal or spiritual transformation. It is magic, it is chemistry, it is science and pseudo-science. It is the snake-oil salesmanship practiced by modern-day politicians. It suggests both synthesis and subterfuge, fakery and fate.
Though we've left feudalism, lead type and (much of) medieval thinking in the middle ages, in many ways modern life remains a relentless search for some mythic Philosopher's Stone. For some folks, it's the pursuit of youth or immortality, for others it's a moneymaking scheme to turn straw into gold (or market share). For many artists it's a muse chase not a rat race, but the search and the ache are universal.
We want transformation and magic, in our lives and on the page. We want the results that spring, not just from all that toiling (although there is a lot of it), but from that little bit of extra who-knows-what from who-knows-where. We can't explain it but we must work and wait for it to appear.
Our Almost issue was all about process. Alchemy is about that extra push from the intangible that gets us further than we ever imagined.
We think Alchemy evokes one of We Still Like’s founding principles: Just because something is impossible, it doesn’t mean we shouldn’t do it anyway.
With this in mind, we're seeking fiction, poetry, creative non-fiction, essays, reviews, rants and raves, visual art, magic tricks and anything else alchemy conjures up.