Melbourne’s latest literary publication, Kill Your Darlings, was first published in 2010. Issue 5 came out in April 2011 and the team are getting ready with Issue 6 as we speak.
It’s a terrific little magazine, filled with essays, reviews, fiction, opinion pieces, art and articles – and issue 5 is a ripper! I can’t really pull out highlights because it’s all so fabulous! Things I really liked, though, which make me want to follow up on the writers, poets and books concerned are:
- The interview with Geoff Dyer, who has an interesting take on both fiction and non-fiction. The interview questions were intelligent and interesting and prompted some great observations and ideas.
- S.A. Jones’s essay on Ted Hughes and Sylvia Path called A Peanut Cruncher’s Defence makes me want to finally getting around to reading both Plath and Hughes. The writer’s insights on who possesses the narratives of a person’s life, especially after they’ve passed is intruiging,
- Cristy Clark gave me a few things to think about with Being Ecotarian: The Complexity of Food and while I’m not a gamer, Daniel Golding’s defence of videogames in terms of both art and culture in Not Art, You Say? resonates because I do read comics and I’ve heard all of it before there as well.
- Fiona Scott-Norman’s retrospective of The Professionals had me howling with laughter, mostly because I absolutely recognise all the stages she’s gone through with the boys! This review is partnered with an equally funny take on Twilight, by Margot Cullen called All that Glitters: Decoding the Edward Cullen Effect — which begins with Margot making her boyfriend stand in the backyard during winter in his underwear before making him come inside to ONLY CUDDLE.
Added to this is fiction by Patrick Cullen, Sonja Dechian and Eva Lomski, articles on the future of Australian bookshops, the resurgence of cassette tapes, alcholism, blogging reality television and a heap more.
Kill Your Darlings is a terrific magazine, meaty and engaging, challenging and hilarious. With luck, it will continue to have the occasional vampire!
Visit Kill Your Darlings to subscribe or find out where to buy individual issues. The Kill Your Darlings team also have a blog and a podcast.