February 15, 2023

Dear Readers,

Something remarkable happened as we made our Winter 2023 issue, and we couldn’t be more grateful.

Over the past few years, our staff has shaped and given heart to every issue. With their care and curation, they’ve made Barzakh a place that people want to be, and this fall, our little team of five-or-so people literally quadrupled in size, which was a wonderful problem to have.

The influx of new staff provided new energy, fresh eyes, and useful skills. Not only did they bring themselves to our team, but their partners, babies, and puppies joined us for our monthly get-togethers and supported us as we put our Winter 2023 issue together. There’s magic in sharing time as colleagues and as a community, and we’re happy to report that the last six months at Barzakh have been filled with magic.

There was an additional benefit to expanding our staff. For this issue, we received almost double the number of submissions that we have ever received in our publication’s history. These past three years of the pandemic provided new thoughts on grief, love, pain, joy, society, community, connection, humanity, and the mundane nature of life. As a result, a bounty of work is being produced. We’re honored that so many poets, writers, and artists chose to submit their creations to us, and to them and our contributors, we’d like to say welcome to the Barzakh community!

As always, this issue brings together a variety of voices from around the world. There’s something special about having an international focus, as it allows us to share unique textures and cultural experiences while also celebrating our universal humanity. This publication would not be possible without the support of the University at Albany English Department, our Faculty Advisor Ed Schwarzschild, the constant support of our Editor-at-Large C. Connor Syrewicz, and our ever-surprising and brilliant staff. Finally, we wouldn’t exist at all without our contributors and readers. We’re so glad that you’ve chosen to join the Barzakh community.

Please enjoy,

Christy O’Callaghan
Editor-in-Chief