Abbey Woolgar
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Issue 2
From the 1st of October 2025, issue 2 of The Bournemouth Journal is available in print-on-demand at Amazon. Poetry Example: Flood Suzanna Fitzpatrick The sheep wake you. Keening, not bleating, the noise mammals make when they sense death. Goosebumps try to rouse your non-existent pelt as you grope for the clock. Two a.m. There’s a gale…
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Notes of aLadin A Raw, Relatable Mirror to the Modern African Hustle
In an era defined by digital façades and curated perfection, my debut novel, Notes of aLadin, breaks through with gripping honesty and comedic grit. Written in journal-style entries that are both heartbreaking and hilarious, Notes of aLadin is a creative chronicle of a young Nigerian man’s survival in an economy that often seems rigged against the everyday dreamer.
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Coming soon: The Dale Hurst Writing Show – Season 5
We’re pleased to announce that The Dale Hurst Writing Show, a writing podcast partnered with The Bournemouth Journal, is returning with its fifth season later this month.
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Zooming into the Writer’s Room
Zoom is such a great way of bringing writers together and I was delighted when Heard Word recently invited me to take part. It’s fun to see how a whole ritual has developed around engaging with each other via this online portal: mikes muted, emojis at the ready, chat column primed and, as each face…
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Q&A with Dominic Wong – Director of the Bournemouth Writing Festival
Dominic Wong is the author of two novels. He’s also Director of The Bournemouth Writing Festival. He talks to The Bournemouth Journal’s Substack Newsletter Editor, Julie Salt, about this year’s event. Q: The festival is now in its third year. Can you tell me, Dominic, what are its main aims? A: The ethos of the…
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Across Borders: Reflections from Heard Word and the Journey of Dark Circles Under the Eyes
When I first saw my picture in the Bournemouth Journal as the next Featured Writer, it was a shivering, goosebumps moment that left a long cheerfulness in my spirit for weeks on end. It wasn’t just about being featured—it was the thought that I was going to be listened to and heard by writers from…
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Bourne Creative – the group for MA Creative Writing and Publishing alumni
As I walk through the café doors, I feel like I am hosting a party and fear I might be the only one going. I scan the tables, looking for familiar faces. In the far corner, I see Brad Gyori, the MA Creative Writing and Publishing Programme Leader, and Nika, a fellow graduate from my…
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Outsiders Project Anthology Session
In February, the MA Creative Writing & Publishing cohort at Bournemouth University was joined by members of the Outsiders Project, a local creative writing collective that focuses on uplifting the underrepresented voices of those that have been sidelined from society. The students have been tasked with a group project – producing an anthology of writing…
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From Bournemouth to The Page
When I started my MA in Creative Writing and Publishing at Bournemouth University in September 2019, I had no idea how much the experience would shape me—not just as a writer, but as a person. As an international student from the Czech Republic, moving to the UK felt like stepping into a new chapter of…
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Long Day’s Journey
At a university interview for my bachelor’s English degree, still aged seventeen, I declared, ‘I want to write a book’. ‘Everyone says that’ one of the profs scoffed. I was dismayed. I’d been writing since I was eight. Eventually, I went into journalism and wrote news stories instead. It took thirty years to finally achieve…