Metamorphosis

It will not have escaped the attention of our members that we have given this website a significant makeover... and not in appearance alone. In fact, one might say the changes represent a complete metamorphosis.

Our website has broken free from its former chrysalis self and taken wing to mature into an online literary magazine–the GossamerWight Literary Magazine. That's our new logo below in its full, anthropomorphic, resplendent glory. You'll appreciate why we settled on 'metamorphosis' as the post title.

Before explaining why we have made the transition and the perceived benefits, let's talk about our new name.

What's in a name?

Well, a good deal, in fact. We decided that GossamerWight–a neologistic hopeful–was to be one word, with the 'W' also capitalised. You'll spot the entire word in uppercase letters in places on this website, which is also intentional, i.e., part of the website design, or aesthetic.

Let's break the word GossamerWight into two parts to consider the etymology of our creation.

'Gossamer' is a word well known to many. The common usage is for something that is light, sheer, or delicate (like butterfly wings) or, of course, a fabric. Perhaps a fabric like Chiffon–the sheer, lightweight, elegant, airy, and ethereal choice for many wedding gowns.* One might even say that such an ethereal fabric appears to have a ghost-like quality in certain lights. This makes the word 'Gossamer' a fitting prefix for our literary magazine name, in that part of our focus is to showcase content that is both supernatural and haunting... or ghostly.

Which brings us seamlessly to the second part of the word GossamerWight–the suffix 'wight.' As a noun, the word has several meanings, but for our purpose it refers to a living being, or creature... or not, because the word might also denote a supernatural being of some kind, which fits our usage of the word. As a literary word, 'wight' might refer, then, to a ghost; or a dead person reanimated, such as a Lazarus figure–although rather than biblical, such a being would undoubtedly be more vampiric or ghoulish! One also thinks of J. R. R. Tolkien's wraith-like creatures, the barrow-wights, in The Lord of the Rings.

Configured as it is, the word GossamerWight appears both familiar and unfamiliar at once, causing an ambiguity of construction that gives it an air of the uncanny. Now, that is fitting for our literary magazine! We hope you'll agree that the name GossamerWight stands out—it's elegant, eerie, atmospheric, old-world, and most importantly, memorable. And while GossamerWight Literary Magazine's interests include wraithlike supernatural beings and haunting tales, the focus is much broader, of course, as our About page highlights. So, whether your primary interests are in horror, the weird, the speculative, or fantasy, we hope you'll feel at home with us.

Why the changes?

We realised during lengthy discussions that we needed to undertake a thoughtful reappraisal of our purpose and offering. The transformation of our former online presence into a literary magazine appeared the most appropriate and meaningful way to achieve our newfound purpose. That decided, we immediately appreciated that a literary magazine ought to be more than a generic or specialist publication alone–it needs to be a vibrant community of like-minded readers and writers, be they occasional visitors and contributors, or signed-up members. By joining and being part of the GossamerWight Literary Magazine family, we want our members to benefit from:

• Fresh voices and new writing. To discover fresh, bold fiction, essays, and poetry from both emerging and established writers.
• A creative home. To feel part of a community that values curiosity, imagination, and excellent writing.
• A source of inspiration. To discover novel forms, ideas, and perspectives to spark their creativity and writing.
• Access to opportunities. To be among the first to hear about new submission opportunities, events, workshops, and other inspirational activities.
• An enriching literary culture. To be part of a supportive space that gives diverse, underrepresented voices the chance to be heard and celebrated.

In short, joining the GossamerWight Literary Magazine community makes each contributor an integral part of a living conversation about literature, and the stories that matter.

We'll return to delve deeper into the benefits of online literary magazines (especially ours) in future posts. Meanwhile...

Ta-da! We're done for now, so must fly.

*We debated whether we ought to explain something of the arachnid connection to the word 'Gossamer,' but decided we would leave that for you to discover... or not.

[Header image credit: Willgard from Pixabay. Footer image credit: Darkmoon_Art from Pixabay].