Folding Rock magazine is making Welsh writing sexy
Launched in March 2025, Folding Rock magazine has recently passed its first anniversary and published its fourth issue of “new writing from Wales and beyond”. For this episode of the Stack podcast I spoke with editorial directors Kathryn Tann and Robert Harries to hear their thoughts on the first year of publishing, and to catch up on the wider aims behind the project.
Funded for an initial four-year period by the Books Council of Wales, it’s no surprise to hear that their core focus is on providing a platform for Welsh literature. Speaking about magazines like The Stinging Fly in Ireland, Granta in England or Gutter in Scotland, they argue that Wales doesn’t have an equivalent, country-defining publication, and decided that it was time to set about creating it themselves.
While they’re respectful of the literary establishment, though, they say they’re also determined to look beyond the familiar faces and bring an injection of fresh talent in their pages. For example they read all submissions blind, in an effort to make their decisions based purely on the writing itself, rather than the reputations of big-name contributors. And the most recent issue featured a guest artist for the first time, Abby Poulson’s multimedia exploration of Merlin’s legendary oak providing a new dimension of visual art alongside the texts.
The overall aim, says Kathryn, is to create a fresh image of what it means to be a Welsh writer, following the example of other nations to raise both public attention, and readers’ heart rates:
“Ireland are so good at taking credit for their writers… for really claiming them. And I think we need to do that a bit more as well… We want to make Welsh writing sexy, in the way that Irish writing is sexy, and Scottish writing. The talent’s there, so it’s not just about running the magazine and platforming brilliant work, but it’s also making that statement about, like, ‘Pay attention to Wales as a literary nation’.”
It’s great to see an independent magazine, properly funded and with such ambitious aims, using print to establish identity and provide an alternative to “the endless scroll”. You can hear the full episode above, or watch our conversation below, or just search “Stack Magazines” wherever you get your podcasts. And of course for the full Stack experience, sign up to our subscription and we’ll send a surprise independent magazine to your door every month, so you can properly enjoy them for yourself.
