Foreword
Welcome to the Spring Issue V 2026 of Samjoko Magazine. We have now published 17 issues over the last five years. We look forward to continuing to spotlight creatives for many years to come. As time has passed in working on this venture, we have taken to urging others to start their own magazine, digital zine, anthology, etc.
In the past, whenever we saw a new publishing venue open submissions for their inaugural issue, we remember thinking, “Not another magazine!”
Today, though, we realize how flawed that perspective was. Every time a new publishing venue opens, two things are accomplished: 1) A greater number of writers find readers and 2) A greater number of readers find writers.
If every writer who writes and wished to be read would take the time to read hundreds of submissions in a slushpile, to select and publish those pieces that stand out, then the publishing community at large would become vibrant. We would all be building each other up, discovering new poems, essays, stories, and plays, that otherwise we would never know existed. As the years have passed, we have found it unfortunate to discover how few writers read, but also how few readers venture into written works beyond their comfort zone or the mainstream.
So we at Samjoko Magazine urge those who visit our site to begin your own literary enterprise. Produce an anthology or journal. Start your own magazine or zine. Every little bit that goes to fostering the writing community and letting creatives know that they are being heard, that someone sees them and is reading them, will make it all worthwhile in the eyes of that individual submitter.
As usual, we want to give thanks when someone helps us pay writers. For the Spring Issue V 2026, we would like to spotlight Joyce, who donated $10.30, thereby paying half of the contributor’s payment to an accepted creator. And of course, we would like to thank LowKey Worlde, who has been a Patreon of our magazine for several years now. We genuinely appreciate your financial support, and hope others will help us pay writers by donating to Samjoko Magazine, buying us coffee, or becoming a Patreon.
With that, welcome to this Spring offering.
Fiction