The Editors

Kerry Hadley-Pryce has had four novels published by Salt Publishing: The Black Country (Michael Schmidt Prize); Gamble (shortlisted for The Encore Award) and God’s Country. Her fourth novel, Lie of the Land, was published in January 2025. She has a PhD in Psychogeographic Flow in Black Country Fiction from Manchester Metropolitan University, and has contributed chapters to Palgrave’s Smell, Memory & Literature in the Black Country anthology, Jetsones’ Writing Under Fire anthology and Fly on the Wall Press’ The Subtle Art of Short Fiction. She has had short stories and essays published in Best British Short Stories 2023 and Best British Short Stories 2024, Takahe Magazine, Slag Glass City Magazine, Fictive Dream, The Incubator and read by Brum Radio. She is a lecturer in Creative & Professional Writing at the University of Wolverhampton.

R. M. Francis is a writer from the Black Country. He completed his PhD at the University of Wolverhampton, where he is Senior Lecturer and Course Leader in Creative and Professional Writing. He’s the author of five poetry Chapbook collections: Transitions; (The Black Light Engine Room, 2015) Orpheus; (Lapwing Publications, 2016) Corvus’ Burnt-wing Love Balm and Cure-All; (The Black Light Engine Room Press, 2018); Lamella (Original Plus Chapbooks, 2019) and Fieldnotes from a Deep Topography of Dudley (Wild Pressed Books 2019). Smokestack Books published his first full length collection, Subsidence, and his novels, Bella and The Wrenna are out with Wild Pressed Books.

In spring 2019 Rob became the inaugural David Bradshaw Writer in Residence at Oxford University. In 2020-22 he was the Poet in Residence for the Black Country Geological Society; this produced his collection of poems, essays and fieldnotes, The Chain Coral Chorus (Play Dead Press). Poe Girl Publications published his horror short story collection, Ameles / Currents of Unmindfulness. He is reviews editor for the Journal of Class and Culture.