MEET: Our Head Editors for The Croft 2023

      The 2023 Team for The Croft is here; just to tide you over, we thought we'd introduce you to our fantastic new Section Head Editors, and let them tell you what they're planning for the magazine this year. Our September issue is brewing, so keep an eye out for us during Fresher's week...

For now, these are our Section Editors - Style, Culture, Food, Wellbeing. We hope there's a space for you this year in one of these sections, whether that's to contribute or just sit back and enjoy the content. We are all (as I'm sure you might be) having hideous Bristol withdrawal symptoms, and can't wait to hop on a train, dive back into the chaos and make beautiful content inspired by the city.

STYLE

/Hi I’m Mia! I’m this years Croft’s Style co-editor! I’m super excited to be working alongside Amy on the fashion section again.

I'm looking to capture Bristol's vibrant dynamic street style both within and outside the student community. I'm looking forward to collaborating and liasing with our photographers to create exciting visual content on both nightlife and daywear. Expect features on cost-conscious fashion and styling looks on a budget plus the best style outlets to go to in Bristol. We can’t wait to hear about any exciting ideas/ pitches that anyone has for the Fashion section!

/ Hi I’m Amy! I’m thrilled to be working for The Croft again this year alongside Mia as Style Co-editor. We’re super excited to bring new content to the magazine, particularly exploring Bristol’s diverse, eccentric fashion scene. Students are at the heart of the Croft and we want to showcase that, featuring styles from campus to club night.

Be sure to reach out if you’d like to get involved in writing for the Style section - we can’t wait to hear from you!

 CULTURE AND VISUAL ARTS

/Dear Reader, my name is Mia Stevens and I’ll be serving as this year’s Visual Arts and Culture Editor of The Croft. My main objective is to instil a sense of the flamboyant into this year’s section, with elaborate artistic criticism entwined with personal observations and narratives. You can expect articles ranging from gallery reviews, cultural and literary meditations; notes on architecture, poetry, prose and plays, as well as interviews with a diverse section of creative practitioners. We hope to bring style and grace, extravagance and flair, not to mention a touch of… amusement to this year’s Culture section. Of course, when living in a cultural and artistic melting pit such as Bristol, one cannot help but be fascinated by everything, and so our investigations are highly likely to segway into all corners and crevices of the city. With that in mind, I welcome you to a year of splendid, and, if you will, sweeping artistic and cultural merriment. Happy Reading!

FOOD

/ Hey, I am Lucy and I am a 4th year Liberal Arts student. Having just got back from a year abroad in Prague, I have got a big Bristol shaped hole in my stomach and cannot wait to get stuck back into the Bristol food scene as the new food editor for The Croft. After three years of lusting over the city's treasure trove of street eats and independent restaurants, I am super excited to further explore the ways in which local foodies are positively impacting the community through food. What draws me to the Bristol food scene is it's direct alignment the city's vibrancy and creativity - something that I would love the food section this year to continue reflect through recipes, reviews, essays, and stories of culinary adventures. In particular, I hope the section will inspire people to think about food with philosophical and attentiveness to celebrate the cultural, societal, and religious significance of food beyond the plate!

As well as honouring the communal joys (and stresses!) of cooking as a student, I am particularly interested in how we can come up with resourceful yet sustainable solutions when it comes to food. It seems that our choices when it comes to food matter now more than ever and have the power to radically transform the world we live in. Beyond contemplative explorations of food, I am excited to hear about unusual encounters with food - opening up a more conversational space that encourages the food-obsessed and other creatives to be experimental and original in their consideration of the practice and prominence of eating.

WELLBEING

/It is with so much joy that I endeavour to bring a flowing freshness and sense of ease to The Croft’s Lifestyle pages — my vision is of a vast openness in which we may nurture a loving space where everyone feels held and free. It is with arms outstretched that I invite anyone and everyone to step into this dance — to write (or do anything, this is a call for all creatives!) for The Croft means that we promise to celebrate all that you are and all that you are becoming. As your editor, I will always hold a deep-seated level of trust in you and the work which you feel matters. From this place of trust, I know that the writing which most feels like magic can unfold in its intended form.

My hope is for everything to be drawn in fluid lines here; supple and ever-changing yet steady in our excitement to share loving conversation freely. Our dialogue will span over infinite subject matter and touchstones for thought — the aim being to nourish our minds collectively, being rooted in the present yet allowing ourselves to reflect and imagine. You can expect the Lifestyle / Wellbeing section to look like a warmly curated kaleidoscope of voices which both listen and speak to one another, infused with a gentle vibrancy. If any of this feels resonant, please do get in touch to start the conversation — it is surely a gift to be able to write and refine prose so that it sings on the page, that’s the goal! I am thrilled to be here and feel so excited for everything that is and all that is to come.

| If you're interested in writing for us - please join our Facebook pages for upcoming commissions. They're open to anyone, and present you with the opportunity to write for us in our first issue. A love of Bristol and enthusiasm for writing are truly our only criteria - at The Croft, we're looking to be and inclusive and open multiple doors for our community, enabling us all to explore as many creative fields as possible.

Sounds good - right?

More soon...