in case anyone played my ancient chinese poet game... if you felt that you wanted more of it here you go: compete to become the next court poet, and possibly discover a plan to overthrow the emperor...
tchaikovskyed.itch.io/neo-orchid-p...
Sine Theta Magazine is a print creative arts magazine by and for the Sino diaspora. Consider supporting us at patreon.com/sinetheta or get in touch at sinethetamag@gmail.com about a one-off donation.
Celebrate ALL THAT GLITTERS at our sinθ #35: “SHINE 耀” reading event! Join us online at 9pm ET on September 14.
With Juliana Chang / Sarah Chin / JoAnna Mak / Dylan Tran / @emmakexinwang.bsky.social / Sui Wang / Chelsea Zhu / Zixuan (Angel) Xin / Vicki Xu
Register: forms.gle/5VywbB9TyoRV...
sinθ is committed to creating a platform that celebrates the voices of talented Sino visual artists and writers.
Our work is made possible thanks to our Patreon subscribers. If you can, please consider supporting us at patreon.com/sinetheta
Front cover by Elisha Zhao. Back cover by JESS HUAN HU.
Thank you to all our contributors for sharing your work with us!
— Fiction contest winner Vicki Xu experiments with the fleeting innocence of childhood in “Haven” accompanied by illustration by staff contributor Juliette J Wu.
— Poetry contest winner Zixuan (Angel) Xin charts the waters of devotion and sacrifice in “沉鱼.”
This year’s annual writing contest was judged by Muriel Leung (poetry) and Weike Wang (fiction).
— @isabel.li creates a tableau of queer intimacy and cosmic presence; another of their illustrations paints a DJ in pulsing energy and vibrant colors.
— Art from Elisha Zhao blends whimsical adornment and innocence; Chaoming Zheng assembles copper etching plates to form a makeshift cartography in “Palimpsest.”
— Rona Luo traces the trajectory of survival in the poem “my life as silver”; Marisa Lin conjures a luminous joy that subsumes grief in a poem dedicated to Natalia Smut.
— New poems from JoAnna Mak, Chelsea Zhu, and Dylan Tran intertwine memory, nostalgia, and self.
— Poet Juliana Chang meditates on artistic fame from the perspective of the path not taken.
— Emma Kexin Wang’s “Mosquito Bites” explores life changes and the process of settling into a new normalcy.
— Sarah Chin’s speculative fiction examines glory and loneliness; Sui Wang turns to burnout and art in “Appetizer,” a story seeped with existential undertones.
— Editor-in-chief Jiaqi Kang profiles Yaya, a Chinese French artist, filmmaker, and creative facilitator; together, they discuss somatic awareness and its intersection with art.
sinetheta.net/35
In the issue:
— Staff contributor Chi S. Tsu meets with London-based embroidery artist Nicole Chui to talk about embroidery collages, football, and heritage.
On the dancefloor, multicolored light glances off a disco ball. In space, a star flares and bursts and collapses into a supernova. Everywhere, the gnawing desperation to be the best and the brightest.
sinθ #35 “SHINE 耀” features the winners and shortlistees from our seventh annual writing contest.
Thank you to all our wonderful contributors for sharing your work with us ❤️
Sine Theta is a volunteer-run publication. We are dedicated to keeping submissions free and paying contributors an honorarium. If you can, please consider supporting us: patreon.com/sinetheta
Cover by Yan Jiang.
@catwei.bsky.social’s poems “Catalog of Oceanic Desire” and “At Last It Was Just Us” burst with vivid imagery.
Short fiction by Vic Xu explores the push and pull between nature and urbanization.
New poetry by Katherine Oung and Lydia Wei evokes ghosts and AI girlfriends; moving poems by Chrystal Ho and Jack Xi speak to ecological devastation.
“代臆 I Wrote Not From Muroday to Warnight” by Cela Xie and “神主牌 (Spirit Tablet)” by Alan Tran deftly entwine poetic form with content.
Yuyang (Lily) Wei’s oil paintings “Flavours of Exile” and “Study of Tapirs” play with perspectives and the interconnection between animals and urban living.
Naomi Maya Leung infuses cyanotype photography of plant shadows with personal lineage and rites of connection.
Digital artwork from Staff Contributor Juliette J Wu conjures urban abundance with intricate textures and stark lines.
Starr Jiang’s “Migrant Matter” captures rhythms of loneliness and strength in a singular figure; Yan Jiang’s “Self Portrait” evokes a whirl of gouache landscapes.
For our student spotlight, Junior Editor Erika Jing chats with JESS HUAN HU about their attention to colors and understanding the world and lived experiences through art-making.
Editor-in-chief Jiaqi Kang sits down with Chinese Artists and Organizers (CAO) Collective 离离草 co-directors huiyin zhou and Laura Du. They discuss art as a form of political organizing, the personal legacies of interconnectedness, and centering creative practices around rituals of care.
Senior Editor Yue Chen chats with Madeleine Thien about Thien’s forthcoming novel The Book of Records and cultural histories, memories, and the artist’s responsibility to protest.
Dust clings to your shoes as you make your way through the debris. sinθ #34 “WASTELAND 荒” rises, bursting with art, poetry, fiction, and conversation. Wade through ruins of the past and present. Contemplate what the future will or should look like.
sinetheta.net/34
Are you a getting ready to teach a summer course? Order course books from W4G!
All proceeds to Sameer Project; not amazon, which can sell things cheaply bcz of its investments in AI like Project Nimbus that surveil and target Palestinians.
open-books-a-poem-emporium.myshopify.com/pages/order-...
2 days till my book drops in the UK! Pre-Orders appreciated. Xx
www.waterstones.com/book/9780241...
Check out a new initiative by Open Books (@openpoetrybooks.bsky.social) w/Gaza Poets Society, the premier spoken word community in Gaza that compiles anthologies, sponsors young poets, establishes connections between local and international poets, and conducts workshops. buymeacoffee.com/gazapoets
Thank you so much to everyone who came to our online Expanding the Hyphen event last night!
It was such a joy to be able to share space with writers from different mixed ESEA backgrounds:
Suyin Du Bois
Natalie Linh Bolderston
Will Harris
Thank you! 🙏