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Metapsychosis

Journal of Consciousness, Literature, and Art

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    • Plenum: the First Book of Deo
    • Masks of Origin
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    • See You in Our Dreams – Reading Performance Group and Social Dreaming Experiment
    • Visionary Voices: Sri Aurobindo’s Savitri
    • Synthesis of Yoga Practicum
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    • Chthonia – Worlds of the Dark Feminine
    • Writing Off the Deep End
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Editors’ Blog

Introduction to the Editors: Brigid Burke

By
  • Brigid Burke
  • Brigid Burke
 |  8 Aug 2020

I have been an Assistant Editor here at Metapsychosis for a few years now, and on this site I have published a couple of essays, offered one class on underworld mythology, and also currently produce the bi-weekly Chthonia podcast, which focuses on darker aspects of the “Feminine” (capital F intended, as this includes more than “women” in a gendered sense). I do have graduate degrees in Religion and Psychology, and in Literary Studies, though my speciality tends to be ancient religion and the underworld in particular. To get a sense of my other work and more on where I’m coming from creatively, feel free to visit my website, chthonia.net. 


My reading preferences are all over the map, but I gravitate toward fiction works that deal with the supernatural or liminal, and also writings that are really rich in description or experimental. I like certain nineteenth century writers like Nathaniel Hawthorne, Ambrose Bierce, and Washington Irving. Among more contemporary writers, Paul Tremblay is definitely a favorite, and I find myself imitating his writing structure in my own work. I love Muriel Barbery’s work for its rich emotional atmosphere as well.  While I’m not a huge science fiction buff, I do love Ray Bradbury’s “October Country,” and “Something Wicked this Way Comes,” as well as the works of Philip K. Dick. I love the supernatural/weird fiction of M.R. James and Robert Aickman, and the experimental works of writers like Italo Calvino and Mark Danielewski. I would consider myself a fan of H.P. Lovecraft as well, though sometimes he’s a bit too melodramatic for me. 

On the poetry and essay side—I absolutely love the poetry of Elizabeth Bishop, and tend toward that “contemporary” group of poets from the early to mid-twentieth century: Sylvia Plath, Anne Sexton, Robert Lowell, and Gary Snyder. Anne Sexton’s “Transformations” is a special favorite, with her reworkings of fairy tales. And…this also surprises folks…I do have something of an affinity for Alfred Lord Tennyson, possibly because I did my English Honors undergrad work on his use of poetry as a grieving tool. I like aesthetic essays like Mark Doty’s “Still Life With Oysters and Lemon,” though I am also drawn into philosophical essays with well-written and thoughtful arguments. 

When I select pieces for Metapsychosis, I am very open to different ideas and styles. I gravitate toward works that are experimental, weird, that tend to either make me think long after I’ve put the work down, or transport me to a different mental or emotional space. This is true whether the piece is fiction, poetry, or prose. Probably the most important quality I’m looking for is authenticity; whether the piece really fits my personal preference or not doesn’t matter as much if I can get a real sense of the author and where they are coming from. There is no need to “try too hard” to be edgy or experimental; just be yourself. If you’re writing an essay, take the time to really think about your topic. There is too much polarization and polemic on the Internet, and in our culture in general; it is refreshing for me to read something that has been carefully considered and researched. I welcome new ideas, and interesting twists on old ideas. 

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: about, introductions, submissions

Brigid Burke

Brigid Burke is the host of the Chthonia podcast, and the proprietor of Chthonia.net. She writes articles, fiction, and poetry dealing with the darker aspects of human behavior and the esoteric world. Her fiction has been published previously in Writin …

Brigid Burke

Brigid Burke is the host of the Chthonia podcast, and the proprietor of Chthonia.net. She writes articles, fiction, and poetry dealing with the darker aspects of human behavior and the esoteric world. Her fiction has been published previously in Writin …

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Metapsychosis is a project of Cosmos Cooperative, a creative co-op for people with “visionary tendencies”—artists and scientists, writers and designers, tree-huggers and technologists—lovers of truth, goodness, beauty, and life in worlds upon worlds… It’s a big Cosmos, right? Visionaries of the world, unite! Seriously, this is supposed to be fun. Help us create a better Cosmos…

Unless otherwise noted, all rights are reserved by the individual authors. Other website content is licensed under Creative Commons: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)

  • Books
    • Plenum: the First Book of Deo
    • Masks of Origin
  • Groups
    • See You in Our Dreams – Reading Performance Group and Social Dreaming Experiment
    • Visionary Voices: Sri Aurobindo’s Savitri
    • Synthesis of Yoga Practicum
  • Podcasts
    • Chthonia – Worlds of the Dark Feminine
    • Writing Off the Deep End
  • Events
  • Meta
    • About
    • Authors
    • Submissions
    • Contact
    • Donate
  • Subscribe

Metapsychosis is a project of Cosmos Cooperative, a creative co-op for people with "visionary tendencies." Learn more at Cosmos.coop »

  • Cosmos Cooperative
  • Journal
  • Books
  • Conversations
  • Social
  • Join the Co-op

Metapsychosis is a project of Cosmos Cooperative, a creative co-op for people with "visionary tendencies." Learn more at Cosmos.coop »

Unless otherwise noted, all rights are reserved by the individual authors. Other website content is licensed under Creative Commons: Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0)