CURRENT SURPRISE COMPETITION

 

OPEN TO ALL

DESCRIPTION AND HOW TO GET COPIES

CRYSTAL MAGAZINE

An A4, 40-page, spiral-bound, print only bi-monthly.  Full of stories, poems and articles with colour images.  Pages of letters, an opportunity to share writing achievements and anything of interest to writers.

 

 SURPRISE COMPETITIONS

There are yearly Surprise Competitions open to all.  You don't know what you could win (it's a surprise). Prizes are  small but decent and winners have been very happy.

 

HOW TO GET COPIES

Crystal Magazine  is intended for subscribers (called Crystallites).  They receive six issues a year for £21. 

You can use the PayPal buttons or send a cheque to Mrs C Carr, Editor, Crystal Magazine, 3 Bowness Avenue, Prenton, Birkenhead CH43 0SD.  Please make it payable to Mrs C Carr.  


IF YOU DON'T WANT TO BE A CRYSTALLITE

If you do not wish to become a Crystallite you may still send in work and can purchase the issue it appears in for £3.50. The price is the same as a Crystallite would pay for one issue.


PAYPAL BUTTONS

£21 to become a Crystallite and get sent six issues within a 12-month period.

£2 for a sample copy.

£3.50 for non-Crystallites to purchase a copy of the issue their work appears in.


CURRENT ISSUE

JANUARY 2026

 


 
CONTENTS

Welcome
Winning Entry to Dribble Competition                            
Richard Dobbs: Word Wise                                    
Richard Dobbs: Jokes                                       
Susannah White: The New Diary                               
Heather Buswell: Travellers in a Landscape                           
Nicky Wheeliker: Romsdalen.   Fishmarket ‒ Bergen                   
Sue Hassett: A Perfect Blend                                    
Wendy Webb: Rainbow Leaping                               
Eunice Ogunkoya: A Possible Vision                                
Carole Fenn: House of Angels                                
Brian Webster: Mr Helmington’s Whisky                             
Alan Barker: A Birthday Surprise                                
Peter Davies: Ten Pints Beautiful                                     
Keith Taylor: Woodford Where?                               
Letters                                                
News                                                 
Phil Wlson: Wordsmithing                                    
Jill Rundle: News.   No News                                
Bernard M Jackson: Beau-Jack Rides Again                            
Peter Davies: Dribble                                        
Roy Hewetson: Aftermath                                     
Heather Buswell: Reality                                    
Michael Newman: Still Birth                                    
News                                                 
Felix Sefton: The Sizzler Strikes                                
David Norris-Kay: Fire                                    
Jenny Brading-Palmer: Where There’s a Mill                        
Linda Tilston: Kneading the Bread of History                        
Christine Bridson-Jones: Sound Advice                                
Susannah White: Munch’s Scream as Seen in a Stone                    
Phil Wilson: Batty Books                                
 
 
                                            

FROM THE EDITOR


    



Hello everyone

This year is special because Crystal is 25.  All Crystallites should receive a small padded envelope in January containing a novelty item I’ve crocheted.  Also notification of something to mark the quarter of a century milestone.  

Crystal is an A4, 40-page, spiral-bound, print only bi-monthly with colour images.  It is intended for subscribers called Crystallites. They will receive six issues a year. £21 UK/£32.70 overseas. £2 for a sample to see if you want to subscribe.

Non-Crystallites may send in work and purchase the issue it appears in for £3.50.

The magazine is very popular. There is a Feedback page on the Crystal website.

Contents: stories, poems and articles. Letters - kind comments or none at all. News ‒ an opportunity to share writing achievements and anything of interest to writers.

Also accepting fillers and very long stories which could be turned into serials.

Wordsmithing. Titters Tips Titillations. Pay special attention to the second item in each section because there you will find useful information on writing (the ‘tips’ part of the title).

Also Word Wise. In the January issue we have part three of the apostrophe.

Wishing you all a Happy New Year.

Christine Carr 

Editor





NEWS

 

Debut novel Dublin Shadows by Crystallite Anne Reilly Brown is now on Amazon. Here is the link - https://amzn.eu/d/4jkxMcj



“Shut up! Do not speak!" They could hear soldiers moving round the house finishing their search. Then an order was barked and two gunshots echoed through the house. The two women in the yard jumped with shock at the shots, wrapped their arms around each other while screaming to the high heavens -


"No! No! Oh God No!"


Dublin, Easter 1916, and all hell is about to be let loose. Newly-weds Joe and Rosemarie Flannigan run a bakery on Thomas Street. Over the next seven years they face agonising choices in the midst of the violence and unrest of the Irish Civil War and War of Independence.

London, a hundred years later, Margaret, Joe and Rosemarie's grand-daughter comes across two pieces of china and a letter written to here mother Marie by the grand-mother she never met. Deciding to spend a week in Dublin, walking the streets of her forbears and searching the archives, she traces the steps of her Dublin family and a remarkable journey through time.



Anne Reilly Brown's powerful debut novel. A compelling and gripping tale set in the true to life setting of Dublin during the Easter Rising and its tragic aftermath. You will not be able to put it down.


By Wendy Webb

 








INCENTIVE

 

I have copied the entries from the Feedback page (found under the PayPal buttons) as an incentive for writers to subscribe.  If you like Crystal Magazine please email your comments and I will put them in Feedback.  Christine



Alan Barker

I became a subscriber to Crystal Magazine at the beginning of 2019 and can honestly say it’s one of the best investments I have made since I began creative writing. The editor, Christine Carr, will accept short stories in most genres, as well as poems and articles and readers’ news and views, and puts them all together in the form of a spiral-bound magazine sent to subscribers every two months. For authors who write as a hobby rather than a business, it’s a great way to see their stories in print and to read quality stories by other like-minded subscribers.


Jill Rundle

Crystal has been a part of my life since 2004 and I have always admired the editor's dedication and talent in compiling such a good magazine six times a year. I feel it is a countrywide Writers’ Group.

I always look forward to receiving the latest issue of the magazine and to have reached issue 118 is no mean achievement.  It is very well presented and is a pleasure to read.  One of the shelves in the cupboard in my study is full of treasure - Crystal Magazine!  I don't know of any similar magazine still in existence, although there used to be several.  it is a pleasure to be able to read and enjoy both past and present issues.


Roy Hewetson

Crystal Magazine offers a variety of short stories, some poetry and one or two bits of fact.  Editor Christine Carr is creating a community of readers and writers.  She's always responded promptly to my submissions, accepting some and swiftly saying 'no' when they don't fit.  It's one of the few Mags I read from beginning to end.


Richard Dobbs

Exclusively for subscribers, Crystal is a truly beginner-friendly magazine, whether you're writing about real events, fiction, articles or poetry. Besides the encouraging experience of seeing your own work in print, you will have the opportunity of enjoying the work of other writers, some of whom are quite accomplished, and learning from their techniques. For just £3* an issue (there are six a year), you get 40 pages packed with entertainment, literary information and fun.

*Now £3.50 - Christine


Jim Salt

Being a subscriber for several years Crystal Magazine has given me something to look forward to.  Professionally produced from the first page to the last.  So much variety... snippets of history, articles, stories, fact and fiction.  Poetry.  Amusing anecdotes. Readers' Letters and so on.


Christine Bridson-Jones 

For anyone who enjoys writing and reading, Crystal Magazine is ideal.  Whatever your favourite genre, it is here, whether it is poetry, articles, short stories or memoirs.  There is plenty of opportunity to see your own words in print too. 


Nicky Wheeliker

I have been a subscriber and contributor to Crystal Magazine for ten years. I recommend it strongly to any hobby writer, like myself, who wants to share with fellow scribblers, who would enjoy reading other's work and receiving positive feedback. It is a great way to get your work beautifully presented and seen, and a great confidence booster if you wish to pursue different outlets for your writing. It is also a means of contacting fellow writers if you wish, and I have made a very good friend in a fellow regular. I commend the editor Christine Carr for the great job she does in putting everything together so well, and  in her running of occasional competitions. The magazine represents very good value. Why not try it?


Bernard Lazenbury

Crystal Magazine is a very enjoyable and entertaining read.  
Its pages always contain a wide variety of writing styles and content.
  
From fiction, non fiction and poetry submissions, a range of amateur authors provide in equal measure, excitement, humour, drama, and food for thought.

Always thoughtfully set out,  the reading material sometimes has a theme running through it relating to the seasons or to current affairs.  As a contributor, it is very rewarding to know that more often than not one’s own work will reach publication.

Crystal Magazine is always keenly anticipated and is excellent value for such a reasonable annual subscription.


Phil Wilson

I'm proud some of my work now appears in Crystal.  It's the UK's best writing magazine.  


Peter Davies

I much enjoy Crystal Magazine and appreciate your hard work in maintaining its high standard.  I am pleased to renew my subscription.

PAYPAL BUTTONS



To save postage on sending a cheque you will find a choice of PayPal buttons on the right.

There is a PayPal button for a sample copy.  This is intended for writers thinking about taking out a subscription.

I have set up a single issue button.  Should I accept any poem, story or article from a non-Crystallite they may purchase the issue it appears in.

The yearly Surprise Competitions have an entry fee button.

GUIDELINES

Poems, stories (true and fiction) and articles.  Any style, length and them, except erotica. 

Handwritten material accepted.

Also very long stories which could be turned into serials.

Short fillers, joke etc.

Copyright remains with the author.

Letters: kind comments or none at all. Deadline is 15th of the month prior to the month of publication.

News: Share publication successes.




ISSUE 100 JULY 2017

The 100th issue 

 More colour, more pages  

Only £3  

PayPal button or cheque










SINGLE ISSUE





 Don't want to receive six issues of Crystal a year but would like to see your work in print?  There is the option to purchase single issues for £3.50.  

I publish stories, poems, articles.  Send me something and I'll let you know if I'd like to include it.  

In due course I will tell you which issue it is in.  Then either send me a cheque, payable to Mrs C Carr, for £3.50 or click the PayPal button.

You can send work by email: christinecrystal@hotmail.com 

Post: 3 Bowness Avenue, Prenton, Birkenhead CH43 0SD


Note

You can only be called a Crystallite if you subscribe.


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