LAZULI LITERARY GROUP
  • ABOUT
    • Our Literary Aesthetic
    • Staff
    • Contact Us
  • AZURE: A Journal of Literary Thought
    • AZURE Volume 3, Issue 1 >
      • HOW TO WRITE A BIOGRAPHY by Joanne B. Mulcahy
      • PROTOCOL NINE-NINE-NINE-NINE by Kenneth Hanes
      • LESS' MORE by TWIXT
      • POINTLESS MR. PROBST by Beatriz Seelaender
    • ARCHIVES: VOLUME 2 >
      • AZURE Volume 2, Issue 4 >
        • SYLVAN PASSAGES by Dan Wood
        • SISTER ALONE by Janet M Powers
        • CENTURY 2.1 by Alan Flurry
        • CLAIMED BY THE SEA by Sam Reese
      • AZURE Volume 2, Issue 3 >
        • CROSSHATCHING by M.K. Rainey
        • LULLABY by Barbara Daddino
        • HOUSEMOUTH (and other poems) by Anhvu Buchanan and Brent Piller
        • THE RESIDUE IN PUBLIC TEA AND COFFEE CUPS by V.B. Borjen
        • SYZYGY (and other poems) by Malorie Seeley-Sherwood
      • AZURE Volume 2, Issue 2 >
        • DRAGONFLIES: A DISCOURSE ON ANXIETY by Lara Lillibridge
        • AND RICHARD BURBAGE ALSO HAD A SISTER by Freya Shipley
        • THE WATCHERS by M.K. Rainey
        • JAZZ INTERACTION WITH SYMBOLS by Sarah T.
        • SPIDER (and other poems) by Natalie Crick
      • AZURE Volume 2, Issue 1 >
        • ECHOES by Daniel Freeman
        • MAPS by Susan Brennan
        • EDGAR'S FATHER'S MAGIC WORDS by JWM Morgan
        • LOCKJAW: IN TWO ACTS by James Blevins
        • WHAT THE LIVING DO by Susan Wadds
    • Archives: Volume 1 >
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 10 >
        • SUSURROS DE RECURRENCIA by Franco Strong
        • THE OLD MAN by Sarah T.
        • PERMUTATIONS by Laura Cesarco Eglin
        • WORLD PEACE 3 by Gustavo Alberto Garcia Vaca
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 9 >
        • LITTLE GHOST by Danny Judge
        • THE LAST ALLUSIONIST by Sakina B. Fakhri
        • CHURCH by Diana McClure
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 8 >
        • DEVIL IN A BLUE DRESS by Nancy Flynn
        • WHAT I COULDN'T SAY by Erika Ranee & Diana McClure
        • ZIXIN AT DINNER from THE SPEECH OF FLOWERS AND VOICELESS THINGS by Sakina B. Fakhri
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 7 >
        • BRASS TYRANT AND THE AMERICAN THIRST by Kirk Marshall
        • CLAP, CLAP BACK by Anders Jones & Diana McClure
        • LADY KILLER by Monika Viola
        • THE RIBBONS by Ferguson Williams
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 6 >
        • AURELIA: A BALLET IN PROSE (ACT 2 - Part 1) by Sakina B. Fakhri
        • NEW AGE UNCAGED by Frank Light
        • IMMIGRATION/INTEGRATION by Jaret Vadera & Diana McClure
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 5 >
        • THE TRIALS OF TOBIT by Joseph Lisowski
        • LIKE MANY GIANT FOOTPRINTS (and other poems) by William Doreski
        • AURELIA: A BALLET IN PROSE (ACT I) by Sakina B. Fakhri
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 4 >
        • WARDENCLIFF by Barbara Daddino
        • BETTER LIVING THROUGH CHEMISTRY by Reg Darling
        • AURELIA: A BALLET IN PROSE (LIBRETTO) by Sakina B. Fakhri
        • A VERSE, 2 POEMS & A THOUGHT by Diana McClure
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 3 >
        • LAWTON, OKLAHOMA by Mark Lawley
        • TWEETY BIRD'S GRACE by Diana McClure
        • CONTAGION AND THE DINNER GUEST by Sakina B. Fakhri
        • ON POETRY AND PROSE by Sakina B. Fakhri
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 2 >
        • LETTER TO THE EDITOR by Alex Mosiak
        • NOVEL EXCERPT from THE SPEECH OF FLOWERS AND VOICELESS THINGS by Sakina B. Fakhri
        • A CONVERSATION by Diana McClure
        • TWO MICE IN A BLACK BOX & THE DECONSTRUCTION OF LANGUAGE by Sakina B. Fakhri
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 1 >
        • CHARACTER SKETCHES by Diana McClure
        • SEASONS ON A GRAVESTONE by Sakina B. Fakhri
        • COCKTAIL PARTY by Diana McClure
        • DESUETUDE by Sakina B. Fakhri
  • SUBMISSIONS
  • CONTESTS
  • LIBRARY SHOP
  • SUBSCRIBE

AZURE: A Journal of Literary Thought

"Anyone possessing [a sense of possibility] does not say, for instance: Here this or that has happened, will happen, must happen. He uses his imagination and says: Here such and such might, should or ought to happen. And if he is told that something is the way it is, then he thinks: Well, it could probably just as easily be some other way. So the sense of possibility might be defined outright as the capacity to think how everything could 'just as easily' be, and to attach no more importance to what is than to what is not. It will be seen that the consequences of such a creative disposition may be remarkable, and unfortunately they not infrequently make the things that other people admire appear wrong and the things that other people prohibit permissible, or even make both appear a matter of indifference. Such possibilitarians live, it is said, within a finer web, a web of haze, imaginings, fantasy and the subjunctive mood. If children show this tendency it is vigorously driven out of them, and in their presence such people are referred to as crackbrains, dreamers, weaklings, know-alls, and carpers and cavillers." 

- Robert Musil, "A Man Without Qualities"

Buy "AZURE: Volume One" (PRINT ANTHOLOGY)

Volume 3, Issue 1 (2018)

Picture
SHORT FICTION (a journey in footnotes): Pointless Mr. Probst by Beatriz Seelaender
POETRY: Less' More by Twixt
ESSAY: How to Write a Biography by Joanne B. Mulcahy
SHORT FICTION: Protocol Nine-Nine-Nine-Nine​ by Kenneth Hanes

ARCHIVES

Volume 2


Volume 2, Issue 4 (2017)

Picture
SHORT FICTION (CONTEST WINNER): Claimed by the Sea by Sam Reese
PHILOSOPHICAL ESSAY/APHORISMS: Sylvan Passages by Dan Wood
POETRY: Sister Alone by Janet M. Powers
SHORT FICTION: Century 2.1 by Alan Flurry

Volume 2, Issue 3 (2017)

Picture
SHORT FICTION (CONTEST WINNER): Crosshatching by M.K. Rainey
SHORT FICTION: Lullaby by Barbara Daddino
PROSE POETRY: Housemouth (and other poems) by Anhvu Buchanan and Brent Piller
SHORT FICTION: The Residue in Public Tea and Coffee Cups by V.B. Borjen
POETRY: Syzygy (and other poems) by Malorie Seeley-Sherwood

Volume 2, Issue 2 (2017)

Picture
ESSAY: And Richard Burbage Had a Sister by Freya Shipley
SHORT FICTION: The Watchers by M.K. Rainey
POETRY: Jazz Interaction With Symbols  by Sarah T.
POETIC ESSAY: Dragonflies: A Discourse on Anxiety by Lara Lillibridge
POETRY: Spider (and other poems) by Natalie Crick

Volume 2, Issue 1 (2017)

Picture
SHORT STORY: Echoes by Daniel Freeman
POETRY: Maps, guided thought tape #30, & guided thought tape #5,723 by Susan Brennan
SHORT STORY: Edgar's Father's Magic Words by JWM Morgan
POETRY: Lockjaw: In Two Acts, Pyramids of Complex Thought, & A Comet's Return by James Blevins
NOVEL EXCERPT (CONTEST WINNER): What the Living Do (Chapters 1 & 2) by Susan E. Wadds

Volume 1


Volume 1, Issue 10 (2016)

Picture
NOVELLA: Susurros de Recurrencia by Franco Strong
NOVEL EXCERPT: The Old Man from Deep Rooted Cane by Sarah T.
POETRY: Permutations, With Thyme, & Listening by Laura Cesarco Eglin
POETRY: World Peace 3 & Visitation ​by Gustavo Alberto Garcia Vaca

Volume 1, Issue 9 (2016)

Picture
SHORT STORY: Little Ghost by Danny Judge
SHORT STORY: The Last Allusionist by Sakina B. Fakhri
POEM: Church by Diana McClure

Volume 1, Issue 8 (2016)

Picture
POETRY: Devil in a Blue Dress by Nancy Flynn
EKPHRASTIC PIECE: What I Couldn't Say by Erika Ranee (visual art) & Diana McClure (poetry)
NOVEL EXCERPT: Zixin at Dinner from The Speech of Flowers and Voiceless Things by Sakina B. Fakhri

Volume 1, Issue 7 (2016)

Picture
JANUARY 2016 CONTEST - WINNING ENTRY:  Brass Tyrant and the American Thirst by Kirk Marshall
EKPHRASTIC PIECE: Clap, Clap Back / Cafe Society by Diana McClure (poetry) & Anders Jones (photographs)
SHORT FICTION: Lady Killer by Monika McGreal Viola
SHORT FICTION: The Ribbons by Ferguson Williams

Volume 1, Issue 6 (2015)

Picture
SEPTEMBER 2015 CONTEST - WINNING ENTRY: New Age Uncaged by Frank Light
EKPHRASTIC PIECE: Immigration/Integration by Diana McClure (poetry) & Jaret Vadera (visual art) 
AZURE ORIGINAL SERIES - INSTALLMENT 3: Aurelia: A Ballet in Prose (Act 2 - Part 1) by Sakina B. Fakhri

Volume 1, Issue 5 (2015)

Picture
NARRATIVE VERSE: The Trials of Tobit by Joseph Lisowski
POEMS: Like Many Giant Footprints (and other poems) by William Doreski
AZURE ORIGINAL SERIES - INSTALLMENT 2: Aurelia: A Ballet in Prose (Act I) by Sakina B. Fakhri

Volume 1, Issue 4 (2015)

Picture
FEATURE STORY: Wardencliff by Barbara Daddino
JUNE 2015 CONTEST - WINNING ENTRY: Better Living Through Chemistry by Reg Darling
AZURE ORIGINAL SERIES - INSTALLMENT 1: Aurelia: A Ballet in Prose (Libretto) by Sakina B. Fakhri
A COLLECTION: A Verse, 2 Poems & A Thought by Diana McClure

Volume 1, Issue 3 (2015)

Picture
"WIKI" FICTION: Lawton, Oklahoma by Mark Lawley
FLASH FICTION: Tweety Bird's Grace by Diana McClure
FLASH FICTION: Contagion and the Dinner Guest by Sakina B. Fakhri
POETRY: On Poetry and Prose by Sakina B. Fakhri

Volume 1, Issue 2 (2015)

Picture
LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Re: Seasons on a Gravestone by Alex Mosiak
NOVEL EXCERPT: Chapter 1 (from The Speech of Flowers and Voiceless Things) by Sakina B. Fakhri
SCENE: A Conversation by Diana McClure
EXPERIMENTAL SCREENPLAY: Two Mice in a Black Box and the Deconstruction of Language by Sakina B. Fakhri

Volume 1, Issue 1 (2015)

Picture
SCENE: Cocktail Party by Diana McClure
SHORT STORY: Seasons on a Gravestone by Sakina B. Fakhri
CHARACTER SKETCHES: Professor Charlene Cox & Nicky Paul by Diana McClure
NON-FICTION: Vocabulary, the New SAT, & Algerian Post-Colonialism by Sakina B. Fakhri

Our mission: We love work that is linguistically, intellectually, and emotionally demanding of the reader.  We want literary fiction that grows in complexity upon each visitation.  All writers tend to develop a scrap heap of brilliant writing - sharp dialogue that has been cut in service of a plot, a philosophical tirade that can't quite be couched in a narrative, a stunning imagistic landscape of linguistic pyrotechnics that seeks an audience... Literary beauty exists in more than the conventional narrative, we believe, and the most cerebral moments cannot necessarily be expressed in more than bursts and fragments. We seek to provide a space for those portions of works that have been cut away through no fault of their own as well as for those who have achieved a more traditional fruition.

Every piece published in AZURE appears alongside a customized black & white sketch that is devised and executed by our in-house illustrator, Evgenia Barsheva.

SUBMIT TO AZURE

Customized illustrations for all published pieces are provided by Evgenia Barsheva.

AZURE: A Journal of Literary Thought is a sponsored project of New York Foundation for the Arts, a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization.
© Lazuli Literary Group 2018  
|  diana.lazuliliterary@gmail.com / sakina.lazuliliterary@gmail.com  |  847.970.2506 
​  
Illustrations & Logo by Evgenia Barsheva  
Donate
  • ABOUT
    • Our Literary Aesthetic
    • Staff
    • Contact Us
  • AZURE: A Journal of Literary Thought
    • AZURE Volume 3, Issue 1 >
      • HOW TO WRITE A BIOGRAPHY by Joanne B. Mulcahy
      • PROTOCOL NINE-NINE-NINE-NINE by Kenneth Hanes
      • LESS' MORE by TWIXT
      • POINTLESS MR. PROBST by Beatriz Seelaender
    • ARCHIVES: VOLUME 2 >
      • AZURE Volume 2, Issue 4 >
        • SYLVAN PASSAGES by Dan Wood
        • SISTER ALONE by Janet M Powers
        • CENTURY 2.1 by Alan Flurry
        • CLAIMED BY THE SEA by Sam Reese
      • AZURE Volume 2, Issue 3 >
        • CROSSHATCHING by M.K. Rainey
        • LULLABY by Barbara Daddino
        • HOUSEMOUTH (and other poems) by Anhvu Buchanan and Brent Piller
        • THE RESIDUE IN PUBLIC TEA AND COFFEE CUPS by V.B. Borjen
        • SYZYGY (and other poems) by Malorie Seeley-Sherwood
      • AZURE Volume 2, Issue 2 >
        • DRAGONFLIES: A DISCOURSE ON ANXIETY by Lara Lillibridge
        • AND RICHARD BURBAGE ALSO HAD A SISTER by Freya Shipley
        • THE WATCHERS by M.K. Rainey
        • JAZZ INTERACTION WITH SYMBOLS by Sarah T.
        • SPIDER (and other poems) by Natalie Crick
      • AZURE Volume 2, Issue 1 >
        • ECHOES by Daniel Freeman
        • MAPS by Susan Brennan
        • EDGAR'S FATHER'S MAGIC WORDS by JWM Morgan
        • LOCKJAW: IN TWO ACTS by James Blevins
        • WHAT THE LIVING DO by Susan Wadds
    • Archives: Volume 1 >
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 10 >
        • SUSURROS DE RECURRENCIA by Franco Strong
        • THE OLD MAN by Sarah T.
        • PERMUTATIONS by Laura Cesarco Eglin
        • WORLD PEACE 3 by Gustavo Alberto Garcia Vaca
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 9 >
        • LITTLE GHOST by Danny Judge
        • THE LAST ALLUSIONIST by Sakina B. Fakhri
        • CHURCH by Diana McClure
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 8 >
        • DEVIL IN A BLUE DRESS by Nancy Flynn
        • WHAT I COULDN'T SAY by Erika Ranee & Diana McClure
        • ZIXIN AT DINNER from THE SPEECH OF FLOWERS AND VOICELESS THINGS by Sakina B. Fakhri
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 7 >
        • BRASS TYRANT AND THE AMERICAN THIRST by Kirk Marshall
        • CLAP, CLAP BACK by Anders Jones & Diana McClure
        • LADY KILLER by Monika Viola
        • THE RIBBONS by Ferguson Williams
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 6 >
        • AURELIA: A BALLET IN PROSE (ACT 2 - Part 1) by Sakina B. Fakhri
        • NEW AGE UNCAGED by Frank Light
        • IMMIGRATION/INTEGRATION by Jaret Vadera & Diana McClure
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 5 >
        • THE TRIALS OF TOBIT by Joseph Lisowski
        • LIKE MANY GIANT FOOTPRINTS (and other poems) by William Doreski
        • AURELIA: A BALLET IN PROSE (ACT I) by Sakina B. Fakhri
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 4 >
        • WARDENCLIFF by Barbara Daddino
        • BETTER LIVING THROUGH CHEMISTRY by Reg Darling
        • AURELIA: A BALLET IN PROSE (LIBRETTO) by Sakina B. Fakhri
        • A VERSE, 2 POEMS & A THOUGHT by Diana McClure
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 3 >
        • LAWTON, OKLAHOMA by Mark Lawley
        • TWEETY BIRD'S GRACE by Diana McClure
        • CONTAGION AND THE DINNER GUEST by Sakina B. Fakhri
        • ON POETRY AND PROSE by Sakina B. Fakhri
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 2 >
        • LETTER TO THE EDITOR by Alex Mosiak
        • NOVEL EXCERPT from THE SPEECH OF FLOWERS AND VOICELESS THINGS by Sakina B. Fakhri
        • A CONVERSATION by Diana McClure
        • TWO MICE IN A BLACK BOX & THE DECONSTRUCTION OF LANGUAGE by Sakina B. Fakhri
      • AZURE Volume 1, Issue 1 >
        • CHARACTER SKETCHES by Diana McClure
        • SEASONS ON A GRAVESTONE by Sakina B. Fakhri
        • COCKTAIL PARTY by Diana McClure
        • DESUETUDE by Sakina B. Fakhri
  • SUBMISSIONS
  • CONTESTS
  • LIBRARY SHOP
  • SUBSCRIBE
✕