News in last week is that Gutter Magazine cancelled the review they were featuring of Polly Clark's latest poetry collection Afterlife. They had included it in their monthly Substack mailout, but pulled it from the actual magazine and their website. This, after Iona Lee gave it a glowing review.
The reason? Apparently something Polly Clark said - not in the poems, but in social media - offended them. Didn't fit with Gutter's world view. It wasn't illegal, what she said and the views she held, but they didn't like it, so they withdrew coverage. You can read Polly Clark's own take on this here.
You might think, fair enough. They can publish what they like. Yes, but what about the fact they are supported financially by Creative Scotland?
I don't have any answers for this. But it makes me uneasy. I trained, and worked for many years, as an information specialist. A chartered librarian. I've also studied and written journalism, and taught creative writing. I believe giving people access to information is the way to build strong individuals and communities. It leads to tolerance and understanding.
So, given that I've been a 'Friend' of Gutter Magazine since 2017, paying a higher subscription to support the magazine, how does this latest episode of 'cancel culture' make me feel? Do I really want my name on the inside back cover, as a supporter?
I wrote them a letter. It's mostly about me, but I'll post it here in its entirety.
Dear Gutter team,
I've cancelled my 'Friends' subscription. I'm sorry about this. Since its inception, I've loved Gutter, and Gutter, for the first 23 issues, loved my work. I had the honour of being the writer whose story (Frozen Waste) was the opening piece in the very first issue. My poem Holding All the Aces (issue 23) attracted huge interest and positive feedback for Gutter (and me) on Twitter. In between, Gutter published another six pieces of my writing, both poems and short fiction.
But since issue 23, you've taken nothing of mine. Creative writing markets change, and widen, and refocus, and it's probably just that my work no longer reaches the standards needed. I accept that, though I have had work rejected by you which has gone on to be published in e.g. Causeway/Cabhsair and by the University of Strathclyde CW dept.
I was also disappointed that you didn't review my pamphlet Reading the Landscape. One of the poems in it - 'Ceilidh' - was chosen by the Scottish Poetry Library as one of the 20 Best Scottish Poems of 2022, so that suggests to me that the pamphlet was of a sufficiently high standard to be worth Gutter considering.
Ageism. Misogyny. I certainly hope Gutter's team wouldn't be guilty of those. When I was in my 20s, the ratio of men to women being published was 20 to 1. By the time I did my MLitt in 1998, the gap was less - about 5 to 1. So I've faced difficulties in being published all my life.
I know how hard it's been for women to be regarded equally. When I went for my first mortgage for a flat with my partner, I was told my income wouldn't count. Full stop. Because I was a woman. I had to argue fiercely to make them take it into account. The 'success' was that our mortgage offer was based on three times my partner's annual salary and one of mine.
Like all women, I've been subjected to unwanted male attention - dirty phone calls at work, abuse in the streets, a poet in a position of power passing me his email address with a certain look in his eye and suggesting he might help me if I got in touch. Women have a lot to lose. I was briefly trans sceptical. I have four daughters and admit I was concerned that some man might take advantage of the trans movement to enter the women's changing rooms in shops to assault them. But I quickly moved on from that and see it for the flawed logic it is. I'm very fond of the trans people I have in my family and friendship circles, and see them as fully equal human beings.
I was concerned, however, by a report that you notified a poet you would review her poetry collection, then you withdrew that when you heard that she had expressed anti-trans views. If her poetry collection expressed anti-trans views, then I could understand you might do that, but I can't agree with you cancelling someone otherwise. Free speech is a thing to treasure. By listening to different views - as I did - we can persuade people to our case. As writers and publishers, we must be open-minded.
Have you blocked me because I once had concerns about what I perceived as the trans lobby setting back women's rights after a hard struggle to win them? Or am I just invisible? I've won the Robert Louis Stevenson Fellowship, had a Scottish bestseller, was shortlisted in Oct 2025 for the Wigtown Festival's Alastair Reid Poetry Pamphlet Competition, am included on the Scottish Poetry Library's list of Scottish Poets, have won Creative Scotland and Magnetic North bursaries, have two poetry collections out with a third one being launched later this month, etc etc yet you don't mention me in any of your lists of writers you've published, and my name only appeared on your front cover once out of eight acceptances. Hmm.
Well, for whatever reason, I think it's time I ended my association with Gutter. I'm genuinely sad about this because I do think you do great things. But something's gone wrong somewhere, and I would ask you as a team to consider the wider points I make in this long email.
I felt it would be wrong of me to cancel without giving you my reasons.
With best wishes,
How did they respond? They didn't ignore it, which was good. The managing editor wrote me a nice reply.
Dear Carol,
We’re really sorry to hear you’ve decided to cancel your Friend subscription to the magazine. We really very much appreciate all the support you’ve shown Gutter, both as a reader and a contributor.
Over the years, the number of submissions we receive at the magazine has increased dramatically. We currently read and consider upwards of a thousand poems from 400-500 poets for each issue. Only a small number of those can be selected for publication.
Nevertheless, we really hope you’ll continue to submit your work to us, and that we’ll have the opportunity to publish it again in future.
Very best wishes,
No attempt whatsoever to address the issues. Ah well. That's it, Gutter. Cancelled.
