Empty Mirror

a literary magazine

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Empty Mirror 25th Anniversary

Empty Mirror celebrated its 25th anniversary on May 31, 2025! While we are currently on hiatus, we invite you to enjoy a quarter century of writing and art in our archives.

Click to read any of the pieces featured below, read more from the category, or refresh the page for a fresh selection!

On Literature

Art has side effects, I said - Bobbi Lurie - Marcel Duchamp

“Art has side effects,” I said.

Bobbi Lurie

Chaucer and the Art of the Grift

Chaucer and the Art of the Grift

K. A. Laity

More Essays and Interviews

Poetry

Berthusen -- D. Enck

Three new poems by Mark Young

Mark Young

off five-forty-two / credit: em

Four poems for Empty Mirror by rob mclennan

rob mclennan

More Poetry

Beat Generation

seymour krim

Beat Generation Writer Seymour Krim

Mark Cohen

The Beats: A Short Introduction by David Sterritt

Review – The Beats: A Very Short Introduction by David Sterritt

Denise Enck

poet and painter Kay Johnson / Beat Hotel resident

Poet Kay Johnson, aka Kaja

David Gitin

Free Beer: Kicks & Truth with Jack Kerouac by Cliff Anderson

Review – Free Beer: Kicks and Truth with Jack Kerouac by Cliff Anderson

Denise Enck

More About the Beat Generation

Visual Art

Cory Peeke - Counting Sheep (detail)

Higher Education: 11 collages by Cory Peeke

Cory Peeke

Paul Hawkins -- Coach House 08 (detail)

from the Coach House Series: text collages by Paul Hawkins

Paul Hawkins

More Art

Essays

drawing of man with guitar

Being There – Michelle Bracken

Michelle Bracken

Dearly Beloved, Part II: Growing up in Bohemian 1950s San Francisco

Nanette Jordan

More Essays

The EM newsletter

Receive fresh poetry, reviews, essays, art, and literary news every Wednesday!

Empty Mirror

Established in 2000 and edited by Denise Enck, Empty Mirror is an online literary magazine that publishes new work each Friday.

Each week EM features several poems each by one or two poets; reviews; critical essays; visual art; and personal essays.

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