"I know a hawk from a handsaw..."

This line, spoken by Shakespeare's Hamlet, is thought to refer to a heron ('handsaw' is likely a corruption of 'hernshaw', an old word for heron). Herons are a familiar sight in the East of England and a crowned heron forms part of the logo of Anglia Ruskin University (ARU). We thought 'The Handsaw' a fitting title for a magazine of writing and culture edited by ARU's own Cambridge Writing Centre.

A well of imagination

The Handsaw features work and articles by students from across ARU's Creative Writing courses – our three BAs, two MAs and PhD programme. It also includes news of upcoming events, video footage and audio clips, and will sometimes host special issues, where one or more guest editors takes over the magazine for a period of time.

Writing as public research

Cambridge Writing Centre is a research centre dedicated to sharing knowledge in the field of creative writing. Our practice-based research integrates, among other areas, short fiction, poetry, dramatic writing, creative nonfiction, speculative fiction, and writing for children, as well as exploring interactivity and hybridity between these genres. Since our inception in 2024, we've arranged and hosted a range of live readings, workshops and research seminars. We also collaborate with other Cambridgeshire-based grassroots organisations to make literary events as accessible as possible.

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