Volume 1, Issue 5 (2022)

Dear readers,

Hello, and thank you for reading The Diamond Line’s fifth issue. Once again it falls upon a team of undergraduates and faculty to showcase the literary and artistic perseverance cradled in the Ozarks. As we continue to celebrate and learn from the former staffs’ legacy, our team has strived to capture the moods of our current authors to the public. We hope this edition brings comfort to the communities we are so proud to be a part of. You are our conversation.

Thanks to our staff’s efforts, we are happy to announce that The Diamond Line has extended its invitation of publication to any University of Arkansas-affiliated campus. Inclusivity is vital to the success of our magazine; giving the opportunity to create a voice for as many undergraduates as possible has and always will be the intended purpose of The Diamond Line. Our team also decided to change the physical dimensions of the magazine for the first time in order to craft something fresh, unique, and entirely individual.

As we emerge from a pandemic, we wanted this issue to reflect the struggle and growth each of our artists faced during these uncertain times. The opening of our magazine begins in a darker world. Bloody reds and bruising purples. Confessions of love and loss. A house ridden with peculiar maggots. These shaded touches of romanticism challenge you to stretch the bounds of your imagination. But as we emerge from these troublesome times, so does our magazine. As we greet spring, light begins to flood into our pages.

The second half of the magazine bursts into new light. Tea leaves. Ivy. Sunflowers. Stargazing. First love and all its possibilities. New life. Even though our world has been thrust into dark, confusing times, there is always the possibility of rebirth. We chose Abstract Box by Gracie Morrison as the cover art of Issue 5 because it’s brilliant, vibrant colors remind us of light at the end of the tunnel, and the hope of spring.

We would like to thank everyone involved in the creation of The Diamond Line. We would be nothing without the support and talent of every author or artist that has submitted to us. We wish you the best in your future endeavors. And finally, thank you for picking up The Diamond Line Issue 5, and for embarking on this journey with us. We sincerely hope you enjoy the work of our undergraduate community as much as we enjoyed curating it.