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MA Literature and Culture graduates Leah Parkinson, Alicia Khan and Elizabeth Campbell created Who Gives A Book? Mag earlier this year after desiring to continue the work they'd undertaken on their course together and to showcase diverse voices from those either still studying and those who had recently graduated.

The e-magazine is primarily aimed at students, aspiring authors and fans of Northern literature, and will consist of a range of content such as book reviews, short stories and even sections of job advice.

Elizabeth said: "Since graduating, we were thinking of ways that we could keep in touch as well as keep writing, and that's when the idea came to start a zine together with reviews and other writing that we wanted to showcase.

"There are a lot of small presses based in the North but for students, we found that a lot of the places they would hope to get their work shown would be London-based."

Leah said: "When we first started, we were mostly looking at book reviews, which related back to one of the modules we did on the course.

"But as we spoke to more people and contacts from across the University, we started to build traction on social media and got invited in to speak to students. It became something that we think would provide a portfolio space for students but also act as a diverse literature platform for young northern writers."

Alicia said: "We want the e-mag to feature voices from a range of backgrounds and become a hub for people who are interested in literature and reading as well as featuring events for those who are interested."

The trio hope to release the first edition of Who Gives A Book? Mag in the coming weeks with future plans for it to be showcased via a website and have a printed copy in the long-term.

In the build-up to their first edition, the trio were interviewed by the Northern Voices podcast, which is run by writer Jen Bowden, who connects with writers, publishers and storytellers across the north. The episode is set to be released on Thursday 30 July.

The trio have been supported by �������� lecturers Professor Caroline Magennis and Dr Jane Kilby. The latter was the supervisor for all three on their master’s and has connected them with current students on the course, with the hope that their work will be able to published in future edition of Who Gives A Book? Mag.

Elizabeth added: “Producing this e-magazine has been really nice because it’s seen us all put our degree into use.”

The e-magazine will be available to access via its Instagram page, which can be found at the handle @whogivesabookmag.