SPARK Reviews

Spark Reviews

Spark Reviews are short 1,500 to 3,000-word reviews on any artistic production which the author finds personally and/or culturally significant. Reviews might explore books, poems, plays, films, television series, exhibitions, music, video games, or other forms of creative expression. The stance taken by reviewers may be favourable or unfavourable, or fall somewhere in between.

The purpose of Spark Reviews is to showcase the author's individual writing style and analytical skills. Reviewers are encouraged to write for a general audience and to take a slightly less formal approach to their subject than what is usually required of peer- reviewed academic articles. They may also choose to compare texts or a selection of pieces, structuring their review in whatever style suits them best.

Submitting your proposal

Submissions for Spark Reviews are open to current and former students of St Anne’s College. Proposals can be submitted anytime throughout the year to the Spark Reviews Editor, Brittany Hause, at brittany.hause@st-annes.ox.ac.uk. Individual submissions should not exceed two sentences and must give a clear indication of the themes and work(s) that the author would like to write about. Writers may submit more than one proposal.

Deadlines for Spark Review drafts do not run concurrently with the other sections of STAAR. Normally these deadlines are set for one month after the SR Editor has confirmed the topic and on an individual basis to fit around the author's academic and professional work. The final deadline for Spark Review proposals in 2022 is May 31st.

All reviews will be published online, with a small selection also appearing in the 2022 print edition of the journal. Spark Reviews for the 12th issue of STAAR, whether published in print or as online exclusives, will follow APA citation guidelines.

Firework Competition

Spark Reviews accepted for publication are automatically entered into the journal’s annual Firework Competition for the chance to win a small cash prize. The winner for 2022 will receive £100 and the runner-up £50.

For 2021, Augusta Nannerini took first place in the Firework Competition with "Bullshit Jobs: A Review." Julia Merican was runner-up with "Cosmopolitan Reveries: Elegy, Epicureanism and Exclusion in Zweig's The World of Yesterday."