Editor’s note: We have finished posting individual pieces from the Cycles issue on the blog & are capping off our record of the issue with this letter from the EIC, originally released March 20, 2025.

This is my first issue as EIC & it’s been a challenge. I’ve mostly followed the same processes as last issue, but this time I’m the one coordinating all the moving parts & making the final decisions. Before, I was simply supporting my best friend’s amazing project, but now everything feels heavier. There’s no degree of separation offered by Stef being at the helm of the masthead. & it doesn’t matter how many times she has told me I’m perfectly capable of handling this, I’ve always been a background person & have grown comfortable & accustomed to that. So, these months of transition & the process leading up to the issue has all felt strange, liminal, uncanny.
& in that, Cycles is a special issue to me because it represents something— a continuation, a follow-through even when the world seems inconceivably changed. & there is faith there, a step into the darkness as a new version, believing that we can still make something beautiful even if it’s no longer my best friend’s amazing project & has become my best effort to honor writing & art & the creative process that has always sustained me in hopes of supporting other writers & artists on a similar journey. Well, that’s the best I can conceptualize it at least — with all those superfluous words making my layout job more difficult. But I have always been an incredibly long-winded person when provoked, we can just blame the sun in gemini & moon in libra.
But despite the challenge of transition we remain a remarkable team — Stef Nunez remains on board as creative consultant, Mel Sherrer & Molly McGill as associate editors, Nicole Yurcaba as book reviewer, & Sadee Bee as art director. & if it wasn’t for the generosity & endless talent of these women this magazine would not exist. I am incredibly lucky to have such a great crew & especially want to thank Sadee & Molly for their work on this issue.
Though I’ve always been the free-spirited, DIY, joke-of -all trades nerd of the crew, I remain committed to our initial mission. Sage Cigarettes Magazine has always been a safe place for marginalized voices & an advocate for justice. We remain in solidarity with the people of Palestine & encourage readers to support Operation Olive Branch, linktr.ee/opolivebranch. & again, want to direct our readers to our own Nicole Yurcaba (@NYurtsaba on Twitter & Insta) who is a strong advocate for the Ukrainian people & often posts opportunities to support those affected by the war.
Additionally, as we continue into an unprecedented era of history in the US, I want to encourage everyone I can to act with compassion within their communities & participate in mutual aid. In coming years, I suspect we are going to see unhinged levels of government austerity resulting in rampant poverty & disenfranchisement. If you can help, please do. If you need help, please reach out to those around you. I will always do my best to help where I can, I hope you all will as well.
Empathy is the most connective of human emotions & art is the most connective medium of human emotion. At Sage Cigarettes Magazine, we remain in deep gratitude & service to both.
With love,
LE Francis
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