Ishbelle Bee is an author & poet of fairy-tale horror and her work is inspired by folklore and mythology and is set in alternate historical eras. She is particularly interested in exploring themes of metamorphosis, power and fairy-tale foods.
Ishbelle's debut novel, The Singular and Extraordinary Tale of Mirror and Goliath and its sequel, The Contrary Tale of the Butterfly Girl, were published by Angry Robot in 2015.
Blue Ink is her first poetry chapbook.
THE GIRLS
In every fairy tale there is a princess and she is a sugar cube. she dissolves so quickly and leaves no trace. no outline of who she was.
All the girls all the girls all those girls
Your names imprinted in sugar sticks of rock
Kirsty, Nicole, Camille, Jennie.
Creatures of the Fee Fi Fo Fum you are nothing but the girls. the girls. open mouth, shut mouth open legs, shut legs.
How terrible to be glamourous and yet
disposable as a tissue.
I have known you forever and yet you are instantly forgettable
You are all the same girl with different coloured eyes. different coloured cunts. You are the same. doll heads on a factory line –
Porn things!
Paper chain princesses
Pull off a head and stick it on another
No one would fucking notice.