Friday, February 29, 2008

Jonathan Messinger on the State of Chicago Small Press Publishing

In the meantime, more light continues to peek over the horizon. Already in 2008 we’ve seen the launch of two literary magazines, the creative-nonfiction journal Paper & Carriages and the fiction and poetry mag The Bruiser Review. That last one is particularly interesting, as it explicitly intends to capture the current literary culture in Chicago, which is very much dominated by the explosion of reading series over the past few years. Without much publishing in town, writers have taken to the stage to find an audience. The poetry scene melds those worlds most successfully, with numerous chapbook presses thriving, and feminist publishers Switchback Books and Dancing Girl Press garnering national attention.

With more writers in Chicago taking to the stage, we’re glad to see more editors trying to get them on the page and the sleeping giant of the City suddenly rubbing the crust from its eyes, it might just become fashionable to be in publishing.

Read the rest of the article.

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