Poetry

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Literary Hub Set To Launch April 8th

Utagawa Hiroshige’s The Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō (1848), courtesy of the Public Domain Review

Literary Hub, a website which will gather literary content from across the internet and combine in one place, is set to launch on April 8th. Emily Firetog, the managing editor of the site, spoke to Augury about the new website and its goals.

Augury: How did you get involved with Lit Hub? Do you have a particular role within the organization?

Emily: There is a small daily team at Lit Hub: editor in chief Jonny Diamond, managing editor (me) and assistant editor Blair Beusman. We have a part time assistant editor Ben Philippe, six contributing editors (Roxane Gay, Alexander Chee, Rebecca Wolff, Adam Fitzgerald, Ashley Ford, and Oscar Villalon), and John Freeman is our executive editor/features editor.

A: What is Lit Hub’s mission? How does it see itself within the literary community?

E: Lit Hub is investing in the future of literary culture and its readers. It’s a site designed to be a destination for readers to discover the very best literary content on the web. Our partners include large publishers, small presses, university presses, print and digital journals, bookstores, and nonprofits, because we want to be inclusive, reflecting the reality of literary publishing today.

A: What sorts of things does Lit Hub have planned for the future? (Do you envision any events or readings?)

E: We’re a website. We’re going to focus on bringing the best content to readers every day.

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PEN World Voices Festival 2015 Announced

A.J. Bormeester’s Nova Totius Terrarum Orbis Tabula (1684), courtesy of the Public Domain Review

The dates and theme for the 11th annual PEN World Voices Festival have recently been announced. From May 4th through May 10th, 100 writers from various countries will come together in NYC to celebrate literature “On Africa.” The 2015 program, co-curated by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, seeks to make heard the voices of contemporary African artists. Among the writers being featured are Teju Cole, Edwidge Danticat, Mona Eltahawy, and Alain Mabanckou.

PEN is an international organization dedicated to protecting free expression for writers and expanding a worldwide literary community. Each Spring, they hold their World Voices Festival, chaired by Salman Rushdie, to exhibit the works of writers cross-culturally and to “celebrate the written word.” To learn about or get involved with PEN, explore their website.

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Federal Dust Holds Twelfth Poetry Reading

Robert Thornton’s Temple of Flora (1807), courtesy of the Public Domain Review

The Federal Dust Reading Series is holding its twelfth poetry reading on March 27th. Hosted by Matthew Zingg, the event will take place at Litmore in Baltimore, Maryland. Poets being featured during this event include Paige Taggart, Niina Pollari, Michael Morse, and Will Schutt.

Paige Taggart’s poems have been published by Augury friend Joe Pan‘s Brooklyn Arts Press. Joe Pan’s poetry collection is forthcoming from Augury in 2015.

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Finalists For Lambda Literary Awards Announced

From Baude Cordier’s “Belle, bonne, sage” (1350-1400), courtesy of the Public Domain Review

The finalists for the 27th annual Lambda Literary Awards have been announced. The Lambda Literary Awards honor the best LBGTQ literature of the year in 24 categories, including fiction, poetry, and nonfiction. Among the nominees for 2015 is Augury friend Shelly Oria. Other noteworthy finalists include Ana Castillo, Tom Spanbauer, Danez Smith, Lenelle Moïse, and La JohnJoseph. The winners will be declared at the awards ceremony on Monday, June 1st in New York City.

For the complete list of finalists and their works, visit the Lambda Literary Awards website.

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Joe Pan To Lead Brooklyn Poets’ Yawp

From Shin-Bijutsukai (1901-1902), courtesy of the Public Domain Review

Augury author Joe Pan will be leading Brooklyn Poets‘ Yawp on March 9th. A monthly event, Yawp consists of a writing workshop at 7 PM, followed by an open mic night at 8. The primary focus for this month’s Yawp will be the evolution of poetry throughout the writing process. It will take place at 61 Local, and admission is $5 for nonmembers.

To learn more about Yawp, visit the Brooklyn Poets website.

Joe Pan’s book, Hiccups, or Autobiomythography II, is forthcoming from Augury Books in 2015.

More on Joe Pan

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"Pick-Your-Price" Sale at Brooklyn Arts Press

From Snowflakes: a Chapter from the Book of Nature (1863), courtesy of the Public Domain Review

Effective until March 7th, Brooklyn Arts Press is holding a “Pick-Your-Price” sale on Noah Eli Gordon‘s The Word Kingdom in the Word Kingdom. This deal allows book buyers to purchase one copy of Gordon’s book at the price of their choosing (plus $5 for shipping). Brooklyn Arts Press is an independent publishing house dedicated to publishing the poetry, fiction, and nonfiction of upcoming artists. Joe Pan, their managing editor and publisher, has a collection of poetry forthcoming from Augury in 2015.

For more on the “Pick-Your-Price” sale, visit their site.

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Pen & Brush Calls for eBook Submissions

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A detail from 53 Stations of the Tōkaidō as Potted Landscapes (1848), courtesy of the Public Domain Review

 

Pen & Brush is currently accepting submissions of literary fiction and poetry, both short and long form, to be published on their website and/or in eBook format through their imprint, P&B Books. Pen & Brush is a 120-year old nonprofit dedicated to supporting women-identified artists and writers. Submissions are currently being accepted on a rolling, open basis, and will be judged by a rotating pool of literary arts curators. Their hope is to give exposure to writers who might otherwise have difficulty being recognized. For more information, including submission guidelines and legal details, see Pen & Brush’s site.

Augury’s own Kate Angus has recently joined Pen & Brush as a literary arts curator. Read an interview between her and P&B’s executive director, Janice Sands, on the Huffington Post.

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No, Dear/Small Anchors Press Chapbook Contest: Deadline Approaching

a photo from ‘Transit of Venus’ (1882), courtesy of the Public Domain Review

Brooklyn-based poetry journal No, Dear and Small Anchors Press are currently accepting five-to-twenty page submissions to their Poetry Chapbook Contest. The contest is open to writers currently residing in New York City, and a single winner will receive limited edition chapbook publication in 2015, as well as an additional $200 prize. The deadline is March 2nd; only a few days left to submit! See No, Dear‘s site for details.

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Randall Horton Featured on Poetry Society of America

Image from James C. Watson’s A Popular Treatise on Comets, courtesy of the Public Domain Review

Randall Horton‘s poem “When Winter is a Transitional State” was recently featured on the Poetry Society of America‘s website. The Poetry Society of America is the oldest poetry organization in the country, and its mission is to foster an interest in poetry and to support poets nationwide. Horton discussed his thoughts on the poem:

I wanted to explore what an unconventional love looks like. To most of the outside world, this kind of love would seem abnormal. I worked within the freedom and constraint of the couplet form, going for the duality of thought within the speaker’s mind.”

To read the full poem and Horton’s commentary, click here.

Horton’s second memoir is forthcoming from Augury Books in 2015.

More on Randall Horton

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"A Book of Uncommon Prayer" Anthology Features Kate Angus, Alicia Jo Rabins

Augury Books’ founding editor, Kate Angus, will be featured in Outpost19‘s A Book of Uncommon Prayer, an anthology of “everyday invocations,” due out in May 2015. Angus appears alongside Alicia Jo Rabins, a recent winner of the APR/Honickman First Book Prize and reader for our offsite AWP event in 2014, as well as a myriad of other known talents, including Marie Howe, Bob Hicok, Leslie Jamison, Catherine Lacey, and Rick Moody. The anthology is edited by Matthew Vollmer, and all proceeds from book sales will go to 826 Valencia, a San Francisco-based non-profit organization that is dedicated to supporting creative and expository writing skills in students ages six to eighteen.

To preorder the anthology, see Outpost19’s site.