Hello and happy November! Check out the newsletter to see how we at Blue Cactus Press have been working hard to keep bringing you incredible works.
Monthly Newsletter
Happy November! This past month has been one for the history books. While our publisher is away on maternity leave, we have been working hard to keep bringing you incredible writing by incredible people. Our Kickstarter campaign is live, our readings are recorded, and that's only the beginning of what we have in store for the press as the end of the year draws closer. Go to bluecactuspress.com for more info on everything you see below, and drop a few books in your cart while you're there!
New Kickstarter Campaign:
Moss Covered Claws by Jonah Barrett
If you follow any of our socialmedia, you might have noticed that we've launched our very first Kickstarter campaign for an upcoming release, Moss Covered Claws!
This debut short story collection from fantasy author Jonah Barrett is filled with tales of anxiety-feeding demons, anti-fascists that travel dimensions, and vengeful spirits of dead seabirds. Barrett mashes dreams and reality together in ten macabre tales of speculative fiction, while offering a fresh and cheeky voice to Queer fiction and fantasy. Moss Covered Claws is set to release in March of 2021!
Head to our Kickstarter page now to support the book, especially because It's an "all or nothing" campaign, so we need to hit our financial goal or we won't receive any of the money! Every little bit counts, folks, and we appreciate any/all support.
*What's a Kickstarter? Great question - Kickstarter is a funding website that allows creative individuals or groups (like us) to raise money for our projects! Our Kickstarter page is doubling as a donations page and a way to preorder Barrett's book, all in one place.
About Jonah Barrett
Jonah Barrett is a queer filmmaker, writer, and multimedia artist. In addition to their debut short story collection, Moss Covered Claws, their work has been published in the Forest Avenue Press collections Dispatches From Anarres and City of Weird. Jonah has directed and written three feature films, a dozen-ish short films, and four web series—with their film work being presented at the Olympia Film Society, Northwest Film Forum, and Trans Stellar Film Festival. They usually find themself in old haunted buildings or overgrown swamps.
Because challenges for publishing a book within the world of small, local presses, invariably come down to two things: time and capital. We've got time (thanks, COVID-19), but as a small press, Blue Cactus Press is always looking for creative ways to make our capital stretch and get the most bang for our buck! One of the ways we can do that is by harnessing the power of pre-orders via book launch campaigns, like this one! We also wanted to launch this book through Kickstarter so we could harness the power of each of Barrett's artistic communities!
How You Can Contribute
Head to our project page to read about all the ways you can help contribute to the production of this book! Donate what you can, but the more you give, the more goodies you'll get! Our project page lists all the possible rewards for participation, including a signed copy of the book, free copies of other BCP releases, cool, hand-stamped monster notebooks, and members-only podcast episodes! The campaign will be live for the entire month of November.
What Else We're up To This Season
We're Still Accepting Submissions
We are still accepting submissions from Women of Color (gender non-conforming and women identifying individuals of Color included) for an anthology of non-fiction creative writing! For this collection, we are looking for works that address social and cultural issues faced in our community. We can't wait to see what you submit for this anthology set to be published in the Winter of 2021. Check out the submissions page on our website for more information!
Local papers are spreading the news about Terrain! Thanks to everyone at the Peninsula Daily News for sharing this lovely interview with Gina Hietpas. Take a few minutes to read the interview and learn about Hietpas' views on inspiration, the writing process, and the events and places that brought Terrain to life.
Upcoming Events & Podcast
The Prickly Pear Podcast Episode 15: Shin Yu Pai
Next week we're dropping a brand new podcast episode featuring Seattle artist Shin Yu Pai! In this episode of The Prickly Pear Podcast, we chat with Shin Yu about motherhood, the artistic process, and publishing and activism during pandemic times.
Shin Yu Pai is the author of several books including Ensō (Entre Rios Books, 2020), Aux Arcs (La Alameda, 2013), Adamantine (White Pine, 2010), Sightings(1913 Press, 2007), and Equivalence (La Alameda, 2003). From 2015 to 2017, she served as the fourth Poet Laureate of The City of Redmond, Washington. Her personal essays have appeared in CityArts, Tricycle, Seattle's Child, and YES! Magazine. She's been a Stranger Genius Award nominee in Literature and lives and works in Bitter Lake, Seattle. For more info, visit www.shinyupai.com.
Village 253 Handmade Market
The 6th Annual Handmade Market & Mingle is virtual this year! Join Blue Cactus Press at an online multi-vendor marketplace at the end of the month. The Market will be open from November 28 through December 8th. There will be an organized pickup location December 12th through the 21st. Support local business virtually this fall!
Learn more about BCP's upcoming titles and what we're up to on social media:
