Thirty West Newsletter - October 2024
Fall festivals, Afterimages milestones, and thriving books.
Falling leaves and firewood.
Hello again from Josh’s desk. The desk travels in a car, outside under a tree, and wields food and beverage. A temporary home base. Nothing beats a well-made fire. It must breathe, it must feast, it must be kinetic. Sound familiar?
There is much to be excited about in the Thirty West realm. Lots of important memories were made with the press this year. Books that we champion and support are making their way around the world. Embracing positive futures is great, too.
Book festivals that have been long-awaited are here. The publication year is closing out with an amazing 2024 roster. The holidays will be here soon. Our team and authors have just the right books for you. Changes are coming and rest is needed. We got this. Your support spreads courage, and for that, is appreciated.
It is such a busy world. I implore you to reflect for a period. Or, you can set a goal to achieve. A private endeavor, a hobby, a relationship, whatever it may be. Kudos if reading and books are involved.
Here’s the newsletter. I wish you good health and success. Cheers, until next time.
Upcoming Release
Winner of the 8th Wavelengths Contest, This Is How They Mourn, is the debut flash fiction chapbook written by Kristin Tenor. Seventeen stories portray various shades of a Midwestern Gothic. Written with economical, yet powerful, prose, you shall mourn with these heartfelt characters long after reading the last page. Stories within have been featured in Best Microfiction 2024, Emerge, Flash Frog, X-R-A-Y, Wigleaf, and Bending Genres.
LIMITED EDITION: Saddle-stitching with hemp cord (30 copies)
PUBLICATION: October 25th, 2024 (10-25-24)
“Our family will always remember the summer I turned fifteen as the drowning summer—first my cousin, Joey, then my brother, Danny. One accidental, one trying to be the hero.”
from the self-titled story in THIS IS HOW WE MOURN
Praise for Kristin Tenor and THIS IS HOW THEY MOURN
“Unforgettable and gorgeously written, This is How They Mourn is an immersive and deeply moving collection by one of the best writers currently working in the very short form."
—Kathy Fish, author of Wild Life: Collected Works from 2003-2018.
“Vibrant both in sonic pleasure and imagery, Kristin Tenor’s lyrical writing jumps from each page, as the lone self comes to terms with the world."
—Robert Vaughan, author of ASKEW
"Kristin Tenor’s award-winning debut collection, This Is How They Mourn is infused with her creative DNA. (…) This collection speaks of how to mourn, but it’s also about how to live."
—Amy Barnes, author of Mother Figures and Child Craft
“Kristin Tenor writes with precision, showing the vast array of worlds that can be created in a small space—leading us to a universe of words and making us want to raise our hands and say hi."
—Shome Dasgupta, author of Tentacles Numbing and Atchafalaya Darling
New Release
Congratulations to Gardner Dorton’s debut poetry book, If I Were God I Would Also Start With Light. Now in its second printing, we hope you enjoy his poetry and read more. We are thrilled to see the successes of our poets.
Limited-edition broadsides are sold out, too. They are fun to produce and frame nicely. Good news is more copies of the book are on the way. Order from Thirty West directly, anywhere online, or at your local bookstore.
For locals, stop by our friends at Union Ave Books on October 10th for a poetry reading. Signed copies by Gardner will be available there. It will be a refreshing night of poetry, no doubt.
Union Ave Books is excited to present a Poetry Night, featuring Danita Dodson, William Woolfitt, Gardner Dorton, and Sarah Harshbarger. This event will take place on October 10th from 6-8pm at our bookstore. This is a free event. Please RSVP here.
Afterimages News
Congratulations to our Best of the Net nominees. This is the first cohort bearing the Afterimages namesake. We wish all of our contributors the best in their writing.
The Afterimages schedule for October is live. We are continuing a memoir from September, and featuring a couple of fiction pieces. Just in time for autumn. We are reading submissions for November and December. Peruse our guidelines and send us your prose.
Extra Bits
A few days until the Collingswood Book Festival. Easton Book Festival is in 1.5 weeks. Outdoor & indoors. Just look for the road sign and come over. We can’t wait to say hi.
We will finalize our upcoming roster soon. We appreciate your submissions and thank you for your patience.