Thirty West Newsletter - September 2024
Anticipating autumn, new faces, and practicing gratitude
Summer hours have ended.
Hi, it’s Josh. It is time to clock out of the historic summer of 2024. Aside from hosting open submissions and managing 2 interns, Thirty West published 4 books and featured in or hosted 7 events this summer. I cannot vouch for everyone else on the masthead, but wow! I am tired. This is good, though, because it allows others to shine and fill in the gaps. Maddy Brozusky will take over most of this newsletter.
August hosted one of Thirty West's most ambitious events: Thirty West Day. After months of preparation, organization, and advertising, August 10th finally came. A warm, and overcast day in Easton Pennsylvania, brought nearly sixty community members through the doors of their local Barnes and Noble. Festivities included readings from some of Thirty West’s most prominent authors, from locals like “Late Nights at Full Moon Records”’ author Sarah Edmonds, to Seattle resident, Ross McMeekin, of “Below the Falls” fame.
A variety of panels brought out the best Thirty West had to offer, with an incredibly informative How-To-Guide on starting and maintaining a literary magazine, an insightful and reflective writing workshop centering on Haiku and Ghazal, and a survey of “The Cube”: an archive of Thirty West relics and chapbooks kept pristine by Editor and Chief, Josh Dale. The highlight of the evening was PitchFest. The event involved just under a dozen submissions being read aloud by myself to a panel of selective judges with the final winner being chosen by audience participation. Our PitchFest Winner, Tim Lynch, will be featured on AfterImages in just a few days.
Overall, Thirty West Day was a smashing success, in an era of isolation it was a transcendent experience to be surrounded by writers, readers, and literary lovers from all walks of life for a single day of coming together over a shared passion for indie publishing. We would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude to our readers: Ross McMeekin, Sarah Edmonds, Jessica Bonder, Chealse Stickle, Adam Gianforcaro, and Alison Lubar; our supporting staff: Jen Brady, Mr. Robert Dale, and Ethan Briggs; and our accommodating and kind hosts at Barnes and Noble Bethlehem.
If you missed out on the festivities, fret not! You can celebrate with the Thirty West crew at the Collingswood Book Fair (October 5th, 2024) and Easton Book Fair (October 20th, 2024.) We hope to see you there!
One last surprise. Introducing our newest Autumn ‘24 intern, Jules Smith. You will see more from her soon and we’re thrilled to have her as part of the team.
Meet Our Intern
Jules Smith is a writer, editor, photographer, and graphic designer based in Houston, TX. She is in the final semester of her bachelor's degree with honors at the University of Houston, after which she hopes to write, edit, or possibly teach. When she's not reading or writing, you can find her at a coffee shop with a cappuccino, somewhere making a playlist or Pinterest board, or driving the highway and listening to music.
Upcoming Release
From the author of Stone Fruit (Glass Poetry Press, 2021), Gardner Dorton illuminates his debut poetry collection, If I Were God I Would Also Start With Light. Poems in this collection are featured in Rattle, Homology Lit, HAD, Olney, Glass, and others.
LIMITED EDITION: Never before seen signed broadside + book package.
“The world
is not a caretaker,
not ready to hold
all things falling. Not a lover,
ready to stroke our napes
during a migraine."
from “Eating Over the Trashcan”, a poem in IF I WERE GOD I WOULD ALSO START WITH LIGHT
Afterimages in September
The Afterimages schedule for September is live. Take a look at our CNF-heavy August and prepare for more fiction—including the PitchFest winner—a new serial, and book reviews.
Extra Bits
Kristin Tenor’s debut chapbook, THIS IS HOW THEY MOURN, will be available for presale this month. The 8th Wavelengths Contest winner, we’re excited to publish such prolific fiction with you this October. Keep your eyes open for presale information.
TW is preparing for two book fairs this autumn. Collingswood Book Festival & Easton Book Festival; we have you in our sights. Come out and say hello at our table. Just look for the road sign.
Our readers and editors are hard at work reading and developing our 2025 & 2026 catalogs. It was a record submission period and this takes a lot of time. We plan to respond to all submissions. Thank you for your patience.
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