Old Scratch Press (OSP) was formed as a way to help poets get their poetry out there. It is our hope that someday we will offer many opportunities for poets. Our first mission, though, was to see if we could publish the books of the group members, as a way to see if we could support each other, function well as a cohesive group, etc., before we took on other people and their poetry or short-form dreams.
And so the first OSP book has been released: Break in the Field by Ellis Elliott. Why is Ellis’ book first? She won the coin-toss, or, in our virtual case, the random-#-generator-toss.
However, that luck of the draw does not lesson the beauty of the book. It’s a beautiful book, and the poetry is accessible and so relatable. I have a daughter with a disability, and I found this, really, meditation on mothering and parenting, so moving and important. I also worked for years in group homes and etc. for people with disabilities, and the book really speaks to me because it humanizes people with disabilities, and, too often, their disabilities make them so unable to make good contact with those of us of average capabilities, that we never stop to imagine their needs or feelings or think that they even have desires. Ellis’ book tackles that notion of supplying the concept of being human from the outside in, to a person who can seem like an object more than a person. I struggled, in my years as a staff trainer, to help the staff I trained to come around to that more full view of the people we took care of, but it was a tough sell, sadly, to some of the staff. Ellis’ makes it something we don’t learn, but we feel and know in our bones. I love this book for that.
The cover is a photo of one of the dollhouses Ellis rehabs as one of her artistic outlets. On her blog she has a very lovely post explaining how she came to want to have that as her cover, and I think you’d enjoy that too. Ellis is also in process on a cozy mystery series, and I highly suggest you follow her on her very interesting blog, especially if you are an author, or an aspiring author, as she offers lots of writing tips.
I earned my MFA as a poet, something I never expected to get into when I decided to further study writing, and I’ve always really loved poetry (my own included…. lol) and I am so very happy that we can publish poetry. The book was put together by the Devil’s Party Press crew of two, but also proofread and dusted and cleaned by volunteers from the collective. There is no way at all, though, that I, or Dave and I, could have done it without all of the OSP members: Nadja, Ellis, Anthony, David, Ginny, Gabby, Janet, Alan, Morgan, and stalwart meeting leader, Robert, may the poetry gods bless him for always remembering to hit record, among other things. These folks are volunteering their time to show up to Saturday morning meetings, to take minutes (the ultimate sacrifice) at these meetings, to edit each others’ books, and working to promote each others’ books, and that is what every author needs, a team of supporters. Poets are not TikTok influencers, racking up 10,000 likes, but poetry is more important. I think that poetry makes the unexplainable able to be shared; that’s how I would sum it up. I’m not sure which of the members volunteered to do an edit and proofread for Ellis, but all of the members are helping OSP in general, to grow.
Back in 1989 when I was putting a poem and two dollar bills in an envelope with an SASE and sending it off in the mail, I almost never even found out if the poem had reached its destination, but when it did make it, I always received a request back, in my SASE, to please subscribe to the Zine. I never did, because I made about 60/week, and most of that went on bus fare, and, frankly, I didn’t care about other people’s poetry. I cared about mine. But, that was wrong. I mean, I couldn’t help the financial situation back then, and, though that hasn’t much changed now (lol), when I have a friend put out a poetry collection, or a poet I don’t know but admire puts out a new collection, I buy it. I usually buy two, actually, and give one as a gift. Without people doing that, poetry will fade from view, and we’ll lose something that is all magic. Magic is rare. Poetry is one way to hold magic.
The collective is going to curate the holiday/end-of-year issue of Instant Noodles, and choose the theme for next year’s issues, and we are in talks to see what other opportunities we can provide for poetry readers and writers, so follow us, and see what we bring to the world of poetry and short-form writing, and, if we make it. We could end up as a fabulous poetry cooperative, or as the modern, poetic version of the Donner Party, or anything in between. This is still an experiment. So far, I think we can feel quite proud, all of us in the group, of our first book.
And I am really excited for the next book too: White Noir, by Robert Fleming. It’s very different from Break in the Field, and I like the diversity of movement from one book to the next, and that our group has such variety of style. It is very exciting. White Noir should be up for pre-order in the coming months…. hopefully sooner than later, but there hasn’t been an author, from a single story or poem, to a whole book, who hasn’t had to be patient waiting for DPP to get caught up. 🙂 We appreciate the patience, and we hope you’ll follow along on the great experiment of OSP.
Thank you for supporting these wonderful authors, and independent publishing, and authors over 40, and late bloomers, and poetry, art, words as art…. It means so much to me.
Congratulations, Old Scratch Press, on a book successfully and collaboratively done.
Congratulation Ellis, on your wonderful book of poetry.
Thanks for reading everyone.
Love~
Dianne
OLD SCRATCH PRESS 