handmade beauty
inside the world of small press publishing
By: Alyssa Ratledge
Issue date: 11/15/07 Section: Features
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Providence boasts a surprising number of independent publishing firms called small presses, which, unlike the "Big Three" houses in New York, focus on one particular subset of the publishing world. This week Post- spoke with graduate student Roxanne Carter of the Literary Arts department who runs Persephassa, a small press focusing on high-quality, handmade publications. Rather than focusing on marketing and mass production of books, Persephassa views books as works of art. Carter creates each book entirely by hand, from the individually printed covers and crisp Gill Sans text to gingerly folded pages and hand-sewn bindings. Carter commented on the state of small presses, the impact of the internet and the lost art of aesthetics in publishing.
Post-: A small press is generally defined by its annual revenue or by the number of titles it publishes. As an owner of a self-described small press, how would you define it?
Carter: Those are good criteria, but I think the defining characteristic of many small presses is specialization. I came to small press because I thought that most houses were just photocopying works, losing sight of classically aesthetic qualities of a book. I wanted to focus on small editions of books, to make them myself and make them personal - something finer than the average paperback. Small presses are not concerned with mass output but with quality.
How did you get your start in small press?
I used to work in a rare book library, and in dealing with special collections I gained a great appreciation for old books. Books used to be constructed as objects of beauty, to be original and individual, but now they're simply photocopied for mass production. That seemed quite tragic to me. I wanted to restore the beauty of books that were handmade.
How has the internet changed small press? Do you do most of your business on the internet?
I began writing for online magazines and journals, especially perzinesMSOfficeMSOffice, and many of the collections I've published have included bloggers and other online writers. It can be a challenge to transition something from the web to book form because of how different the format is, but Persephassa is really one of the only outlets trying it. Besides just writers, though, the Internet is a great tool for finding like-minded people. There's a whole community for those who create handmade books, and many of my contacts have been made online. I've also given live readings and sold books at independent bookstores in Salem and Baltimore, as well as at Craftland, an annual craft sale here in Providence.
Post-: A small press is generally defined by its annual revenue or by the number of titles it publishes. As an owner of a self-described small press, how would you define it?
Carter: Those are good criteria, but I think the defining characteristic of many small presses is specialization. I came to small press because I thought that most houses were just photocopying works, losing sight of classically aesthetic qualities of a book. I wanted to focus on small editions of books, to make them myself and make them personal - something finer than the average paperback. Small presses are not concerned with mass output but with quality.
How did you get your start in small press?
I used to work in a rare book library, and in dealing with special collections I gained a great appreciation for old books. Books used to be constructed as objects of beauty, to be original and individual, but now they're simply photocopied for mass production. That seemed quite tragic to me. I wanted to restore the beauty of books that were handmade.
How has the internet changed small press? Do you do most of your business on the internet?
I began writing for online magazines and journals, especially perzinesMSOfficeMSOffice, and many of the collections I've published have included bloggers and other online writers. It can be a challenge to transition something from the web to book form because of how different the format is, but Persephassa is really one of the only outlets trying it. Besides just writers, though, the Internet is a great tool for finding like-minded people. There's a whole community for those who create handmade books, and many of my contacts have been made online. I've also given live readings and sold books at independent bookstores in Salem and Baltimore, as well as at Craftland, an annual craft sale here in Providence.