Keep your eyes here for a mini-book soon!
Rules and Regulations in Lamination Colony.
PERFECTLY BANAL: Postcards (throughout the book!):
A short story from the book:
The Champion of Forgetting
Here is a list of failures.
I was staying in a hotel room with some people. I didn’t know their names. I wasn’t their friend. Not the kind where you say hi my name’s and hi my name’s and then you call each other names.
Before I was staying in the hotel room I was walking down Market and they snatched me into their van so I was kidnapped.
What’s that called after you’re kidnapped. When you’re just staying in the hotel room.
There wasn’t tape on my mouth or chains. On my wrist or anything. You could walk around in it and watch television. You could go for ice so the door wasn’t locked. From the inside.
The first time I went for ice I had to knock to get back in. That was when we made up the idea to put a thing in the door when I went for ice. Or somebody else for something else. A shoe or ashtray.
One of the men slipped the metal chain from the wall between the door and the frame. That was the only chain unless it was a metal bar. The girl had failed the test anyway. It was a good hotel room. My first.
It wasn’t the only hotel room. Sometimes there were others. One at a time. It looked like the other ones we lived in. Two men a woman and me. Four. And yes there was sex.
Sometimes there was sex in the other hotel rooms. On either side of us unless we were on the end.
Sometimes when there was sex in another hotel room a man said a woman’s name or a woman said a man’s.
Sometimes in our hotel room a man said a woman’s name or the woman said a man’s. Sometimes when there was sex. Sometimes when there was not. I don’t know if it was the real names. Sometimes they were different. Sometimes they were the same which was not often. Or I don’t remember because I was the champion of forgetting.
When we got to the hotel room. The first time I got to the hotel room. After I got kidnapped. When I wasn’t kidnapped anymore. When there wasn’t tape on my mouth. When I was in the van there was tape on my mouth but not in the hotel room.
At first there was tape on my mouth and my wrists. That’s when the man who was our leader then said not to say my name. And the woman said better forget your name.
If you don’t say your name you don’t forget your name and you always want to say it. This is how I was for a while. When the tape was on my mouth. Sometimes I said my name because who even knows what you’re talking about with tape on your mouth. But when there wasn’t any more tape I bit my tongue. It hurts to bite your tongue.
When you forget your name you don’t bite your tongue. Why would you. You don’t want to say it and you don’t say it. If you do you don’t know because it’s forgotten. It’s suddenly somebody else’s and you’ve forgotten their’s too.
This is the way that it works.
One time when it was my turn to register for the hotel room. They give you cash from the box of cash and you say you would like a room for your name and give the man or woman at the desk the money they gave you and the man or woman gives you a key. A key is a symbol of a room to them.
I said I would like a room and the man. I don’t remember his name. The man behind the counter said what is your name. I didn’t remember my name because I had forgotten it. I gave him the money but he didn’t give me a key.
When I got back to the van the man who was our leader then. The leader gives you money from the cash box and says what hotel to drive to or what hotel you are driving to if you ask and whose turn it is to drive and who to kidnap and who’s turn it is to register for the hotel room. Also some of the sexual things. That time it was mine.
The leader said that it was a test and I had failed the test.
I almost never knew when I was getting tested. Especially when I was first kidnapped and for the time after that I don’t know what to call. An example of this is the first test. The first test they said was a test.
The first test. What I think of as the first test they did not say was a test. One of them said do you think she’s a screamer and another one said there’s only one way to find out. The one who said the second thing. She was the woman. She dug a little corner of the tape away from the skin of my face. Then she pulled off the whole tape.
I didn’t scream. The girl said see she didn’t scream but not that I had passed a test.
The first test that they said was a test. There was a needle and the needle went in my arm. I didn’t scream but that was not this test. Blood came out of my arm through the needle and filled up the tube of it.
While I was not screaming but there was still blood coming out I said what are you doing. The man who was doing it. The leader. He said it’s a test.
When the tube was full he gave it to the woman and the woman took it to the bathroom. I asked if the test was over but it was not. I got nervous about the test because some of it was happening in the bathroom where I couldn’t do anything about it and I didn’t know how much of it was happening where I was so I let him put a wad of cotton over the spot on my arm that the blood came out of and apply gentle pressure.
It felt good until the woman came out of the bathroom with a look on her face. The pressure became more than gentle for a second.
The woman said her blood is wrong and we can’t do sex to her right now.
The man let go of my arm and walked out of the hotel room. He forgot to leave a shoe in the door, so I went and did it for him. Then I took a nap for loss of blood or to forget about the failure.
There were more tests but they only admitted it sometimes. Only when I failed except once.
"Quentin Tarantino on short story juice. The violence and depravity
ride the surface, where I like them, and the heart is a lyrical heart.
Add to that creepy postcards with cryptic messages and this collection
attacks from all sides." —Jeff Parker, Author of Ovenman
April 2010! A girl masters the art of forgetting among kidney thieves. A motivational speaker skins his best friend to impress his wife. A man outlines the rules and regulations for sadistic childrearing. You’ve heard these people whispering in hallways, mumbling in diners, shouting in the apartment next door. In brilliantly strange set pieces that explode the boundaries of short fiction, Christian TeBordo locates the awe in the awful possibilities we could never have imagined.
Christian TeBordo has published three novels. This is his first collection of short fiction. He lives in Philadelphia. Read his blog at awfulpossibilities.com
NO REVIEWS TILL THE BOOK IS OUT. But here are nice words:
"Christian TeBordo shows that it is possible to be, simultaneously, a wise old soul and a crazed young terror."
—George Saunders
"The Awful Possibilities of Christian TeBordo put me in mind of
Quentin Tarantino on short story juice. The violence and depravity
ride the surface, where I like them, and the heart is a lyrical heart.
Add to that creepy postcards with cryptic messages and this collection
attacks from all sides."
—Jeff Parker, Author of Ovenman
"…the love child of Samuel Beckett and Dorothy Parker."
—Jerome Ludwig, the Chicago Reader
"Quentin Tarantino on short story juice. The violence and depravity
ride the surface, where I like them, and the heart is a lyrical heart.
Add to that creepy postcards with cryptic messages and this collection
attacks from all sides." —Jeff Parker, Author of Ovenman
April 2010! A girl masters the art of forgetting among kidney thieves. A motivational speaker skins his best friend to impress his wife. A man outlines the rules and regulations for sadistic childrearing. You’ve heard these people whispering in hallways, mumbling in diners, shouting in the apartment next door. In brilliantly strange set pieces that explode the boundaries of short fiction, Christian TeBordo locates the awe in the awful possibilities we could never have imagined.
Christian TeBordo has published three novels. This is his first collection of short fiction. He lives in Philadelphia. Read his blog at awfulpossibilities.com
Wow, long time no blog, eh? I guess we're going to blame hibernation. Birds do that, you know.
Most birds. Why is it that cardinals only appear when it's snowing? Not after, or before, but while it's snowing? It's disturbingly Dickensian. But we're asking, seriously. First (or funniest) person to answer wins the featherproof eBook of your choice. Take that, romantic winter scenery. (Just @ reply to featherproof on twitter. Contest ends Jan. 15.)
Might we suggest Scorch Atlas, which 3:AM Magazine named 2009 Novel of the Year. Or perhaps AM/PM, by Amelia Gray, now officially a genius.
Anticipating the long winter, we've buried some delicious stuff that we plan to dig up in 2010. First in the spring, The Awful Possibilities by Christian TeBordo promises to fill your mind full of twisty. You can peek at the cover on our site now. In the fall look out for Lindsay Hunter and Patrick Somerville. It's going to be a killer year.
Also, if you've been checking your TripleQuick App as often as your Facebook and Twitter, we'll have relief for you soon. Next week look for new super shorts from Natalie Edwards, Gretchen Kalwinski, Brian Costello, and other awesomes.
Our re-emergence from hibernation is not just figurative. So come hang out. Zach has some prints from 'boring boring' up at the Dittmar Gallery now.
Sunday night marks the first Show 'n Tell Show of the new year, showcasing some fine book-makers. The Show 'nTellShow is a late night-style show where the guests are the city's most dynamic designers, photographers, illustrators and poster-makers. They each present a single project in a lively evening full of drinks, laughs and design. The show is hosted by designers Michael Renaud and featherproofer Zach Dodson. But they would never show without SpokesMom, the spokesmodel that is also your mom. She provides clueless commentary and blind encouragement to the guests. Newcity just named her the Best Comic-Relief Sidekick in Chicago!
But the best part of the show are the show offs. The next show is our best yet. Guests include:
The details: January 10th, 8pm Schuba's 3159 N Southport Chicago, IL ALWAYS FREE
Then, on Tuesday, Jan. 12, go see Quickies! They have a really great lineup this month, and a new format. Also, they rule the school.
On Thursday, Opium's Literary Death Match rolls back into town. We're sending our prize fighter James Kennedy down to bloody some knuckles. If you've ever seen him read, you know that for James, it's always a Death Match, and if there are children in the audience he will scream wordy insults at them. This is not a joke. Fists will fly. Come cheer him on:
When: Doors at 7, show at 7:30, afterparty: downstairs at 9) Where: Upstairs atFizz, 3220 North Lincoln Avenue (map) Cost:$10 (includes a free copy of Opium9, cover price of $12)
We've been talking it up, and now it's finally here. Featherproof Books' most whiz-bangy thing-a-ma-jig yet. The TripleQuick Fiction iPhone app.
What's that you ask? Well, simply put: stories by some of today's most exciting young writers delivered straight to your iPhone or IPod touch. With the TripleQuick Fiction app you can download new stories in seconds and read them on the go, wherever you are.
And we're not calling it TripleQuick just cause we like how it rolls off the tongue. These short-shorts are only 333 words long. That's just 3 iPhone screens. You can read one in 3 minutes or less. They were written with the mobile attention span in mind. All the featherproof goodness you've come to know from our online downloadable mini-books, in a third of the time.
We've got some great writers included with the app's launch, including web favorites like Shane Jones, Matt Bell and Michael Kimball. There are featherproof novelists like Blake Butler, Amelia Gray, Lindsay Hunter and Patrick Somerville flourishing within the new form. You've never seen so few words pushed to such limits. Paul Fattaruso's story uses only the 100 most common words in the English language. There are some sample stories on the website: TripleQuick.com
Another exciting feature of TripleQuick is the ability to compose and submit your own stories, right on the iPhone. Those with writerly inclination can just type in three screens of their best work, type in a bio, even take an author photo using the iPhone's camera, and submit the story to the featherproof editors. When inspiration strikes, don't go hunting for a paper and pen, just send it to us, on the double. Or rather, on the triple.
We're pleased to announce Mary Hamilton, co-host of the awesome Chicago reading series Quickies!, is our TripleQuick editor. If there's one thing she knows, it's flash fiction. And she has zero tolerance for boring. So your iPhone stories are in good hands.
Sure you can get all sorts of eBooks and stories on your mobile device these days, but let's go over what makes the TripleQuick Fiction app from featherproof exceptional:
- A short-short form made just for reading on the go - Exciting young talent from rising lit stars and underground web geniuses - New stories all the time, when YOU want them - A rating system, allowing you to find the best stories we've got - A submission feature allowing you to compose and upload your own stories for publication - The high quality content that distinguishes featherproof books So, what more could you want? Oh yeah, an iPhone. Well now you have the best excuse yet: great literature compressed for the digital age.
TripleQuick Fiction is available in the iTunes app store NOW! Submissions are open to users of the app. And web-wide submissions will open shortly.
Let us know what you think! We're really excited about this one!
Chicago lost the Olympics. And we here at featherproof are going to personally make up for it by holding spectacle events of our own. Like, next week.
First up: book-eating at the Chicago release party for SCORCH ATLAS by strong man Blake Butler. This full length fiction debut has received piles of praise, and Blake is making his way to Chicago for a night of reading, celebration, and general debauchery.
Amelia Gray, author of AM/PM, will also fly in to join him. And if you saw, heard rumors about, or viewed pictures from this summer's Dollar Store Super Tour you know that when these two get together to read, shit goes down. Like fortune-tellin, hair-humpin, baby-eating, bicycle birthday shit. These two will be joined by the power of Sam Pink and Kathryn Regina. Who will win the gold medal for crazy? We don't know because by then we'll be rocking out to Tiger Bones and DJ Butch Cassidy. So bring your crazy flags and your baby flasks. This ain't your mom's book club reading.
Scorch Atlas Release Party:
When: Monday, 10/12, 7pm
Where: No Coast Collective
1500 W. 17th St, Chicago
Cost: FREE!
Remember the bender that was this summer's Dollar Store Super Tour? What did we learn? DON'T STOP DRINKING. That's right, we're going to slide from late night Monday right into more whiskey decisions on Tuesday night. You're gonna have to call in. Get your shift covered now. Mary Hamilton did. Check it:
Each reader has five minutes to read a complete work of prose. No poetry. No excerpts. No cheating.
Tuesday, October 13 at the Innertown Pub in Chicago (1935 W Thomas). 7:30 in the PM.
featuring: Beth Wylder, Ben Tanzer, Richard Thomas, Tim Racine, Casey Bye, Amelia Gray, Aaron Burch, Blake Butler, Jac Jemc, Caroline Picard, Zach Dodson (and also, prizes).
In fact Lindsay and Amelia just won a round of doubles over at: Three Guys One Book! They said this: "Lindsay Hunter writes like a Yeah, Yeah, Yeah's song", and then also, this: "Amelia Gray is already operating like a seasoned pro. (AM/PM is a) deceptively big book wrapped in a small package."
Also, Vroman thinks we're cool. We think they are cool too. Kind internet words have given our team a continual pep talk. We're also training for our newest event: the TripleQuick iPhone app. Coming very very soon. At the moment we're still high from this victory:
Scorch Atlas remixes by: Brian Evenson, Matt Bell, Elizabeth Ellen, Chris Higgs (who remixed the whole book by erasure), Matthew Simmons, Marcus Whale, J.A. Tyler, Catherine Lacey, Andrew Borgstrom, John Madera, and Jon Cone.
Hope to see you on the victory lap. We've got a high-five with your name on it.
We're pleased to announce that it's all come true. Here's the debut eBook title for our newest project: featherproof remixes. Those are short story collections wherein awesome writers rearrange, rewrite, redefine and reimagine a work just as it’s getting out into the world. We're publishing each remix as an ebook, downloadable to your computer or mobile device. We’ve kicked it off with Blake Butler’s Scorch Atlas, our fall title, because it seems so perfect for the project.
Here's what happened. A boatload of awesome writers downloaded Blake's story "Tour of the Drowned Neighborhood," and took it apart. Some wrote a story using just a few sentences, some rearranged all of the sentences, some deleted bits of the entire book to create a completely new story. Nick Meccia remixed the design into a pure froth of crazy. We asked other writers to try their hand at the game, and even held an open contest. Blake was the judge, and the winning story was remixed by Krammer Abrahams. Congrats Krammer!
But he's not the only one winning a prize. This puppy is free for you to download here and now, so dive in to a remixed Scorch Atlas, aka:
Scorch Atlas remixes by: Brian Evenson, Matt Bell, Elizabeth Ellen, Chris Higgs (who remixed the whole book by erasure), Matthew Simmons, Marcus Whale, J.A. Tyler, Catherine Lacey, Andrew Borgstrom, John Madera, and Jon Cone.
This eBook is free! Download it now to read on your computer or portable reading gadget.
If you like the book, and
you'd like to support our small press, feel free to donate whatever you see fit by use of the
paypal donation button below:
In other news, the latest edition of the Ninth Letter podcast, features a reading of 'The Gown from Mother's Stomach' (a story in Scorch Atlas) spoken by Jennifer Bradford.
Also, Vroman thinks we're cool. We think they are cool too. We don't have a list of 5 awesome bookstores, but if we did, they'd be on it.
And keep your eyeballs peeled for the TripleQuick iPhone app, coming very very soon.
Hey gang, nice to see you here. SO. You may have noticed, our little shopping cart went away. We were being flooded with mail orders, and our warehouse couldn't keep up. We've decided to kick it out to Powell's, the pros when it comes to mailing you books. In honor of that we're staging:
A LITTLE CONTEST.
"Have you read AM/PM? Cleverest review on Powells.com or Amazon.com
in the next 48 hours wins the featherproof novel of your choice!"
You have 48 hours from now, 9/22, 4pm, to do it. So do it!
Also, exciting news:
We are just wetting ourselves about the Chicago release party for SCORCH ATLAS by Atlanta-based writer, book-eater, and internet destroyer, Blake Butler. This full length fiction debut has received piles of praise, and Blake is making his way to his publisher's hometown for a night of reading, celebration, and general debauchery.
Amelia Gray, author of AM/PM, will join him. And if you saw, heard rumors about, or viewed pictures from this summer's Dollar Store Super Tour you know that when these two get together to read, shit goes down. Like fortune-tellin, hair-humpin, baby-eating, bicycle birthday shit. These two will be joined by the power of Sam Pink and Kathryn Regina. And then we'll all rock out. So bring your pig mask. This ain't your mom's book club reading.
Scorch Atlas Release Party:
When: Monday, 10/12, 7pm
Where: No Coast Collective
1500 W. 17th St, Chicago
Cost: FREE!
In brilliantly strange stories that explode the boundaries of short fiction, Christian TeBordo locates the awe in the awful possibilities we could have never imagined.
Coming April 2010! A girl masters the art of forgetting among kidney thieves. A motivational speaker skins his best friend to impress his wife. A man outlines the rules and regulations for sadistic childrearing. You’ve heard these people whispering in hallways, mumbling in diners, shouting in the apartment next door. In nine brilliantly strange set pieces that explode the boundaries of short fiction, The Awful Possibilities will twist you in nine awe-inspiring directions.
Christian TeBordo has published three novels. This is his first collection of short fiction. He lives in Philadelphia. Read his blog at awfulpossibilities.com
This book was originally part of a little experiment we were cooking up, called paper egg. But we realized this book needs to reach everyone who has eyes. And our best chance is with our full distribution, so we're doing it proper. If you ordered this book via paper egg, you'll still get it, head over to papereggbooks.com to find out how to lock that down.
The great news is you'll be able to see Christian read in person, with Blake Butler, who's out on tour in support of Scorch Atlas, which is a hot cake. Blake reads tonight in New Jersey, tomorrow in Birmingham, then watch out: Sunday in Philadelphia, with Christian TeBordo. Click on events for all the info. These readings will melt your face off. If they don't just approach Blake afterwards, and he will personally melt your face off.
HEY: Exciting times we're living in.
Well, it only came out yesterday, but already people are crawling all over themselves for Scorch Atlas. Check out the kind words that are filling up the internet:
"Butler is an original force who is fearless with form... The design is appropriately disarming, an apt part of the overall barrage by this inventive and deeply promising young author." —Time Out New York
"Scorch Atlas doesn't make its point with narrative arc or character development or paragraphs or even the lovely, terrible sentences. Instead, it's the heaping of words — mauled bubbled clods knotted clogged rot foam mold growth cragged bugged curdle boils lumps ooze gunk stung and on and on — that press on you, as if you were being buried, drowned, dissolved, as if you were about to swallow your tongue." —The Boston Phoenix
"Scorch Atlas is a fine example of experiment with purpose, of world building, of decadent, detailed and innovative writing. This is a book that should be read, and widely." —Pank Magazine
"Blake Butler has been doing great work... I've been looking around at people who publish smaller more personal books, things outside the mainstream, and totally original. Blake's one of these people. " —Three Guys One Book
"Butler excels at forcing the familiar through the a sieve of strange until it is stripped clean of its everyday banality, until it is once again made so fresh you can smell the decay it contains, until you can taste the despair that threatens to destroy not just his characters but also the dangerous worlds they inhabit." —Matt Bell
Get it the cheapest and specialist from us!
Keep your eye here for the results of the Scorch Atlas remix contest!
Prefer a broken spine?
JUST ONE DAY LEFT! To pre-order Scorch Atlas. Why would you want to do that? Now is your chance to get the limited 'edition' Scorch, i.e. the one that is beaten, kicked, tossed, razed, burnt, smushed, peppered, blasted, dinged, bbq'd, scraped and generally pulverized. Also, strangely enough, still perfectly readable.
Over here at featherproof we have minced the words of Blake Butler in an extra special way. The technique was perfected in Atlanta, outside The Dollar Store tour van, when we were all 8 days drunk. One more time, this is what it feels like:
Today is that last day to order your mangled copy. After this, you'll have to do it yourself.
Don't forget to indicate in the comments section of your order whether you'd prefer a destroyed copy or a pretty one. Last chance, sucka.
Also, go see Amelia Gray read at Powell's tonight!
Suzanne Burns and Amelia Gray
Four-time Pushcart Prize nominee Suzanne Burns's latest poetry collection, Misfits and Other Heroes (Dzanc Books), reveals "a keen observer of the wretched and wonderful human creature" (Gina Ochsner, author of People I Wanted to Be). An intermittent love story as seen through a darkly comic lens, Amelia Gray's AM/PM (Featherproof Books) mixes poetry and prose, humor and hubris to create a truly original work of fiction.
Monday, August 3rd @ 7:30pm
Powell's City of Books on Burnside
1005 W Burnside (800) 878-7323
We all have a little sad face over here because The Dollar Store Summer tour is over. And going back to real life is hard. It was fun, it was wild. There is video evidence. For example, check this clip out of Blake Butler and his new book, Scorch Atlas.
A bunch of drunk writers, you might say. And you wouldn't be wrong. But here's the rub: we're actually working. That's right, we need to destroy copies of Scorch Atlas because the text itself demands such action, not to mention that we've promised hand-destroyed copies to everyone who pre-orders the book. It's true. SCORCH ATLAS IS ON PRE-SALE NOW! And you can get a copy that looks like it has been through exactly what the book describes. A lot of fucked-up shit.
Blake Butler is so excited he has decided to eat an entire copy, one page a day. This is also not a joke. Again, I refer you to the video evidence (more of which will be accumulating at Blake's blog).
Want your own bit of book wildness? Miss the D-Store crew? Then we've got some funs for you. In Chicago, this Tuesday, check out Aaron Burch, the Dollar Store's own Snack Pack, launching an awesome issue of the awesome Hobart with some great writers. Bookcellar, 6pm. Then, next Friday is the all-powerful Printers' Ball, where Quickies Queens, and D-Store vets Mary Hamilton and Lindsay Hunter will be presiding over the Blood Sport of writing events. We'll be hosting a mini-book folding table. Check that. If you're in Oregon in the next week, you can see The Dollar Store's Yaky Pony, Amelia Gray, in Portland or Eugene. Check her blog for details. She and The Dollar Store's principal Zach Dodson will be hanging out at this. And maybe in some hot springs.
When it comes to these events, you don't need to hesitate or second guess, because we've proved how much fun featherproof
books can be. The Dollar Store Summer
Tour of Awesomeness lived up to its name. Thanks to all who
read with us, and all who came to experience the cheap magic! 5153
miles, 7+ writers in a van, 59 dollar store items, 11 cities,
14 days, and the biggest bottle of whiskey you've got. Photos
of the madness can be found here.
Others are here. Makes us miss the road.
What could make us feel better? We've got a new special project in the works:
TripleQuick Fiction is a new iPhone app from featherproof books.
All new fiction from your favorite featherproof authors, and many more! We'll be announcing a full line up of stories and authors on this page soon.
TripleQuick stories are specifically tailored to the modern mobile attention span. 3 screens, 333 words, 3 minutes to read. Maybe it's the future, or maybe it's just fun, but we know you'll love the bite sized stories in a pretty little shell.
Our foray into cellular story-telling will also include some awesome interactive elements that we're keeping under our hat for now. We expect to hatch this egg early this fall. Keep your eyes peeled.
Don't forget to keep your eyes on our other egg. Paper Egg is getting mighty warm. Christian TeBordo, our debut author killed it at The Dollar Store shows in both Philadelphia and Albany. We can't wait to unleash The Awful Possibilities on to the world, so subscribe now!
Hey featherproof friend,
We're literally sweating with excitement over here. Why? Because we're using the summer heat to cook up:
The Dollar Store
Super Summer Tour!
That’s right, we’re taking this renowned reading series on the road: packing 7+ of our beloved writers in a van, buying tons of dollar store junk, and hitting 11 cities in 14 days.
For three years, The Dollar Store has sold out its hometown venue with its blue-collar literature, absurdist humor, and a circus of junk. This summer featherproof presents a month long Dollar Store tour that kicks off June 28th, and will cover a lot of ground. Here's who's getting sweaty in the van:
Amelia Gray (AM/PM ,
Featherproof Books, 5
Things Austin reading series), Aaron
Burch (Hobart), Caroline
Picard (Green
Lantern Press, The
Parlor reading series), Zach
Dodson (boring
boring boring, Featherproof Books, The
Show 'n Tell series), Mary
Hamilton, and Lindsay
Hunter (QUICKIES!
reading series), Jac Jemc
(My
Only Wife, Dzanc Books), Blake
Butler (Scorch
Atlas, Featherproof, EVER,
Calamari,
Lamination Colony), Patrick
Somerville (Trouble,
Vintage, The
Cradle, Little, Brown), and of course Jonathan
Messinger (Hiding
Out, Featherproof Books, The
Dollar Store reading series).
We'll also feature great local writers in each stop on the tour. What are the stops, you ask? For a complete list, check the website: dollarstoreshow.com. But first, we're starting with the:
CHICAGO LAUNCH BBQ PATIO PARTY,
Sunday June 28th1-6pm, $8 The Hideout
1354 W Wabansia Ave
Chicago, IL 60642
Improv by: 1, 2, Fag and Hag! (Seth Dodson, Kellen Alexander and Christina Boucher), and An Oak (Neil Dandade and Adam Schwartz)
It's ALSO a big barbeque, and all you can eat drumsticks, and veggie burgers, and fixin's, and corn-on-the-cob, and picnic sides!
Oh, and one more thing: we’re raffling off a custom-built, featherproof-themed bike, compliments of Working Bikes Cooperative.
This afternoon delight will cost $8 at the door, and for $8 you get 8 things:
1. Admission
2. A featherproof mini book
3. Readings by Chicago’s finest and Improv by Chicago’s funniest
4. Hosted bar by Red Stripe 1-3pm! Yum!
5. All the barbeque you can eat
6. Your very own Dollar Store official souvenir pin
7. A Working Bikes bike raffle ticket
8. A shot at a missed connection, and the time of your life.
Buy tickets HERE! NOW!
Food generously sponsored by Eye Spy Optical. Bring old glasses to be recycled! Check out eyespyoptical.com!
Open bar generously sponsored by Red Stripe. Come from 1 - 3pm for beers! Check out redstripebeer.com!
So check out dollarstoreshow.com, or join the facebook event in your city.
It wouldn't be a tour if we weren't bringing you the newness, so here's what's out now:
Two new exciting minis, one by hometown hero Joe Meno, the very guy who showed us that vans + books can = magic. His most recent novel, The Great Perhaps, is without a doubt awesome. We also have a mini from Aaron Burch, mastermind of Hobart, the lit journal we'd die to be as cool as. Aaron's coming on the whole Dollar Store tour, and will have the latest issue available. These minis are free downloads in the Mini Book section now!
We'll have copies of AM/PM on the road, if you're lucky. They're moving fast, thanks to a slate of recent raves. Listen to the word on the street:
"At moments screwy, prickly and pleasantly surprising, Gray’s short shorts deliver youthful snapshots about being nuts in love... A delectable debut."—Publishers Weekly
"Amelia Gray's AM/PM is a collection of flash fiction, stories that create tangible worlds and interesting characters in their 50 to 150 words. More importantly (and amazingly), read together these stories form a cohesive and often surprising narrative through their recurring themes and characters."—Largehearted Boy
"62. AM/PM is a do-it-yourself kit to protect imagination."—John Madera, Word Riot
There may even be some early, leaking copies of Scorch Atlas, if you're double lucky. We've got mini-excerpts of both of those in the Mini Book section now, to whet your palette.
We've also been feeling the heat from Poets & Writers, (check out the latest issue for a great article by Timothy Schaffert), the lovely Lauren Cerand, and Newcity's Lit 50 list. We're swooning.
Someone turn on the AC. This summer is getting hot.
In Chicago, you know it’s summer when Milwaukee Avenue traffic is congested with more bikes then cars and you can’t decide which BBQ you should go to (if you ask us, go anywhere there is free food and beer). Zip up those hot shorts and grease up your bike chain, because this summer is going to be (dare we say) the best summer ever.
We are kicking off our summer with two awesome events. This Friday, at the Book Cellar in Lincoln Square, Jean Thompson, who the Chicago Tribune says ”is a master of dialogue, character, and plot” will be reading from her soon to be released collection of short stories titled Do Not Deny Me. The reading will also feature Featherproof mini-book author Lindsay Hunter, and J. Adams Oaks, author of Why I Fight. We're so excited to team up with our BFF Lauren Cerand on this one, our heads might pop. The event will begin at 7:30 PM. You don’t want to miss it. Here's a flyer Nick Mecci drew for us:
Also in the tradition of Chicago summers, this weekend’s Printers Row Book Fair, kicks off the endless supply of fairs and festivals. From 10-6 on both days, we will be at tables 327 and 329, along with our friends Green Lantern Press and Make Magazine. Stop by. Hang out. Buy a book. Say hi. Seriously, we’d love you for it.
Last but not least, weheard a rumor that will make you drool with amazement. This summer, awesome interview she gave to Tobias Carroll at the site that always makes us smile, The Scowl. Also, please dirtect your attention to the newest review of her book AM/PM. You can also check out the Word Space she just wrote for HTML Giant.
Let's make a point of seeing each other soon.
Love,
fp
YES! [NAME]! Starting this coming weekend, May 17th through the 23rd, The Pilcrow Lit Fest takes Chicago by storm. And, since we are such busy bees (birds, really, but this is not the right time to talk about birds and bees), we have lots of shiny fun, fun, fun planned.
First, on Monday, May 18th at 7:00 PM, our own Zach Dodson reads from "boring boring boring boring boring boring boring" with Gina Frangello, Kathleen Rooney and Kyle Minor at The Book Cellar in Lincoln Square. Boring Nude Girl in the Boring Devil's Territory is part of Kathleen Rooney and Kyle Minor's book release tour and the Pilcrow Lit Fest.
Tuesdays, you'll be at Quickies!, if you're smart. 7:30, Innertown.
Next, we've got The Show 'n Tell Show on Wednesday the 20th at 7:00 PM. In honor of the Pilcrow Lit Fest, this week's show will be a Book Design Special! The Show 'N' Tell Show is always free at The Whistler and will feature Jay Ryan, Paul Hornshemeier, David Barringer, Doug Fogelson, Zach Huelsing and Matt Kessler. Wanna know more about The Show 'n Tell Show? Click here.
THEN, on Friday May 22nd at 7:00 PM at The Hideout, the much acclaimed Dollar Store Show returns to Chicago as part of the Pilcrow Lit Fest. Costing an appropriate $1, The Dollar Store will be hosted by our own Jonathan Messinger and Baby Teeth's Abraham Levitan and will feature Brian Costello, Edward Thomas Herrera and cat lovin' Mary Hamilton!
If that wasn't enough for you, on Saturday May 23rd will be on various panels at at Matlida's/Baby Atlas (3101 North Sheffield). At 1:00 PM, Zach Dodson moderates the Design Panel. Panelists Sally Alatalo, David Barringer, Ezra Claytan Daniels, Doug Fogelson and Jon Resh will discuss book production and design.
In other featherproof news...
Check out the latest issue of Proximity Magazine for a tear-out mini book of our upcoming release, Blake Butler's Scorch Atlas.
The author of our latest release, Amelia Gray, has been doing very well for herself! Her collection of short fiction, Museum of the Weird, just received the Fc2 Fiction Prize, and we've got some audio of her reading in Tucson (or really, she has the audio...) right here. Don't worry, that's not her man-voice there at the beginning; give the file a few seconds and you'll hear her! She begins with a lovely, bell-like giggle. AND her book, AM/PM is for sale on this website only! The first five people to order today get a FREE minibook bundle and CD!
Don't miss our events this week, OR the Pilcrow Lit Fest, little birds!
Hey Spring Chickens,
April showers bring May flowers, right? Turns out sprung isn't the only thing springing (did we get that one right? All this rain is mixing our metaphors)- featherproof is coming out of hibernation.
Beginning this weekend, May 1st through the 4th, at the NEXT art fair, we've got a GOFFO booth with super-friends Green Lantern Press. For those of you located in or around Chicago, NEXT art fair is located in the Merchandise Mart, 222 Merchandise Mart Plaza, 7th floor. Come check us out! Booth number 7-7136. It's the one with crocheted boobs and dinks. Fertile!
And if you're looking to avoid all your clean springs, check out this boring review of Zach Plague's "boring boring boring." Fresher still is this review of Amelia Gray's AM/PM, and this thunk piece where Ryan Manning and Amelia Gray hatch a plan.
While you're waiting for our eggs to hatch, be sure to enter our remix contest! Deadline is May 1st. Check out Blake's remix of his own story here.
And the mystery of life can be discovered in Take The Handle's latest Mystery Issue. So flip it.
But seriously, don't forget to come check out just how green the newly sprouted grass is on our side at the NEXT art fair this weekend!
So fresh, so clean, featherproof
Four years ago today, featherproof flew the coop!
Yes, friends and fowls, it’s our 4th birthday today. Our wings are strong and we’ve even got a few (paper)eggs of our own these days (wouldn’t the old bird be proud?).
Paper Egg Books, our newest and shiniest little egg, is still offering our special bonus book, for, like, five more minutes: Subscribe now and receive Amelia Gray's spanking-new AM/PM as a lovely little bonus!
But we don't pick favorites! Our other little fledglings are just as shiny! We've got some new minis on the site. The first is Colleen O'Brien's Saints,which makes us feel proud that we're not the kind of mom who wears heels on the basketball court. You'll see why. The second is an excerpt of Amelia's AM/PM, in case you want a sample before you take it home. Both are free for the taking!
We've surely mentioned this little peep to you before, but it's just so wonderful, we've got to remind you: We're starting something called featherproof Remixes, "short story collections wherein awesome writers rearrange, rewrite, redefine and reimagine a work just as it’s getting out into the world." The remixes will be published as ebooks. We're starting with our fall title, Blake Butler's Scorch Atlas. More details are here.
Check out our flickr page for photographic evidence of the success and awesomeness that was Patrick Somerville's release party for his lovely new novel, The Cradle, published by Little, Brown. Everyonefreakin'lovesit.
You want to wish us happy birthday in person? Of course you do. So come see us out and about. No presents please:
This Friday the 27th, if you live in Austin, and are just coming out of SXSW hiding, ready to live again, check out Five Things, Amelia's awesome reading series. She'll have the book on hand, and there's music, and great readings, and beer, and one more thing, but you'll have to come to find out what the fifth is.
Saturday the 28th, Zach will boring boring bore an audience of book artists at the Joan Flasch Artists' Book Collection as part of the Southern Graphics Council.
And then, on Sunday the 29th, he'll try and excite everyone with the Show 'n Tell Show. People are already talking about the suits, so if you're into design, come on out to The Whistler, at 7pm. He'll be crowning America's Next Top Graphic Designer.
If you are in Chicago next Friday, the 4th, come see Jonathan read at... we're just gonna say it... Fuck Storms. That's a reading at Ray's, hosted by the turbulent, prophetic Chris Bower. Wear your rain coats.
And as always, follow us on twitter! We have plenty to tweet about, cause, you know, the whole bird thing. And it's our birthday.
Mini-book author Tobias Carroll chats with Jonny Mess today about paper egg, burning out, and the batttle of digital vs. print (hint: It doesn't exist).
Wanted to let everyone know that we're getting down to the wire with these AM/PMs. There's still a chance to sign up and land a copy for free, which means for $20, you'll get three books in one year, averaging out to $6 and 66 cents repeating per book. A g-durn steal.
"I like the way they think. It’s a fun idea that doesn’t demand that I change my definition of 'book.' And publishing could definitely use some ideas right about now."
It's been a blast, post-AWP, to see Amelia's work getting out there and making readers giddy. Check out Blake Butler's great review at <HTMLGIANT>, and Amelia's distilled existence, told as part of Michael Kimball's mesmerizing Postcard Life Stories.
Late one night, we were struck with an idea for a new project that would allow us to do all the things we always talk about doing, but can’t always pull off: work with more writers, take advantage of new technologies, play around with collaboration, promote our books. To that end, we're kickstarting another new project: featherproof remixes, short story collections wherein awesome writers rearrange, rewrite, redefine and reimagine a work just as it’s getting out into the world. We'll publish each remix as an ebook, downloadable to your computer or mobile device, a few weeks before each book launches. We’re kicking it off with Blake Butler’sScorch Atlas, our fall title, because it seems so perfect for the project. And, we're kicking it off with a contest.
Here's the deal: Download Blake's story "Tour of the Drowned Neighborhood," and have at it. Write a new story using just a few sentences, rearrange all of the sentences, scrap the whole thing and write your own story under that title. Turn it into a goddamned sestina. Do whatever you like, be as creative as possible, blow our minds, your mind and President Obama's sweet, sweet mind. Then, when you're done, send it to contest[at]featherproof.com. Blake will judge. Two winners will be published in Scorch Atlas Remix, along with an awesome lineup of other authors, and both winners will receive free copies of Scorch Atlas (The Original Recordings), when it's available come fall. First-place winner will also receive a free two-year subscription to Paper Egg Books.
Here are the deets, in convenient-bullet-point-rather-than-paragraph form:
1. Download "Tour of the Drowned Neighborhood."
2. Destroy it.
3. Rebuild it.
4. E-mail your remix to contest[at]featherproof.com attached as a word document (.doc).
5. Please put the word Remix in the subject line of your e-mail.
6. Deadline is May 1, 2009.
7. There is no fee, for this is free.
8. Winners receive publication, free books, and more.
9. Is fine.
10. Do it again (seriously, you may submit more than one).
We really hope you'll join us in killing and reviving Blake's fiction. It's going to be fun.
Your pals,
the 'proof
P.S. Any questions, difficulties, etc., just e-mail contest[at]featherproof.com
Whoa whoa whoa!
And one more whoa! Featherproof has just released FOUR new minibooks for your downloading/printing/folding/(maybe stapling)/reading pleasure!
The Diagnosis of Sadness by Jill Summers will help you deal with the aftermath of the unfortunate electrocution of overweight nine-year-olds.
Dear Michael by Margaret Chapman is, indeed, a letter to the Prince of Pop himself.
Download them, enjoy them. They are things that will make you say, “Whoa.”
Speaking of “Whoa,”
That’s what we said as we flung ourselves, exhausted, onto our couches this week after the AWP conference. In no small part because we couldn’t believe how much fun we had! We have to extend some thanks to everyone who stopped by our table waaaaay in the back. And of course, thanks to our writers who came from the far away south to freeze their butts off in the Chicago weather (Blake, Amelia, Todd, Susannah, Christian), and to our friends at Orange Alert, The Book Cellar, Quickies, Make Magazine and Switchback. Whoa. There are so many!
And Special Awesome Stupendous thanks go out to everyone who came to our smashingly successful AWP After Party/ Book Release Event at the Beat Kitchen, and especially to our performers/readers: Abraham Levitan, Todd Dills, Christian TeBordo, Patrick Somerville, Chris Bowers, Amelia Gray, Kyle Beachy, (un)Bound Stems and Serengeti! We had a great time, and we bet you did, too!
Check out some photographic evidence of the awesomeness:
See more pictures on the Featherproof Book’s flickr page. Oh! And if you’re a fellow tweeter, follow Featherproof Books on twitter. We can't believe it's taken our little bird so long to sign up for this.
And: Whoa! AWP opened the eyes of the world to the genius of Amelia Gray’s AM/PM, and praise is popping up all over the place!
Read her life story, as written by Michael Kimball here.
Or check out some early love of the book on HTMLgiant.com, a site so awesome, Zach had to raise an eyebrow. HOW Magazine recently raised their eyebrows for boring boring boring boring boring boring boring, winner in the HOW 2009 Design Annual, on newsstands now.
And don’t forget! Time is running out for our special AM/PM/Paper Egg offer, so sign up here.
Some WHOA!s on the Horizon:
Zach pontificates on the existential nature of sit-com fatherhood at a special '80s TV Rec Room, Wednesday March 4th at the Black Rock Bar. It's called "You Give Me Growing Pains, Theodore Huxtable" Guess who's the guest curator? (Hint) There's a bunch of great mini authors representin', including Jac Jemc, Lindsay Hunter, Tobias Amadon Bengelsdorf, Mary Hamilton and Jill Summers. Full event info here.
And then, featherproof everyman Patrick Somerville’s debut novel, The Cradle (Little, Brown) comes out on Monday, March 9th and we’re celebrating at The Book Cellar with readings from Patrick, Jonathan and Colleen O’Brien. If you saw him read at The Beat Kitchen, then you know how much your pet cow will love this book release party. Read his mini in the meantime. Full event info here.
Butler is an original force who is fearless with form... The design is appropriately disarming, an apt part of the overall barrage by this inventive and deeply promising young author.—Time Out New York
A novel of 14 interlocking stories set in ruined American locales where birds speak gibberish, the sky rains gravel, and millions starve, disappear or grow coats of mold. In 'The Disappeared,' a father is arrested for missing free throws, leaving his son to search alone for his lost mother. In 'The Ruined Child,' a boy swells to fill his parents' ransacked attic. Rendered in a variety of narrative forms, from a psychedelic fable to a skewed insurance claim questionnaire, Blake Butler's full-length fiction debut paints a gorgeously grotesque version of America, bringing to mind both Kelly Link and William Gass, yet turned with Butler's own eye for the apocalyptic and bizarre.
You can sample a bit of Scorch Atlas yourself in Blake's mini-book:
A few excepts:
'The Many Forms of Rain ___ Sent Upon Us In
Those Days Before'
@ DIAGRAM
(finalist in DIAGRAM's Innovative
Fiction Contest)
The Passionate Male Prostitute: Blake Butler’s “The Ruined Child,” as Remixed by Blake Butler, @ Barrelhouse
Visit Blake Butler's eye-opening blog, or the collaborative online lit blog of the future he edits HTMLgiant.com, his lit mag Lamination Colony, and print mag No Colony.
At moments screwy, prickly and pleasantly surprising, Gray’s short shorts deliver youthful snapshots about being nuts in love... A delectable debut.—Publishers Weekly
If anything's going to save the characters in Amelia Gray's debut from their troubled romances, their social improprieties, or their hands turning into claws, it's a John Mayer concert tee. In AM/PM, Gray's flash-fiction collection, impish humor is on full display. Tour through the lives of 23 characters across 120 stories full of lizard tails, Schrödinger boxes and volcano love. Follow June, who wakes up one morning covered in seeds; Leonard, who falls in love with a chaise lounge; and Andrew, who talks to his house in times of crisis. An intermittent love story as seen through a darkly comic lens, Gray mixes poetry and prose, humor and hubris to create a truly original piece of fiction.
Amelia Gray is a writer living in Austin, TX. Her writing has appeared in The Onion, American Short Fiction, McSweeney's Internet Tendency, DIAGRAM, and Caketrain, among others. Her work has been chosen as the finalist for McSweeney's Amanda Davis Highwire Contest and the DIAGRAM Innovative Fiction Contest. Check out her website: ameliagray.com.
You can sample a bit of AM/PM yourself in Amelia's mini-book:
"Butler is an original force who is fearless with form... The design is appropriately disarming, an apt part of the overall barrage by this inventive and deeply promising young author." —Time Out New York
"Scorch Atlas doesn't make its point with narrative arc or character development or paragraphs or even the lovely, terrible sentences. Instead, it's the heaping of words — mauled bubbled clods knotted clogged rot foam mold growth cragged bugged curdle boils lumps ooze gunk stung and on and on — that press on you, as if you were being buried, drowned, dissolved, as if you were about to swallow your tongue." —The Boston Phoenix
"Scorch Atlas is quite possibly the most visceral book I’ve ever read." —Identity Theory
"Scorch Atlas is a fine example of experiment with purpose, of world building, of decadent, detailed and innovative writing. This is a book that should be read, and widely." —Pank Magazine
"Blake Butler has been doing great work... I've been looking around at people who publish smaller more personal books, things outside the mainstream, and totally original. Blake's one of these people. " —Three Guys One Book
"Scorch Atlas is a carefully and meticulously distraught world of language, a trembled and shaken line of thought, a vibrant dead trance of phrasing, the measure of words put together all and in the right ways. Blake Butler has made something enormous here."—J.A. Tyler, Tarpaulin Sky.
"Butler’s decaying worlds resemble the vistas of Steve Erickson in their dreamlike logic and those of J.G. Ballard in their sense of the subconscious eroding restraints mental and physical." —Interview with Tobias Carroll, for Flavorwire.
"Butler excels at forcing the familiar through the a sieve of strange until it is stripped clean of its everyday banality, until it is once again made so fresh you can smell the decay it contains, until you can taste the despair that threatens to destroy not just his characters but also the dangerous worlds they inhabit." —Matt Bell
"In the same way that Infinite Jest, written thirteen years ago, presupposed communication being fragmented via technology, in particular, the internet, Scorch Atlas presupposes a bleak, dystopian future (although let's hope it's farther off than thirteen years from now) where people bloat and grime, the world is a cracked shell of its former self and families do what they must to eke out an existence." —Keyhole Magazine
One of 20 relatively imminent things that [Dennis Cooper] is really looking forward to. —from his blog.
"Scorch Atlas is like The Book of Revelations written in first person." —BSC Review
"The stories, told in prose form, flash form, and longer form, hit a nerve with their explorations of a pain familiar to us all—family dysfunction. Performing as an ashen, crumbling work in our hands, the work urges us to push forward before it—and we—turn to dust." —Nicolle Elizabeth, Brooklyn Rail
"Buy Scorch Atlas by Blake Butler. Rip out your favorite story of the collection. Drop it to the ground and watch the pages flutter like ashen butterflies." —Outsider Writers Collective
"Butler’s prose is precise and muscular. The imagery is unrelenting. It’s gorgeous, and heartbreaking."—Dispatches from Utopia
Blake Butler’s Scorch Atlas is precisely that —a series of maps, or worlds, “tied so tight they couldn’t crane their necks.” Everything is either destroyed, rotting or festering—and not only the physical objects, but allegiances, hopes, covenants. Yet these worlds are not abstract exercises, he is speaking of life as it is, where there might be or may be, “glass over grave sites in display,” and where we will be forced to make or where we have “made facemasks out of old newspapers.” The sole glimmer of light comes in recollection, as in: “a bear the size of several men... There in the woods behind our house, when I was still a girl like you.”
—Jesse Ball, author of The Way Through Doors and Samedi the Deafness
There’s something so big about Blake Butler’s writing. Big as men’s heads. Each inhale of Blake’s wheeze brings streamers of loose hair, the faces of lakes and oceans, whales washed up half-rotten. You can try putting on a facemask made out of old newspaper. You can breathe in smaller rhythms. But you won’t be able to keep this man out once you’ve opened his book. Open it!
—Ken Sparling, author of Dad Says He Saw You at the Mall
I am always looking for new writers like Blake Butler and rarely finding them, but Scorch Atlas is one of those truly original books that will make you remember where you were when you first read it. Scorch Atlas is relentless in its apocalyptic accumulation, the baroque language stunning in its brutality, and the result is a massive obliteration.
—Michael Kimball, author of Dear Everybody Out Now:
Butler is an original force who is fearless with form... The design is appropriately disarming, an apt part of the overall barrage by this inventive and deeply promising young author.—Time Out New York
A novel of 14 interlocking stories set in ruined American locales where birds speak gibberish, the sky rains gravel, and millions starve, disappear or grow coats of mold. In 'The Disappeared,' a father is arrested for missing free throws, leaving his son to search alone for his lost mother. In 'The Ruined Child,' a boy swells to fill his parents' ransacked attic. Rendered in a variety of narrative forms, from a psychedelic fable to a skewed insurance claim questionnaire, Blake Butler's full-length fiction debut paints a gorgeously grotesque version of America, bringing to mind both Kelly Link and William Gass, yet turned with Butler's own eye for the apocalyptic and bizarre.
Blake Butler is the author of EVER, a novella from Calamari Press. His work has appeared in Fence, Willow Springs, The Believer, Ninth Letter, and many others. He is the editor of Lamination Colony and No Colony, two experimental journals of new prose. He lives in Atlanta and blogs here.
AM/PM By Amelia Gray
"At moments screwy, prickly and pleasantly surprising, Gray’s short shorts deliver youthful snapshots about being nuts in love... A delectable debut."—Publishers Weekly
"...believable characters, imaginative language, and beautifully crafted dialogue..."—Rain Taxi
"Amelia Gray is already operating like a seasoned pro. A deceptively big book wrapped in a small package."—Three Guys One Book
"The stories in AM/PM have ruined me as a reader of shorts. I will no longer be satisfied by the merely beautiful, the singularly clever, or the one big thought purely rendered. I want all those things in a two hundred word package. I want to be highly amused and deeply sad at the exact same time. Amelia Gray packs more power in a paragraph than I thought possible."
—Stacey Swann, Editor of American Short Fiction
"[Amelia Gray's] visions are direct, devastating, funny and vibrant; it’s not everyone who can find such inspiration in a John Mayer concert T-shirt..."—Eugene Weekly
"Amelia Gray's AM/PM is a collection of flash fiction, stories that create tangible worlds and interesting characters in their 50 to 150 words. More importantly (and amazingly), read together these stories form a cohesive and often surprising narrative through their recurring themes and characters."—Largehearted Boy
"Sweetly funny and unpredictable..."—Interview at Powell's Books Blog
"AM/PM by Amanda Gray is a little miracle of a novel — if that's what it is — each chapter an incident or a part of an incident, nothing longer than a page. Chet, Missy, Charles, Carla, Hazel, Tess, and John Mayer Concert Tee. I notice the author calls them stories, but I read them quickly, and I felt I was reading a post-modern novel. A little like Elizabeth Crane broken into tiny pieces. At any rate it gave me huge pleasure and a high opinion of Featherproof."
—Paul Ingram, of Prairie Lights Bookstore
"62. AM/PM is a do-it-yourself kit to protect imagination."—John Madera, Word Riot
"Gray evokes wonder and dread; romanticism and despair. And slowly, as you make your way through AM/PM’s stories, patterns begin to emerge as characters recur and situations evolve — a much more resonant emotional experience than one might expect from flash fiction."—Interview at The Scowl
"AM/PM is a refreshing, magical book, equipped with so much lucid linage that its hard not to want to read each page again and again, extending each small punch of threaded pleasure.…"—HTMLgiant
"At last, a book I can read over and over again. No, seriously. I’m not that guy. This is an important book. I wish that I could just somehow telepathically communicate this fact to you. If you’ve ever trusted any of my recommendations, then trust this one."—MADOREABLE
"Refreshingly original…"—Interview at Orange Alert
"Amelia has night terrors that make her do funny things in her sleep like stand on the bed and run down the stairs. Once, she kicked out a window…"—Amelia Gray's Life Story by Michael Kimball
"Perhaps the book I was most looking forward to picking up while driving towards AWP and nearly done reading it, it hasn't disappointed at all. Sadly, I didn't even know there was an Amelia Gray about two months ago and now I've scoured the web to find any publishings she's done. This conveniently puts many of them together and is just a fantastic read. Also caught her reading at The Beat Kitchen and had a bit of a chance to talk to her afterward and she's as nice as she is talented. Rush over to the Featherproof site and you can get this one free if you subscribe to their awesome new subscription series."—Dan Wickett, Emerging Writers Network
"I heard Amelia Gray read from this Friday night and just about died I liked it so much, then proceeded to babble to her about the brilliance of the recurring motif of the John Mayer concert tee. If you are reading this Amelia, thank you for listening to me babble."—Jac Jemc
"Amelia Gray is one of my favorite writers publishing online, and I’ve been looking forward to her book AM/PM. It’s a collection of very short stories or sketches or observations or jokes or all the above, really, that at times reminded me of a play I was in once called Comings and Goings and at other times of the recurring Muppet Show segment in which ballroom dancers tell jokes (these are both good things)."—Tawny Grammar
"In concise and often brutal prose, these brief stories give surprisingly comprehensive glimpses into ongoing lives. Each story’s laser-beam focus on a single instant uncovers what’s really happening in the small moments of life, those moments that fit between two blinks of the eyes."—Literary License
"All the baby birds hang out in this tree and ask me if I’m making the right choices in life."—Amelia Gray's Word Space @ HTMLgiant Out Now:
At moments screwy, prickly and pleasantly surprising, Gray’s short shorts deliver youthful snapshots about being nuts in love... A delectable debut.—Publishers Weekly
If anything's going to save the characters in Amelia Gray's debut from their troubled romances, their social improprieties, or their hands turning into claws, it's a John Mayer concert tee. In AM/PM, Gray's flash-fiction collection, impish humor is on full display. Tour through the lives of 23 characters across 120 stories full of lizard tails, Schrödinger boxes and volcano love. Follow June, who wakes up one morning covered in seeds; Leonard, who falls in love with a chaise lounge; and Andrew, who talks to his house in times of crisis. An intermittent love story as seen through a darkly comic lens, Gray mixes poetry and prose, humor and hubris to create a truly original piece of fiction.
Amelia Gray is a writer living in Austin, TX. Her writing has appeared in The Onion, American Short Fiction, McSweeney's Internet Tendency, DIAGRAM, and Caketrain, among others. Her work has been chosen as the finalist for McSweeney's Amanda Davis Highwire Contest and the DIAGRAM Innovative Fiction Contest. Check out her website: ameliagray.com.
When my beast arrived, it was three in the afternoon and
I was sitting in my underwear, on the phone. I was
reading a poem I had just written about a 21st century cowboy
sitting naked next to a campfire, to my friend Peanuts, who
was somewhat of a cowboy himself and used to edit a literary
journal called Erotic Dust which I have never seen but like all
journals you’ve never seen, you’ve heard good things...
The undeniably fat and predictably astute 9-year-old
Royal Rawrick had taken back roads to avoid
a particularly menacing group of teenagers and was
making his way over a rough patch of sidewalk when a
century-old wire, hidden deep beneath the pavement,
touched conduit through a bit of fray and electrified
a manhole cover at the worst of all possible moments...
We’re pleased to announce our first imprint, Paper Egg, a subscription-only series of books. You subscribe, we send you two beautifully designed, limited-edition books by some of the most exciting authors working today. The greatest thing about Paper Egg is that you’ll get a chance to read forms that are often disregarded by that big, ugly marketplace, forms like novellas and short story collections.
And! Each book we send will be designed by award winning, highly acclaimed and hotly handsome graphic novelist Paul Hornschemeier. Paper Egg is THE ONLY PLACE you can get these beautiful creations. No bookstores, no Amazon, only Paper Egg.
When you subscribe, you’ll get two books (the first in October and the second in April), and since we like to throw in some goodies, each package will come with neat little extras. So you’re getting limited-edition books by some of today’s most enthusiastic authors and limited-edition Hornschemeier prints for just $20.
We don’t mean to put all our eggs in one basket, but we DO mean to prove that a market exists for the story forms that tend to be market-neglected. And if the internet has given us anything, it’s the means for like-minded folks to share in creative projects. So, won’t you join us?
Oh, and did we forget to mention? The first 250 people who subscribe will receive a free copy of Featherproof’s AM/PM, a flash-fiction collection by Amelia Gray, while you wait for the arrival of your first Paper Egg, THE AWFUL POSSIBILITIES by Christian Tebordo. Free! Amazing book! Free! And of course, AM/PM won’t count as one of the two books you receive per year in the mail. FREE BONUS BOOK! THREE books for the price of approximately 1.5!
Want to know a little bit more about your free bonus book?
If anything's going to save the characters in Amelia Gray's debut from their troubled romances, their social improprieties, or their hands turning into claws, it's a John Mayer concert tee. In AM/PM, Gray's flash-fiction collection, impish humor is on full display. Tour through the lives of 23 characters across 120 stories full of lizard tails, Schrödinger boxes and volcano love. Follow June, who wakes up one morning covered in seeds; Leonard, who falls in love with a chaise lounge; and Andrew, who talks to his house in times of crisis. An intermittent love story as seen through a darkly comic lens, Gray mixes poetry and prose, humor and hubris to create a truly original piece of fiction.
A beautiful work of short-short fiction, AM/PM is the beginning of an exciting new adventure here at Featherproof. You can sample a bit of it yourself in Amelia’s mini-book, “Women/Girls.” Or check out her press shots, taken by enterprising Austin photographer, Mary Sledd. Amelia is a writer living in Austin, Texas. Her writing has appeared in The Onion, American Short Fiction, McSweeney’s Internet Tendency, DIAGRAM, and Caketrain, among others. Her work has been chosen as the finalist for McSweeney’s Amanda Davis Highwire Contest and the DIAGRAM Innovative Fiction Contest.
So OF COURSE we’re having a release party for the book!
We are tickled pink(ish) to announce the Featherproof Books AWP Afterparty, a glorious night of readings and music featuring a book release celebration for Amelia Gray’s AM/PM (Featherproof Books) and Kyle Beachy’s THE SLIDE (Dial Press), with music from (Un)Bound Stems and Serengeti. AND, to tickle us (and you) pinker, it’s ALSO the return of Jonathan Messinger’s THE DOLLAR STORE.
The festivities take place at The Beat Kitchen on Friday, February 13tth, beginning at 8PM with THE DOLLAR STORE, readings inspired by junk (because what isn’t?) featuring Featherproof authors Todd Dills (Sons of Rapture) and Christian Tebordo (The Awful Possibilities) and Patrick Somerville (The Cradle). Then, the dual-release party kicks off with readings from Amelia Gray, Kyle Beachy and Featherproof author Zach Plague (boring boring boring boring boring boring boring) and playwright Chris Bower.
You may be thinking how silly it is to have an AWP afterparty if we’re not actually involved in the AWP conference, BUT NEVER FEAR. Featherproof will have a table at the book fair (SW 754 and 755) where you can hound us with questions, poke and prod our lovely books, and even subscribe to Paper Egg.
And if all this hoopla isn’t enough for you, we have a few other hatchlings we’re pushing out of the nest.
We’re releasing the first “squeaky green” kids book, Grow: An Environmentally Friendly Book, during National Green Week! Come hang out at New Wave Coffee on Friday, February 6th from 5-8PM to see our awesome hand-bound books.
Hand-bound! Grow plants the seed of environmental responsibility in young children through a fun and interactive daily routine, with playful graphics and typography. This simple routine can benefit the environment, community, health, and a child’s awareness of self in the larger world. KJ Bradley and Alyson Beaton have created the first completely 'squeaky green' book to take a child through a typical day, implementing a routine that is environmentally and socially sound. The sharply designed book helps parents teach children very early on how easy it is to take steps for a cleaner earth. Check out growbook.org!
Still not enough Featherproof for you?
On February 9th, Jonathan Messinger will host “No Love For Love,” an evening of romance, love, fidelity and similar afflictions, headlined by Peter Sagal. Victory Gardens/Biograph Theater, 2433 N Lincoln Ave. $20 admission. Tickets available at Victory Gardens Box Office (773-871-3000) or online at www.victorygardens.org.
Not to mention, Blake Butler, author of our upcoming Scorch Atlas, will read at the
Orange Alert Reading Series AWP special on Wednesday, February 11th, 7:30PM at The Book Cellar (4736 N Lincoln Ave). And he reads again at the short-but-awesome QUICKIES! on THURSDAY (as opposed to the regular Tuesday. Space is limited, get there early! THURSDAY, February 12th, The Innertown Pub (1935 W Thomas), 7:30PM SHARP!
Whew. We’re tired now. But we’re still excited to see you at our upcoming events!
We're happy to see you here, in the new year, looking so fine and dapper. Step right up and put your money down, because in 2009 we're coming out of the gate strong.
You can place your bets now on Grow: An Environmentally Friendly Book. It's on Pre-sale now!
Grow plants the seed of environmental responsibility in young children through a fun and interactive daily routine, with playful graphics and typography. This simple routine can benefit the environment, community, health, and a child’s awareness of self in the larger world. KJ Bradley and Alyson Beaton have created the first completely 'squeaky green' book to take a child through a typical day, implementing a routine that is environmentally and socially sound. The sharply designed book helps parents teach children very early on how easy it is to take steps for a cleaner earth. Check out growbook.org!
And coming round the first bend, we've got a group of great events, neck-and-neck:
First up: Say hello to 2009 with Zach Dodson January 6th at The Parlor. Zach will read a piece called “The 2043 Field Guide to Living Indoors” - an excerpt from a novel which he hopes will be finished sometime in the next 34 years. Following his 30 minute reading, he will take questions from the audience. As always, the event will be recorded and published on-line for your repeated listening pleasure on iTunes and at www.theparlorreads.com. Tuesday January 6th, 7pm, The Green Lantern, 1511 N Milwaukee Ave, Upstairs, FREE.
If you're dying for some pre-recorded Zach right now, the first chapter of the boring audio book just went up over at Weird Deer. Listen to it while you read Zach's Diary, and you'll be completely inside his head.
Then January 9th, The esteemed Dollar Store returns, hosted by Featherproof Books' Jonathan Messinger and Baby Teeth's Abraham Levitan. There is a fresh line up for the new year featuring Quickies! Queen Lindsay Hunter, Encyclopedic poet Robbie Q. Telfer, and, appearing together in a cloud of chaos, Zach and his brother Seth Dodson (who recently knocked the socks off some monkeys). It costs a dollar, but we guarantee it'll be the best one you've ever spent. Frame it now. Friday January 9th, 7pm, The Hideout, 1354 W Wabansia.
Also running strong: Chicago Dialogue Project Peace Party! Come join us in supporting this awesome new agency, formed to support the movement to end gender-based violence in the Chicagoland area. On January 12th, they're having thier first fundraiser as a part of Danny's Peace Party series. 9pm, Danny's Tavern, 1951 W Dickens, FREE.
And close behind for the photo finish: Quickies Sausage Fest! The men get their turn, at our favorite down and dirty night. Featuring our own Jonathan Messinger (featherproof stud finder!) and Steve Tartaglione (young hunk o' luv!). Plus dreamy Tim Kinsella (art school heart throb!), Chad Chmielowicz and Rory Jobst. January 13, 7:30pm, Innertown Pub, 1935 W Thomas, FREE.
Is your heart pounding yet? Don't tear up that ticket, 2009 is the year of luck!
Dear Governor Blagojevich:
We at featherproof were so saddened to hear of your latest legal troubles. Certainly the past 18 months must have been very difficult for you, watching as Barack Obama's political star rose far above yours, then outshone it, and eventually eclipsed it. One could even say Obama's star cannibalized yours like a big, belching supernova. That must have hurt!
But you had a trick up your sleeve. You were going to show that motherfucker. You had a fucking valuable thing! You knew that "you just don't give it away for nothing." And we empathize with you! We too want more than nothing. Wanting more than nothing is, perhaps, the simplest articulation of the American Dream. Sure, the opposite of nothing, in your mind, became a $150,000 job for your wife at a non-profit, and that's a strange definition of not nothing. But then again, a politician is a strange human.
And listen, Rod, we know that you're probably going to jail. We want to help. In the spirit of the Midwest Books to Prisoners chapter, we want to offer you a package of featherpoof books, free of charge. There's a lot you could use in there. We get the feeling that you don't know what it's like to be anybody but Rod Blagojevich, and we think a little fiction might help get you out of your head a bit. (It might even help tune out those icky non-fictional charges against you.) So Rod, just let us know where to send it, and we'll get you a free package of featherproof fiction. But the thing is, Rod, books are fucking valuable things. We just don't want to give them away for nothing. So how about: We give you the fucking books, you give us the fucking Senate seat. Deal?
Not joking,
Your fucking friends at featherproof
The global economy is in recession. The stock market and gas prices are fluctuating wildly. Our apartments are freezing. It was just the biggest shopping day of the year. And every one is freaking out about money.
But over here at featherproof we never had any anyway, so we're advocating a 'worry-free' policy. All the worry you want, free of charge. We think there are better things, though, that are free, and we've collected a few together, as our gift to you, this holiday season. So, dip into the featherproof stocking of freedom:
First two new mini-books that are sure to amuse and delight, in that order. Marmal is the Sometimesby Tobias Amadon Bengelsdorf is a bizarre riff on fervor and ketchup. While My Imaginary Boyfriend by Ling Ma defines a new sort of wish list.
. . . . . . . . . . . .
If you've digested the free boring boring e-book you might want to dig deeper into the characters with Zach's Book Notes at Largehearted Boy. For the rest of the month, Zach will send you a mix tape of the Largehearted Boy boring boring songs, for free! You'll need to send a SASE, so email him for the address. (he's "zach@a_url_that_should_be_obvious.com") That's nice! And probably in violation of copyright laws!
We also have free entertainment for you. On December 12, check out Zach's new design series - a show all about the awesome design you've come to know and love at featherproof. Mike Renaud hosts along with Zach, and the lovely SpokesMom will commentate. It's the Show 'N Tell Show! Featuring Grow designer Alyson Beaton, among many other fine friendly design types. 7pm, The Whistler, 2421 N Milwaukee Ave. Then, on January 13, see Jonathan pull a fast one at Quickies! 7:30pm, Innertown, 1935 W Thomas. Both these events: Free as sunshine.
It's the season of giving. You're welcome.
Well, it was bound to happen. There was a tiny flurry of snow in Chicago yesterday, a warning shot of what's to come. To fortify us all against the long cruel season, we've knitted together some news sure to warm your hearts.
First, our next project: an environmental book for kids, blooming with color and life. Announcing:
Grow: An Environmentally Friendly Book By Alyson Beaton and K. J. Bradley Coming March 2009! Grow plants the seed of environmental responsibility in young children through a fun and interactive daily routine, with playful graphics and typography. This simple routine can benefit the environment, community, health, and a child’s awareness of self in the larger world. KJ Bradley and Alyson Beaton have created the first completely 'squeaky green' book to take a child through a typical day, implementing a routine that is environmentally and socially sound. The sharply designed book helps parents teach children very early on how easy it is to take steps for a cleaner earth.
It's on Pre-Sale now at growbook.org!
Don't you feel warmer and fuzzier already? Well, how about some new members of the featherproof lodge? A warm welcome for:
AM/PM By Amelia Gray A beautiful work of short-short fiction, AM/PM is the beginning of an exciting new adventure here at featherproof (more on that soon!). You can sample a bit of it yourself in Amelia's mini-book, Women/Girls.
Scorch Atlas By Blake Butler Coming Fall 2009! A novel of 14 interlocking stories set in ruined American locales where birds speak gibberish, the sky rains gravel, and millions starve, disappear or grow coats of mold. In 'The Disappeared,' a father is arrested for missing free throws, leaving his son to search alone for his lost mother. In 'The Ruined Child,' a boy swells to fill his parents' ransacked attic. Rendered in a variety of narrative forms, from a psychedelic fable to a skewed insurance claim questionnaire, Blake Butler's full-length fiction debut paints a gorgeously grotesque version of America, bringing to mind both Kelly Link and William Gass, yet turned with Butler's own eye for the apocalyptic and bizarre.
Blake Butler is the author of EVER, a novella forthcoming from Calamari Press in late 08. His work has appeared in Fence, Willow Springs, The Believer, Ninth Letter, and many others. He is the editor of Lamination Colony and No Colony, two experimental journals of new prose. He lives in Atlanta and blogs at blakebutler.blogspot.com.
And, you can watch Jonathan burn up with embarrassment as he takes a turn at The Lincoln Lodge. He'll be reading a haunted tale for The Lincoln Lodge's Halloween Scream, with comedians Jet Eveleth, Robert Buscemi, Ricky Carmona and Brian Potrafka.
Thursday, Oct. 30, 9pm, $10
@The Lincoln Restaurant, 4008 N. Lincoln Av
If you're not warm by now, then you're just gonna have to come see Zach's NIGHT MOVES. He's been working on them, long and hard, and he's ready to get down at the Skylark this weekend. Hot Tots!
Sunday, Nov. 2, 7:30 PM
@Skylark, 2149 S. Halsted
Chicago
THE2NDHAND Mixtape -- A release party for the 29th broadsheet, Mixtape-themed, and featuring stories about songs read and written by:
Boring boring boring... author Zach Plague
THE2NDHAND's Chicago editor C.T. Ballentine
Poetry mag managing editor Fred Sasaki
The illustrator, and illustrious, and illest, Jill Summers
and more.
You can check out the issue here. And Todd talking to Zach here.
People are still being bored by this book right and left. Check out the feature in the latest issue of STEP: Inside Design, and a fresh interview over at Chicago's Artist Resource.
So take heart book lovers, we've got enough kindling to keep you toasty all season long.
Thinking it's been awhile since you heard from your friends at featherproof? You're right. What have we been waiting for? October.
It's our favorite month, and not just because 100% of featherproof founders were born in October. No, it's our favorite because the countdown to Halloween costumes has begun. Everyone knows that if you're really going to knock 'em dead come the day of the dead, you've got to start thinking now. And at featherproof, we're here to help.
You might get a few ideas from the two new minis we've just put up. You could be a bathrobed stork, like in John Griswold's The Stork, a gonzo mini of the highest order from the man often disguised as McSweeney's Oronte Churm.
Or how about taking it off, like the hero of Mariead Case's Magic? Watch this mini for a compelling costume change.
You might find artsy inspiration in Zach's interview over at AIGA Voice. Or Susannah's '80s fashion tips from a Permanent Record review here. Or take it from Brian Costello, and go post-goth with this novel excerpt.
But that's not all. We're also going to lend a hand by providing a few events where you can showcase your new duds, before that big halloween party hits. On October 10th, come dressed as a skyscraper to the Chicago Publishers Gallery opening at the Cultural Center downtown. You'll find our books, as well as Mr.Jonathan Messinger, sitting on the panel 'Chicago: A Great Place for Publishing.' Sounds great, right?
Then, pull on those hot pants for an evening with Quickies, the reading series that goes real fast. Zach will be reading 55 words, along with 30 other Chicago writers in rapid-fire succession. It's going to be hot and heavy. That's on Tuesday, October 14, 7:30 at the Innertown Pub.
After that, we'll see you in your top hat and tux when Stop Smiling magazine brings Nathaniel Rich to town. He'll talk with Jonathan on stage, and on Chicago Public Radio. He wrote a maxi book, The Mayor's Tongue, and that Mayor wrote a mini book, Keftir the Blind. So come watch us sort it all out on October 19th at the Biograph Theatre. Zach will run the slide projector.
Then try on one of those freaky presidential masks the next night as Jonathan joins the likes of Stuart Dybek and Sara Paretsky at Writers & Cartoonists for Obama a FUNdraiser for the hometown boy. Come see if he was able to write something political but not pedantic. No one likes a halloween smartass.
No matter what you're wearing, it'd be great to see you.
Happy October,
f'proof
There might be a few wood stork left around here, but it’s mostly the
white heron, ibis and other long-legged fowl that stalk around fast food
drive-thrus...
A short story from the book:
The Champion of Forgetting
Here is a list of failures.
Scorch Atlas Release Party:
in the next 48 hours wins the featherproof novel of your choice!"
You have 48 hours from now, 9/22, 4pm, to do it. So do it!
Also, exciting news:
We are just wetting ourselves about the Chicago release party for 
Visit Blake Butler's eye-opening 
