MORE GOOD NEWS: Poet Ana Callan (Duet with Hummingbird) has been invited to present “The Gift of Aging” as part of Multnomah County Library’s monthly series, Perspectives on Positive Aging. “What matters in a life? How does one savor life in the face of mortality and the challenges of these tumultuous times?” Bring lunch and enjoy an inspiring hour with Ana on May 5 from noon to 1:00 PM. Click here for more information.

Photo by Napoleon Sarony, National Woman’s Party Records, Library of Congress (See also the Ken Burns /PBS film Not for Ourselves Alone to learn more about these amazing women…)

Did you know that all but one of Ink & Paper Group’s authors are women? What better way to acknowledge them and their achievements—as well as their gender’s lineage—than by hosting a sale this month in honor of women everywhere?

With this in mind, you can buy ANY (or ALL) of the following titles for 50% off (+ $2.50/copy for first-class shipping). Just contact linda.meyer@inkandpapergroup.com or call 503.232.0103 to order (major credit cards accepted).

BOWLER HAT COMICS

• Visibility, by Sarah Neufeld = $7.50 (reg. $15.00)

DAME ROCKET PRESS

• Give My Love to Everybody, edited by Jennifer Weaver-Neist = $7.48 (reg. $14.95)
• Hate Mail, by m. m. garcia = $7.48 (reg. $14.95)
• Magic Gardens, by Viva Las Vegas = $7.48 (reg. $14.95)

THREE MUSES PRESS

• Duet with Hummingbird, by Ana Callan = $8.98 (reg. $17.95)
• Keeper of Secrets, by Anjuelle Floyd = $7.48 (reg. $14.95)
• nothing but squares, by t. litwinchuk = $6.48 (reg. $12.95)

CLICK HERE for more information on Women’s History Month.

Did you know that the Pacific Northwest is home to a thriving small press community? Join Ink & Paper Group and its imprints—Bowler Hat Comics, Dame Rocket Press, and Three Muses Press

Want to learn more about some small presses in our area? Check out the links in the list below.
Beyond Words Publishing, Inc. (Hillsboro, OR): www.beyondword.com
Bowler Hat Comics (Portland, OR): www.bowlerhatcomics.com
Cellar Door Publishing (Portland, OR): www.cellardoorpublishing.com
CoreWay Media (Portland, OR): www.coreway.com
Dame Rocket Press (Portland, OR): www.damerocketpress.com
Dancing Moon Press (Newport, OR): www.dancingmoonpress.com
Dark Horse Comics (Milwaukie, OR): www.darkhorse.com
Eberhardt Press (Portland, OR): www.eberhardtpress.org
Hawthorne Books and Literary Arts (Portland, OR): www.hawthornebooks.com
Hot Off the Press (Canby, OR): www.b2b.hotp.com
Ink & Paper Group, LLC (Portland, OR): www.inkandpapergroup.com
Microcosm Publishing (Portland, OR): www.microcosmpublishing.com
Nestucca Spit Press (Pacific City, OR): www.nestuccaspitpress.com
New Sage Press (Troutdale, OR): www.newsagepress.com
Oni Press, Inc. (Portland, OR): www.onipress.com
Ooligan Press (Portland, OR): www.ooliganpress.pdx.edu
Pinball Publishing (Portland, OR): www.pinballpublishing.com
Ringing Bell Press (Portland, OR) www.ringingbellpress.com
So New Media (Eugene, OR): www.sonewpublishing.com
Three Muses Press (Portland, OR): www.threemusespress.com
Timber Press (Portland, OR): www.timberpress.com
Tin House (Portland, OR): www.tinhouse.com
Top Shelf Productions (Portland, OR): www.topshelfcomix.com
Virtual Tales (Vancouver, WA): www.virtualtales.com
Wordcraft of Oregon (La Grande, OR): www.wordcraftoforegon.com

*Thursday, January 28, 2010*
Viva Las Vegas will be reading from her Dame Rocket Press title Magic Gardens for the Gray Skies Reading Series in Olympia, Washington.
TIME: 8 p.m.
PLACE: Swing Wine Bar & Cafe (825 Columbia Street SW; Olympia, WA 98501)
PRICE: Free & open to the public

*Wednesday, February 3, 2010*
Oregon Literary Review co-hosts First Wednesdays, a series of readings, performances, and wine-tasting at the Blackbird Wine Shop, 4323 NE Fremont (Portland), 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. This show is for ages twenty-one and over.

Ana Callan will read from her poetry collection Duet with Hummingbird (Three Muses Press). Other readers presenting are Alissa Nielsen, Lauren Schmidt, Bennett Huffman.

CONTACT Julie Mae Madsen at maemadsen@gmail.com for more information.

So what’s ahead? Website revamp, blog updates, refreshed marketing plan, and a new release schedule. Stay tuned…

Just call 877.232.0103 or e-mail orders@damerocketpress.com.

25% OFF (+ $2 first-class shipping)

• Duet with Hummingbird ($13.50)
• Give My Love to Everybody ($11.00)
• Magic Gardens ($11.00)

50% OFF (+ $2 first-class shipping)

• Hate Mail ($7.50)
• “I Hate this Effin’ Book” t-shirts, honoring Hate Mail’s Jean Luc the cat ($10.00) {There are only a few of these American Apparel, black ringer t-shirts left in our warehouse (sold exclusively through Dame Rocket Press, unisex sizes S, M, L), so orders will be processed on a first-come, first-serve basis.}
• Keeper of Secrets ($7.50)
• nothing but squares ($6.50)

FREE!

• FREE copy of nothing but squares with any order of $25 or more of TM or DR titles or t-shirts!
• FREE Hate Mail with any full-price purchase of Magic Gardens or Give My Love ($14.95 + $4 shipping)

IMPORTANT SHIPPING NOTE: Any first-class shipping requests must be processed no later than noon on December 16. After that, please go to Powells.com or Amazon.com. Three Muses Press and Dame Rocket Press discounts apply only to direct orders made before December 16.

And while we’re on the subject of awesome Ink & Paper Group deals, go to Bowler Hat Comics to learn more about the December Charitable Challenge. It’s a heart-to-heart, book-for-a-book way to spread the happy holidays cheer.

Have a great holiday and a happy new year!
~ Your friends at Three Muses & Dame Rocket Presses

While regrouping and temporarily redirecting our energies, Three Muses Press has postponed the release of two titles until 2010. Bowler Hat Comics adjusted the release date for Kid Beowulf and the Song of Roland—now Spring 2010—and we are thrilled by the early response to galleys for this, the second book in the Kid Beowulf graphic novel series. (Watch the Bowler Hat site for an announcement regarding the all-ages Kid Beowulf series). Dame Rocket Press has been the focus of our attention this summer, with the release of Give My Love to Everybody: Letters from a World War II Soldier and Magic Gardens: The Memoirs of Viva Las Vegas, each of which is exceeding our expectations.

As with books, revision can tighten and energize a company. We are both excited and optimistic about Ink & Paper Group’s future, and we hope you will enjoy the changes we have in store. More soon…

Onward!

We hope you’ll enjoy this new format, but we welcome your feedback either way. Please feel free to send your thoughts to jen.weaver-neist@inkandpapergroup.com, and thanks, as always, for your continued support of our business and its mission.

Sincerely yours,
The Ink & Paper Team

TRADITIONAL PUBLISHING (a.k.a. Our Books)
We’re looking forward to the May release of three upcoming books at Ink & Paper Group, the first two being young adult fiction from Three Muses Press, and the third being a 10-year nonfiction project that’s finally come to fruition for Dame Rocket Press publisher (and editor/author), Jen Weaver-Neist. You can learn more via the following links:

• Desiderata, by Judy Ferro
  
• Morgan’s Pasture, by Wallace J. Swenson
  
• Give My Love to Everybody: Letters from a World War II Soldier, edited by Jennifer Weaver-Neist

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CUSTOM PUBLISHING (a.k.a. Your Books)
It was our sincerest pleasure to be involved with the production of two recent projects by two local authors, one being poetry and the other fiction. Keep an eye out for these self-published writers and their lovingly created pieces, which will be available for orders soon!

• Far From the Edge, by Lynn Thompson: “Thompson has chosen poems for Far from the Edge that extend the reader’s sense of his playfulness, poems that feel like friendly conversations, words meant to be shared, spoken out loud, or considered over a cup of coffee. The subject matter tweaks the seemingly mundane: daydreaming in bed, standing in line, gardening, grocery shopping, reminiscing about childhood, reflecting on growing older—the usual subjects.”
  
• Summer Snow, by Amy Warwick: “Four women. Different lives bound in ways even they cannot imagine…. There is a storm brewing in Glendale—a storm that will chill the hearts of many, a storm that will change things forever.”

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IMPORTANT NEWSFLASH: Starting in April 2009, Ink & Paper Group will be offering a $100 appreciation gift to anyone who refers a custom publishing client to us that later turns into a SIGNED contract. The gift can either be a $100 certificate to Powell’s or the cash equivalent, and it’s all yours as long as a custom book comes from the connection. Help us to help each other during these financially difficult times by passing on the word when:

• you have a freelance client who loved your editing and is now looking for a means of publishing,
• you come across a friend or colleague who works for a nonprofit that is looking for new ways of promoting its mission and/or fostering donations,
• you hear about a photography project or family story that deserves to be shared but may not have the mainstream appeal necessary to warrant a larger print run,
• you know about someone who’s given up on publishing and thinks there is no room for their book in the current economic climate,
• you know of anyone who wants to take publishing matters into their own hands but still wants a quality, professional product out of the deal.

You get the idea. We invite you to CLICK HERE to learn more about how this referral program works.

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CLASSES/EVENTS Consider signing up to benefit from these upcoming classes at the Ink & Paper Group house, and please keep our unique space in mind for your own upcoming events and/or classes. Again, we’re here to be a resource to you (and vice versa) during a time when sticking together and sharing resources couldn’t be more important.

• This Wednesday, April 8, 2009, $20 (6:30-8:00 p.m.): “Manuscript Formatting: A Quick Guide to Manuscript Preparation and Clean-up” (or “What to Know Before you Submit Your Work to a Publisher”), instructed by Linda M. Meyer
• Next Saturday, April 18, 2009, $100 (1:00-5:00 p.m.): From Write to Read: A Book Marketing and Promotion Guide for Authors, instructed by Lake Boggan
• Friday, May 1, 2009: Local Creatives Networking Event (Further details TBA)
• Saturday, May 9, 2009: Duet with Hummingbird Mother’s Day Tea (Details TBA)

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MISC. Mark your calendars for Portland’s annual Stumptown Comics Fest (April 18 & 19, 2009), where Bowler Hat Comics will have a table again this year.

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STET SAYS… This month features a quote from Morgan’s Pasture, the young adult novel due for release from Three Muses Press next month.