Smithereens Press

Publisher of poetry chapbooks and Smithereens Literary Magazine. Currently inactive. Editor @Ken_Keating_. Enquiries to [email protected]

[Smithereens Press @SmithereensPres]

Unfortunately, due to significant changes in personal circumstances, the press will have to cease operations immediately. It may only be temporary, but no submissions will be considered and no publications will be produced for the foreseeable future.

[MEAS @MEASorg]

Call for Submissions: Harassment and Abuse in Irish Literature - Personal Narratives. Please share widely. For more information, see https://t.co/EXfkicI0Lr #wakeupirishpoetry #irishliterature

[Skein Press @SkeinPress]

@AriaEipe @AmadiEnyi @supriyadhaliwal @sarahmaintains @sineadgleeson @DoireannNiG @NatashaRemound1 @drannelaz @gandercat @poetryireland @artscouncil_ie Thanks Nidhi for this conversation. We are very concerned about the absence of writers from BAME backgrounds being published in Ireland. In 2019 we reached out to BAME writers & they said there is a lack of supports for mentoring, funding & opportunities to platform their work...

[Skein Press @SkeinPress]

@AriaEipe @AmadiEnyi @supriyadhaliwal @sarahmaintains @sineadgleeson @DoireannNiG @NatashaRemound1 @drannelaz @gandercat @poetryireland @artscouncil_ie There are too few locally based supports for writers. Access is a massive issue. It is encumberent on us all to change this and be proactive to ensure the work of BAME writers is discovered, profiled, supported and resourced.

[Catherine Gander 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🇵🇸 @gandercat]

@sarahmaintains @AriaEipe @AmadiEnyi @supriyadhaliwal @sineadgleeson @DoireannNiG @NatashaRemound1 @drannelaz @SkeinPress @poetryireland @artscouncil_ie Exactly. This bit particularly blind to its own entrenched biases:

[Nidhi Zak/Aria Eipe @AriaEipe]

... Mary Jean Chan, Zaffar Kunial, Jay Bernard, and many others who would still be recognised as ‘emerging’ poets, yet whose (even early) work receives more publicity, engagement, representation, platforms, publication (journals, etc) than the same here in Ireland @MartinDoyleIT

[Nidhi Zak/Aria Eipe @AriaEipe]

Perhaps what this pattern also reflects is a lack of support for BAME poets in Ireland in terms of mentoring, access, opportunity, resources, funding, and visibility. Many of the prize-winning BAME poets in the UK in 2019 alone won for debut collections incl Raymond Antrobus, ...

[Alycia Pirmohamed @a_pirmohamed]

@LedburyCritics The Irish Times defends these statistics in an article that feels very hostile to its nonwhite readers (hints at who it's written for). If this tone is indicative of how gatekeepers engage with this issue, how can BAME writers feel genuinely supported when it comes to publishing?

[Ken Keating @ken_keating_]

Please read this thread. It's one response, and an incredibly important one, to @MartinDoyleIT's @IrishTimesCultr article published this morning

[MEAS @MEASorg]

MEAS will publish a detailed response in due course. In the meantime, we recommend reading this thread from @LedburyCritics on some of the issues regarding BAME representation in poetry reviewing and publication. 4/4 https://t.co/Ttv0GGdcuj

[MEAS @MEASorg]

...and to reflect on the findings for this period, as related to gender, race and publishers in the period 2013-2018 in the Poetry Reviews Section. 3/4

[MEAS @MEASorg]

The MEAS report presents quantitative data relevant to the Irish Times Poetry Review section in the period 2013-2018. We urge interested parties to read the report... 2/4 https://t.co/XzEjyAPfFn

[MEAS @MEASorg]

MEAS notes today's article in @IrishTimesBooks by @MartinDoyleIT responding to the latest MEAS report 'Gender, Race and Publishers in Irish Times Poetry Reviews 2013-2018'. We dispute the arguments in the article which disregard the salient findings of the report. 1/4

[Smithereens Press @SmithereensPres]

I do hope I'll be able to recommence work with Smithereens in the future, and will be sure to be in touch with any such developments. Best wishes, and thanks again - Ken

[Smithereens Press @SmithereensPres]

Unfortunately, due to significant changes in personal circumstances, the press will have to cease operations immediately. It may only be temporary, but no submissions will be considered and no publications will be produced for the foreseeable future.

[Smithereens Press @SmithereensPres]

This will prevent me from having the time or resources to ensure the press keeps working at an acceptable level. Thank you all for the kind and supporting comments, messages, emails, and offers of help of all kinds, they are all sincerely appreciated.

[Smithereens Press @SmithereensPres]

@JenMarieMa Thanks Jen

[Smithereens Press @SmithereensPres]

@altkrelb @ken_keating_ Thanks Ellen