NEWS:

The Future of Small Fires Press and You.

Hello, my name is Friedrich Kerksieck & I operate Small Fires Press. So far the venture of running the press has been wonderful – I’ve put out two issues of Matchbook Magazine & many books, including authors Scott Pierce, Mathias Svalina, Julia Cohen, John Chavez, Megan Gannon, Rachel May, Joshua Ware, MC Hyland & numerous others.

After leaving Tuscaloosa’s MFA program & beautiful studio, I’m asking for your help to set up my own studio so that I can continue my work. I’ve accumulated 8,000 dollars for a Vandercook Press & Photopolymer Plate Maker, but I still need about 3,000 dollars more for all of the various items needed to finish setting up a workspace to print upcoming book projects. Items needed include: a paper cutter, metal type, type-high gauges, inks, tympan paper, challenge key & quoins, press furniture, a boxcar base, etc. etc. etc.

What can you do? Well, there are lots of things – the simplest way to help me out is to donate money or equipment. If you’ve got a print shop with a lot of duplicate equipment you can send it to me with the promise that it will be well-used and cared for. You can purchase a book from the press that you’ve had your eye on. You can pass this note along to friends that might want to help a little press survive. You can show my books to your local special collections library and convince them to purchase my catalog.

In turn I promise to keep working to produce new texts in innovative packages, and to do my own part in supporting our community of artists, printers, readers, and writers.

If you wish to send something, please do so to:

Friedrich Kerksieck 1447 Poplar Ave. Apt. 1 Memphis, TN 38104

Donate through paypal:

Or visit the order page and make a purchase.

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September, 2009 Update:

Really great review of I:NE, Iterations of the Junco by Beth Staples here.

A review of "When We Broke the Microscope" at the bottom of the page by Aaron James McNally here. And another one by BJ Love here.

Check out the reviews then buy the books.

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August, 2009 Update:

Three new broadsides and a set of postcards are available now on the site. Check them out on the broadside and ephemera pages, or see them larger here.

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July 7, 2009 Update:

Matchbook: Volume Two is finally available. I'm offering a limited deal for three issue for only 13 dollars. See who is in the issue and buy them here.

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Late June Update:

New Address:

Friedrich Kerksieck/1447 Poplar Ave. Apt. 1, Memphis, TN 38104.

Matchbook Volume Two is 95% complete - a couple more hundred staples + a move to Memphis and it will be ready to make a connection with your mail box. This issue features a super-duper excellent selection of poets and a scratch and sniff avant-garde gallery of the senses.

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Late May Updates:

Live, From the Delay by Ryan Flaherty and Abandoned Tales by Michael Lee are now available. As usual more pictures of the books and the process of making them are available here. The books are here for purchase.

Wrapping up a second volume of matchbook. Hopefully it'll be out by the end of June.

Also, I'm moving to Memphis in July so keep your eyes open for a new address soon. As for now, just email me if you need to send me something, please.

Thanks for supporting Small Fires Press, I need it now more than ever to keep going.

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February 19th, 2009 Updates:

Back from AWP - I, NE: Iterations of the Junco is available.

Please do consider purchasing the book. I'm quite the proud of it.

Couple more pictures of the new book here:

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February 9th, 2009 Updates:

Small Fires Press will be at AWP in Chicago this year.

I'll be tabling with Factory Hallow and Pilot Books again. My press name isn't listed, but I'll be there! Table #369.

I'll be offering some pretty sweet deals on some tender letterpressed books including the hot off the presses and (hopefully, please) bound in the next two days I, NE: Iterations of the Junco by John Chavez, Megan Gannon, Rachel May, and Joshua Ware. I'll release the book on the website shortly after the conference.

Of course, the rest of the catalog will be coming up to Chicago as well including When We Broke the Microscope by Julia Cohen and Mathias Svalina, Two Pamphlets by Erasmus Gould (edited by Alex Chambers), Some Bridges Migrate by Scott Pierce, and some other odds and ends.

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October 4, 2008 Updates:

2nd edition of "Some Bridges Migrate" by Scott Pierce is now available along with both "The Wheat Wars" and "From Khunk to Chunk" by Erasmus Gould, translated by Alex Chambers are all available for sale. Check out the Chapbooks section to purchase!

Also, Small Fires Press is now located on facebook.

And also there are several other photos of my books on my flickr page and photos of the papermaking process here.

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July 1, 2008 Updates:

Starting August 1st Small Fires Press will be locating to a new house:

Friedrich Kerksieck/2620 University BLVD Upstairs/Tuscaloosa, AL 35401

Laura Swan's one-page comic "Cob Webs" is now available for sale! Only six dollars! Edition of 80.

A second edition of Scott Pierce's "Some Bridges Migrate," made with handmade paper covers will be out by the end of the summer! Edition of 100.

Two chapbooks by Erasmus Gould, edited and translated by Alex Chambers will also be out by the end of the summer. Fabulous essays! Both in editions of 55.

For the Fall: "Live, From the Delay" by Ryan Flaherty - a new book of poetry - and Michael Lee's short fiction collection - "Abandoned Tales."

For the Spring: A collection of narrative comics by Jess Sauer and Clemens Poole, and a poetry collaboration by Joshua Ware, Rachel May, Megan Gannon & John Chavez titled "I, NE."

Lots of new works. Lots of work! Very exciting. All fully letterpressed!

Hopefully next summer I'll finally be pushing out the second volume of "Matchbook."

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March 10, 2008 Updates:

I've finished binding "When We Broke the Microscope" and the book is available for sale - buy a copy today!

Two chapbooks by Erasmus Gould, translated & edited by Alex Chambers are currently in the works.

I'm planning on publishing 5 letterpressed chapbooks next year and will be issuing a new call for submissions quite soon.

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December 13, 2007 Updates:

I've finished printing & will soon finish binding a new book of poetry collaborations by Mathia Svalina & Julia Cohen titled "When We Broke the Microscope." The book also has seven original illustrations by Cherie Weaver. It should be available on the site for sale in the remarkably near future.

Scott Piece's "Some Bridge Migrate" is sold out.

Small Fires Press will be sharing a table with Pilot books at AWP - please do visit & peruse.

Submissions for Matchbook are still sought after, while submissions for Chapbooks are closed (to everything except collaborations).

I'm interested in publishing graphic novel work to letterpress, but the the art would probably have to be one color. Email me with a sample to consider if you're working on something.

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May 18, 2007 Update:

I finally got a Paypal account set up. It should be running fine and dandy if you'd care to pay using that method. Thanks.

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May 15, 2007 Update:

New letterpressed origami balloon on the ephemera page: http://www.smallfirespress.com/ephemera.html

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April 9, 2007 Update:

Scott Pierce's letterpressed chapbook "Some Bridges Migrate" is for sale and it looks beautiful - send me a check.

I won't be printing another chapbook this spring, but will be printing more work on into the summer which will combine offset and letterpress printing. I'm still looking for submissions for matchbook & for chapbooks - please consider sending over your work. If you've recently sent me work and I haven't gotten back to you, hang on until May when I'm out from under my class load and have more time to concentrate on your texts. Thanks!

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January 2007 Update: Small Fires Press is up and running again after a two-year hiatus.  I am planning on publishing a new volume of Matchbook by the end of the summer of 2007 & will be printing two chapbook-length works this spring. 

The first of these books will be an eight-page letterpressed book by Scott Pierce.

This past fall I worked on several broadsides and a one-page book called “the hesitancies” – please check the projects page for more information about these prints.

Please consider submitting work to Matchbook or for consideration for a chapbook manuscript – check out the submit section for more details.