Hello to all, and happy new year! <3 Though 2020 had its ups and downs, I'm mindfully holding onto the "ups" and moving forward with the small press initiative I started up last year with a good friend of mine. We're called Rose Garden Press, and we publish handbound poetry chapbooks (about 20-30 pages of work, including illustrations). We are currently based out of a small town in Ontario, Canada and likely keeping the print runs to between 40-60 copies of each book we publish. We're currently open for submissions! Though for 2021, we're going to try to focus on Canadian authors, I would LOVE to consider international authors whose work I've fallen in love with here over the years of being on this website (should I be so lucky to be graced with such interest). If this interests you, or if you have any inquiries, drop us a line at hello@rosegardenpress.ca To keep up with the latest news (submission guidelines, events, etc), follow us on Instagram: @rosegarden_press and/or Facebook: @rosegardenpress We also have an up-and-running website www.rosegardenpress.ca (though it's still somewhat undergoing development). There you will find our first chapbook available for sale, the bird bath poems, which is actually a collection of poetry from both co-founders of the press (aka me and my friend!!) Thank you for reading!
Stay well, and stay safe. Much love, Michele
autumnal update
hope all of you are well, to whoever stumbles upon this. i fear this place has become a ghost town, but there's something kind of poetic about the idea of displaying my work and thoughts to a sleepy abandoned town.
i finished my undergrad in English and have moved on to do a publishing certificate which i'm now almost done. last year i did an internship at penguin random house in toronto and it was a surreal experience. it was weird how easy it seemed to get that internship and now that i'm almost done the certificate i've been applying to more publishing jobs and even more internships and haven't had as much luck. a few interviews here and there, but nothing yet. trying to stay optimistic! eventually i would like to open up my own little press and publish some of the amazing work i've had the blessing of coming across on this website. a faint far-off dream for now.
in other news, i've been in a relationship with someone who i love very much for almost four years and living together for about three of those years. i have never been with someone like this before; i usually get bored after a year. or once i can't write about them anymore, i seem to find reasons to leave. this one makes me happy and being with him is safe and comfortable. i have to admit i've been struggling though. i feel inspired to write by old flames or other people i know who are friends but that line has gotten blurred over the year. these feelings are very inspiring and i often feel like, as a writer, i need that. but it comes with guilt. that guilt can also be inspiring, but detrimental. not sure if any of this makes sense.
i also feel very sad about how hard it seems to be to have real friends these days. i often try to reach out to people who at points i had considered them some of my very best friends, but communicating with them can be like pulling teeth. i understand some of them are physically far away and that can be a deterrence. i've been really trying to work on taking care of myself and deflecting negative energy and not chasing people who can't put in effort. unfortunately that seems to result in some loneliness these days. i also seem to get hit with SAD pretty hard, so maybe that is all this is.
tell me something lovely or devastating or anything you feel like sharing. <3
Devious Journal Entry
94.
I hope anyone reading this is doing fantastic! I plan on going back to school this year and finishing my undergrad in English as well as taking some writing courses. Also I'm planning on finally fulfilling my dream to visit Iceland this summer!
Lots of love,
Michele
93.
hope you've all been well.
