Boston Independent Activist Publishing: A History

 It is fantastic to see the list of inaugural awardees of funding from the Literary Arts Fund , announced today. I want to be clear that I celebrate this initiative, explained on their About page: The fund, initiated in 2023 by the Mellon Foundation as a collaborative effort with the Ford Foundation, Hawthornden Foundation, Lannan Foundation, John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Poetry Foundation, and an anonymous foundation in service of the literary arts field’s needs and promise, plans to provide at least $50 million in support of the field and continue fundraising. I certainly applaud those foundations that stepped up in this time of need. Here here! As I look at the list, it is interesting to see so many of my favorite indies - Nightboat , Graywolf , Transit , and Hub City , and some great Texas presses like the ever-impressive Deep Vellum . These are presses that do more than just publish great books: they foster community and create important literary partnerships....

I had not heard the news that noted gay publisher/editor/writer Don Weise died this last January. This is sad and (for me, who did not know him personally) surprising news, given his age. I don't know details, nor do I need to know them. He has left a significant legacy. I had exchanged a few emails over the years with Weise, starting with my writing to him about a project while he was running Alyson Books between 2007-2010. I was low-key representing a British friend who had a non-fiction book I thought they could publish, though it wasn't meant to be. We still exchanged a few emails, and I found his willingness to write back to me - then perhaps an Associate Editor at Beacon Press - a kindness.  The connection to this blog is Alyson Publications, an LGBTQ publisher started in Boston, in fact in the South End of Boston, in 1980 by Sasha Alyson. There is a lot more to say on this front, and I will save it for another post. Some basic info on Alyson and the press can be found in...