Council of Literary Magazines and Presses Invites Online Publishers to Apply for Membership

Literary Web Publishers to Join Their Peers in Print

New York City --The Council of Literary Magazines and Presses (CLMP), America’s only service organization for independent literary book and magazine publishers, has announced plans to extend membership to online publishers of literature. Previously, CLMP membership was available only to those literary magazines and presses publishing in traditional print media.

The first three online publishers to be accepted for membership into CLMP are the Camden Online Poetry Project (http://www.pbq.rutgers.edu), Poetry Daily (http://www.poems.com) and Frigate: The Transverse Review of Books (http://www.frigatezine.com). Frigate publishes book reviews and essays, and is planning a poetry anthology under the theme "Work." Poetry Daily is an anthology of contemporary poetry which each day offers subscribers a new poem from books, magazines, and journals currently in print. The Camden Online Poetry Project includes Painted Bride Quarterly (PBQ), a former print journal gone wired. According to Painted Bride senior editor Daniel Nestor, the transition from print to electronic format is "like Dylan going electric. Some people love it and some people hate it." But nearly all literary publishers see new technologies as opportunities for growth.

Recognizing the wealth of fine literature being produced on the web, and that print and online publishing technologies are converging, CLMP's Board of Directors voted at their February board meeting to admit online publishers as members. CLMP has recently developed new resources and services that are useful to web and print publishers alike, including its website at www.clmp.org, online discussion boards, a hyperlinked membership directory, a newswire service, and an annual membership meeting. With CLMP as a nexus of communication, new online members will add to the dialogue, promoting shared learning across the field of literary publishing.

Many magazines and presses are turning to web publishing to alleviate and sometimes altogether eliminate the main cost of publishing: the printer’s bill. Additionally, the web provides new distribution channels, which is especially beneficial as small press and literary magazine distributors have limited distribution opportunities. Still, many online publishers are not abandoning their print roots completely, and some have plans to publish an annual print edition featuring the best-of writings from the web.

Requirements for online membership in CLMP will remain largely the same as those for print publishers. Membership in CLMP is open to U.S.-based noncommercial publishers who are primarily literary in nature; have published at least one issue to date; publish at least once a year on an ongoing basis; do not charge authors a fee; are not self-publishers or genre publishers; state a copyright policy; have demonstrated efforts to reach their audiences; and who meet considerations of editorial and production quality. To receive application materials or more information, contact Aimee Kelley at akelley@clmp.org or (212) 741-9110 x 20 or apply online.

CLMP was founded in 1967 as the Coordinating Council of Literary Magazines, adding presses to its constituency in 1989. For nearly 35 years CLMP has supported the country’s diverse literary culture by promoting and advocating on behalf of its publishers and nurturing their business and organizational capacity. CLMP strengthens its membership by offering marketing and organizational workshops, hosting a national membership meeting of the field, sponsoring technical assistance programs, representing the voice of its publishers in the media, maintaining a comprehensive website (http://www.clmp.org), and distributing basic information services and publications. In addition, CLMP informs funders and other arts groups about the role of literary publishing in American culture, conducts research about the field, and ensures that literature has a voice in the politics of cultural policy.

More news