By Priyanka Joshi, Elizabeth Haslam and William Swift
Red Hen Press
Founded in 1994 by Dr. Kate Gale and Mark E. Cull from their home in California’s San Fernando Valley, Red Hen Press has grown into a thriving business which supports the Greater Los Angeles area and international communities through arts-based events and literary advocacy.
Specialising in the publication of poetry, fiction and creative non-fiction, this press aims to showcase excellence, foster diversity and promote literacy in local schools.
Publishing twenty-five to thirty books a year, Red Hen Press focuses on publishing writers whose works have been overlooked by large-scale publishers, offering these writers a chance to be seen, read and awarded.
Celebrating thirty years in 2024, Red Hen Press has curated a local and international community of readers and writers actively involved in literary pursuits.
Upcoming Releases
Blindspot in America by Elom K. Akoto
Releasing in October 2024, this literary counter to the traditional American action film brings readers a doomed-love tale of espionage, and several immigrants’ thrilling explorations of what the American Dream actually means. Kamao, a hopeful academic from Ghana, finds himself in a passionate entanglement with the daughter of an anti-immigration senator and, not long after, accused of murder. With the publication date a month before the American election, this powerful novel will bring marginalised voices to readers when they need to hear them most.
Ribcage of Time by Jacqueline Tchakalian
Also releasing in October, Tchakalian’s Ribcage of Time is swimming in advance reader praise. Haunting, bold, intimate and universal are compliments that have all been lavished upon the poetry collection. While the collection speaks to women’s experiences more generally, Tchakalian also focuses in on the specific experiences of Armenian women during the genocide. Despite this, Ribcage of Time promises to leave the reader with a lingering sense of hope for the future.
What Monsters You Make of Them by Christian Teresi
Surreal and mystical, What Monsters You Make of Them is a poetry collection that “interrogates ecology and injustice” (Red Hen Press). Teresi’s work inhabits the liminal space between the ruins of the past and our present. A teacher fails to help a student, but another child teaches a teacher about war. Challenging linear time itself, these poems will stitch together a monster not unlike Frankenstein’s: one in the shape of man. Coming in September 2024.
Notable Releases: Red Hen Imprint
Before the Storm Takes It Away by Gaylord Brewer
Described as “brief nonfiction” (Red Hen Press), Brewer’s collection of essays began as a one year experiment to step away from poetry for the world of creative non-fiction. While conducting this experiment, the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Before the Storm Takes It Away is a meticulous and concise collection of essays that speak to love and doubt, and sometimes feature his dog, Lucy. Written with the voice and precision of a poet, this prose will enchant the reader – and there’s no doubt this experiment has been a success.
Ripples in the Fabric of the Universe by Jim Tilley
Jim Tilley’s collection of new and selected poems, published in June 2024, perhaps could only have been conceived in the mind of a mathematician-poet. Tilley separates the personal from the observational, before presenting both experiences in a synchronous order. With humour and cynicism, Ripples dives into the environmental, political and social realms of our world.
Now You Owe Me by Aliah Wright
A testament to Red Hen’s fiction releases, and their commitment to giving a voice to all artists, Aliah Wright’s Now You Owe Me stars twins Ben and Corinthia, serial killers abducting college students in Pennsylvania. This thriller, coming in September 2024, sends the twins into a fast-paced spiral when their pledged “last victim” proves tougher than they can handle. With characters so perverse, and yet so artfully crafted and immersive, Wright has written a stunning contribution to the thriller genre.
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