Pushcart Prize Nominations

great weather for MEDIA is delighted to announce our nominations for the next Pushcart Prize – Best of the Small Presses Series.

These nominations are for work published in 2019 and were chosen from our anthology Birds Fall Silent in the Mechanical Sea and the poetry collection something sweet & filled with blood by melissa christine goodrum.

Congratulations to all our nominees and good luck! It was so hard choosing just six out of the immensely talented writers we have published this year.

Steve Dalachinsky - The Outhouse

Rico Frederick - These Bones Break Bread

melissa christine goodrum - cuento que no antecede al amanecer

Julian Mithra - Wormwood (Artemisia absinthium)

Mario Poncé Pagán - 3 Conversations

Ania Payne - 6 Ways of Looking at a Platypus

Want a taster? Here are the first few lines...

“Mid-March, Ol’ Uncle Henry come calling
with an empty flask and full set of teeth,
barking to his nieces to leave off their weaving
and take pity on a dry felon.”

— Julian Mithra, "Wormwood (Artemisia absinthium)"

“in the back of the barn
late 1830’s
outhouse apart
falling in on itself
below there some feet
the pile of excrement
ours theirs & the baby’s”

— Steve Dalachinsky, "The Outhouse"

“It is nine am + my country is awake with murder,
the dishware in the cabinets agitate
as the two train grumbles heavy underfoot,
house not home sweet stumble drunk on the amnesia
of glass ceiling built luxury from back lashed labor,
e’rethg moves irresponsibly of itself,
e’rethg must die
intractable the skin, blk
makes mama’s chil’ coffin promised
DOA over MFA, simple ngh-nometry:
majesty + equality = ”

— Rico Frederick, "These Bones Break Bread"

“but before the dawn
because our young girl
doesn’t see
& she won’t
be there
long
for death

he has come
with his snout
like a gas mask
so unsmelling
of her love
& his fat hand
clasping his tool”

— melissa christine goodrum, "cuento que no antecede al amanecer"

“Fog rises from Dyker Heights manhole covers
the rain washes away the cold hours
I roam looking for signs of life
no coquís here
no gallos here
only wet cats searching for meals
meowing in an accent I cannot make out.”

— Mario Poncé Pagán, "3 Conversations"

“A platypus is such a private animal that there is no universally agreed upon plural of ‘platypus’ in English. Some people use the term platypuses. Others say platypodes, platypi, or ‘a paddle,’ but these words hardly need to be used.”

— Ania Payne, "6 Ways of Looking at a Platypus"

Remember, we are currently accepting poetry and prose submissions for our next anthology. Send us your fearless best. Deadline January 15, 2020. Be sure to check out all our books. We look forward to reading your work.