Category Archives: Titles

Mental Monsters and Snapshot Mindscapes

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Short fiction has gotten the short end of the stick for much of its existence, despite the fact that it is perennially popular with critics and prize committees. While there are a number of short story artists who have forged a career in the form, many publishers shy away from volumes of short tales unless they come from an established writer. Fans of weird fiction, slipstream, speculative fiction, and horror realize the problem with this, though. So do fans. In an age where a number of writers are choosing to make their careers in short ebooks first, publishers need to sit up and take notice.

That’s why Autonomous Press has worked to invest in poetry and short fiction. We want to help a large number of fresh new voices find their audiences, and we want to connect the ways that readers and writers interact in this digital age to the distribution that makes it accessible to a wider reading community. That’s why we started the Spoon Knife series, and it’s why we started cultivating short works from individual artists.

We’re still just starting out as a company, but we have already managed to bring a couple of wonderful books by individual writers to the market, including Fable the Poet’s initially self-published chapbook. Fable is currently the poet laureate of his hometown, Grand Rapids, Michigan, and his insightful characterization and frank discussion of topics like trauma, race, and mental health provide readers and listeners with a unique point of view that flows like music.

For those in traditional genres looking to devour short tales that are a little less directly reflective of everyday life, we have Ada Hoffmann’s Monsters in My Mind, which brings together over 40 strange tales that span horror, fantasy, science fiction, speculative fiction, and more. These are never before published works, and you can find more notes about each one on her blog.

Whether you are looking into our anthology series, the collection of work curated through Barking Sycamores, or these individually authored books, you are going to find that AutPress has taken steps to make NeuroQueer Books a place for unique points of view. We’re looking forward to bringing you more of that in the new year with additional volumes of Barking Sycamores and Spoon Knife. Until then, check out Ada’s book, as well as the new novel by Verity Reynolds.

Mixing It Up: Strange Storytelling and Weird Works

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Say the word “storytelling” and a few different images might come to your mind. You may think of relaxing on the couch with an absorbing book or picture a group of entranced listeners sitting around a fire and drinking in a chilling ghost story. With our rich creative history, we’ve developed multifarious tools to tell our tales. Whether it’s a single-author book or an anthology, mixing up genres can provide fresh perspectives on storytelling.

Moving Beyond Genres With Monsters

Ada Hoffman’s latest release Monsters in My Mind is a great example of how both short stories and poetry become useful narrative tools. As a mix of flash fiction, prose poems, microfiction, and other forms, it’s evident of the delicious weirdness of which the human imagination is capable. Just as our reality can be neat and structured while messy, strange, and frightening by turns, Hoffman’s book is a unique container into which she’s packed artifacts like parallel universes, fantasy quests, reimaged fairytales, almost-sentient AI, velociraptors, and even cephalopods. This anthology is eldritch in all the right places, spilling far past the borders of the expected and predictable.

Strange Tales in Multi-Author Anthologies

The mix of voices in a multi-author collection results in a fabulous blend of shifting sceneries, intersecting timelines, and fascinating folk. For proof of that, just look at Spoon Knife 2: Test Chamber. Woven together by editors Dani Alexis Ryskamp and Sam Harvey, the collection features individuals all attempting to navigate the test chambers in which they’ve been placed. For some, the goal is mere survival while others seek to escape and subvert. Examples from the cast of characters in this anthology include an early hominid targeted by the cruel leader of her hunting party, an agent in an interdimensional police force, autistic transgender women navigating landscapes of social connection and desire, and a guy who talks to his wheelchair.

Add Our Wonderful Weird Books to Your Shelves

Whether it’s oral histories born before the advent of the written word, captivating novels, or lengthy posts on one’s social media pages, we naturally engage in narrative acts. Sometimes, our singular or collective experiences extend into realms that are wild, unusual, or fundamentally bizarre. At AutPress, we’re a huge fan of strange worlds, weird storytelling, and genre-blurring books. Be sure to pick up a copy of Monsters in My Mind, Spoon Knife 2: Test Chamber, Barking Sycamores: Year Two and other anthologies from the AutPress store.

 

First-Time Writers: AutPress Wants You!

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If you’re an emerging author, you know how challenging it can be to break into print. In a market flooded with both conventional and indie publishers, how can first-time writers even get noticed? Probably the most frustrating part of your endeavors is building a track record that convinces publishers to even open and look at, much less touch your work. This prospect can be even tougher if you’re transgender, neurodivergent, queer, disabled, a person of color or part of any group that’s typically marginalized by the mainstream. These challenges, plus the rich untapped potential of new perspectives and untold stories, is why Autonomous Press exists. At AutPress, we’re here to help new writers realize their goal of getting their best work into the world.

Emerging Writers in Our Anthologies

Both the Spoon Knife and Barking Sycamores series include work from first-time writers and other new voices. For instance, we were honored to include poetry by Marcel Price, a Michigan spoken word artist performing and writing as Fable the Poet, in our first Spoon Knife anthology released in 2016. Later that year, we released his chapbook Adrift in a Sea of M&Ms. It’s a collection that “shine[s] a light on anyone who has ever felt like an outsider,” as poet and critic Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib eloquently states. Price’s work is not only imbued with incredible structure and rhythm, but it’s a vehicle to bring issues of race and mental health to light.

Indeed, Price is one of many first-time writers in each anthology who also come from a huge range of lived experiences and backgrounds, including neurodivergent, queer, transgender, mad, disabled, racialized, and currently or formerly homeless individuals. Every volume of Spoon Knife and Barking Sycamores is also available as a digital anthology, so enjoying each exciting collection is as easy as purchasing it from the AutPress store.

More Books in Store From New Writers

We’ve got more titles in the works for early 2018, but we wanted to quickly mention one of our fall releases before we sign off. On deck we’ve got Nantais, a science fiction novel by emerging author Verity Reynolds that features an engaging web of mysteries demanding to be solved before a child, a starship, and an entire alien species are lost forever. Want to know more? Stay tuned to this blog, or follow us on Facebook and Twitter to keep posted.

The Poetry Revolution Is at AutPress

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Poetry is a broad genre with the capacity to spark new thought, communicate a wide range of human experiences, and even light the torch to ignite revolutionary social change. Take one look at books like Patricia Smith’s Blood Dazzler or Pedro Pietri’s famous poem “Puerto Rican Obituary,” and you’ll understand what we mean. With AutPress’ focus on social justice and transformative books, we uplift voices often ignored by mainstream online publishers and publish works that threaten the status quo. From nationally touring spoken word artists to writers firmly rooted in hip-hop and science fiction, our catalog contains some groundbreaking poetry you won’t want to miss.

Fearless Narratives on Race and Mental Health

For people of color, particularly those of Black ancestry, discussions about mental health challenges can be difficult, nuanced, and complex. Kid Cudi’s admission about his battle with depression and media coverage of Kayne West’s struggles are perfect examples. Also, revelations about the long-term psychological effects of systematic racism make these issues more salient now than ever. At times like these, AutPress author Marcel Price’s chapbook Adrift in a Sea of M&Ms fits perfectly into the public discourse. Touring all over the country as Fable the Poet, Price courageously engages audiences with narratives on race and mental health issues in his. It’s a poetry collection that’s been called “brutally honest” by slam poetry luminary and cultural critic Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib, and “insightful and accessible” by performance artist Dasan Ahanu.

Taste the Rhymes in The US Book

Thirsting for a book that blows science fiction, hip-hop, pop culture, neurodivergence, and communication wide open? Look no further than The US Book. Writing as Michael Scott Monje, Jr., Athena Lynn Michaels-Dillon thrills readers with verse artfully contained by her execution of poetic craft while overflowing its containers into many realms: Battlestar Galactica, lyrics from hip-hop artist Nas, Star Trek, Doctor Who, art history, and more. Author Felicia Miyakawa recommends that you “read this rich prosody loudly (use of mouth parts optional)” and “taste the rhymes.”

AutPress Feeds Your Need for Poetry

 Don’t forget that we have several multi-author collections like the Spoon Knife Anthologies and Barking Sycamores: Year Two in the AutPress store, along with Ada Hoffman’s upcoming fiction and poetry collection Monsters in My Mind. Through exploring neurodivergence, pop culture, or challenging social issues, AutPress books delivers unforgettable, deeply satisfying literary experiences for readers seeking something different from the mainstream.

Need Some Real Experts on Autism? Turn to AutPress

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When search for reliable, trustworthy resources, they often discover that it’s easy to be inundated with tons of bad advice and flat-out prejudice. Fortunately, Autonomous Press is one of the top publishers online transforming the landscape when it comes to autism. Three of our bestselling books are perfect guides to help you better understand your autistic kids and provide an environment in which they can grow up happy and healthy.

Guides to Autism, Written by Autistics

Parents of autistic children turn to The Real Experts for practical and sage advice. As a collection of essays written by autistic adults, this book contains insight from individuals who in every way, shape and form are like the autistic kids growing up in this modern era. This book features insider wisdom and accounts from respected activists like Amy Sequenzia and Neurodivergent K and autistic parents such as Morénike Giwa Onaiwu and Nick Walker. In The Real Experts, you’ll read firsthand what helped these individuals thrive.

The ABCs of Autism Acceptance

Do you wish you had a 101-style introduction to issues that matter to your autistic child? The ABCs of Autism Acceptance is the ideal primer for parents of autistic children. Author Max Sparrow (writing as Sparrow Rose Jones) challenges the ways in which autism is conventionally viewed with essays on topics ranging literally from A to Z. From an insightful look at autistic culture to revealing typical barriers neurodivergent folk face in their daily lives, Sparrow offers analysis, detailed research, witnessing from the testimonies of other autistics and even anecdotes from his own life.

A Groundbreaking Book on Typed Communication

At AutPress, part of our innovative approach centers on neurodivergent people’s lived experiences. That’s been true since our founding in 2015 and began with our first round of titles, which included the groundbreaking Typed Words, Loud Voices. Parents of autistic children who type to talk will appreciate this book, which is the first and only anthology of its kind features essays from people using this method to communicate. Dispelling the common misconception that their words are not their own, these individuals disclose stunning inner worlds of thought frequently discredited by detractors of facilitated communication and so-called “autism” experts, and ignored by mainstream media.

As you might have already discovered, many of the self-proclaimed experts on the subject are not autistic themselves, yet rely on faulty information and flawed research. If you’ve been bombarded by frightening and harmful misinformation, you might feel confused and worried for your child’s future. Thankfully, AutPress is here to help with books like The Real Experts, The ABCs of Autism and Typed Words, Loud Voices. Visit our AutPress store today to bring these valuable resources into your library.

What to Read to Get Into the Halloween Spirit

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Tired of the ordinary Halloween horror film fest? It’s time to get weird.

“Weird fiction” is a genre that blends the macabre with the supernatural, the mythical, the scientific…and the just plain weird. Since the Halloween season is a chance to let your imagination roam, don’t limit it to the usual ghosts, goblins, and axe-wielding murderers. Here’s what to read to get weird.

Monsters in My Mind

Ada Hoffmann’s short fiction and poetry anthology, Monsters in My Mind, appears in mid-October from NeuroQueer Books. Ada is a master of the weird, and the pieces in this collection encompass everything from mermaids to extradimensional worlds to sentient AI. The format makes them great for a quick dose of weirdness in your day – but once you pick this anthology up, good luck putting it down.

Weird Luck

Part of weird fiction’s weirdness is its refusal to stay politely within the bounds of any one format. The Weird Luck universe is an example: there’s a webcomic, a serialized novel on Patreon, multiple short stories hidden in various publications, and multiple novels, which will be re-released shortly. The Weird Luck universe has many entry points, and it’s a delight no matter which way you look at it.

Spoon Knife

Some folks read weird literature to step outside their daily existence and sense of self; others read it to step further in. If you’re in the latter category, the Spoon Knife anthology series is your weird fiction home. Blending fiction, memoir, and poetry with themes ranging from the technological to the mythic, the series just keeps getting weirder…and, for some readers, more relatable. Spoon Knife 3: Incursions comes out in 2018, so spend this fall getting caught up!

Whether your house is already decked out in skeletons and pumpkin spice or you’re still trying to decide what to do for Halloween, some weird reading can get you into the spirit and provide a cozy hobby for the fall.

 

 

Add These AutPress Science Fiction Titles to Your Fall Reading

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Take one look at the folks running Autonomous Press and you’ll understand why we’re passionate about science fiction. On any given day when we’re not discussing press operations, we’re chatting about our exploits playing Fallout or Mass Effect, talking about the characters and episodes from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine or Doctor Who, or critiquing books like Ender’s Game from a social justice standpoint. Naturally, our love of sci-fi extends to the AutPress catalog and we’ve already got some great suggestions to add to your bookshelf or e-reader this fall.

Get Hooked on Mirror Project

 Whereas authors like Philip K. Dick presented questions about the personhood and rights of artificial intelligence and androids, Mirror Project speeds far past these basic premises in science fiction in its riveting story of an AI fighting against abuse and incarceration. Created by a combination of human memories, brain scans, and an artificial reality simulator, Lynn Vargas contends with repeated attempts to violate her bodily autonomy and sexual overtures from her creator. As she fights back, she not only faces questions of who she can trust but also what makes a life worth living.

Coming Fall 2017: Nantais

Imagine: you’re the first officer of a starship that’s stranded thanks to a rogue computer virus. Meanwhile, your captain’s son is missing, and one of your only leads to solving these mysteries is an alien whose species may be facing extinction. What would you do? Nantais, a science fiction novel by Verity Reynolds, explores this question in the form of spectacularly weird fiction that easily immerses the reader while breaking away from literary conventions in the genre. We’re very excited about this upcoming new book release, so watch for its appearance in the AutPress store this fall.

Stayed Tuned for More Releases

In addition to Mirror Project and Nantais, we’ve got a lot more speculative literature in store! Keep your eye out for future releases by Nick Walker and Andrew Reichart in their Insurgent Otherworld series. Also, stay tuned for Hoshi and the Red City Circuit, a science fiction novel by Dora Raymaker, and Time Travel in a Closet, a book of time-traveling poetry by N.I. Nicholson.

Queer Your Fall Reading List With AutPress Books

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As the leaves outside change color and the temperatures begin to dip, these chillier autumn days demand some quality time indoors with a hot drink and some great books. While you’re stocking up on your top choices, be sure to queer your fall reading with LGBT literature from Autonomous Press. Our “Weird Books for Weird People” includes titles recognized by the Lambda Literary Awards along with innovative collections of poetry, short fiction and memoir from queer and neurodivergent writers.

Defiant: A Complex, Engaging Read

As part of the Shaping Clay series, Defiant is a book that turns typical narratives about autism on their heads. Many of these, penned by authors who are not autistic, barely scratch the surface when it comes autistic people, sexual orientation, and gender. True to its title, Defiant challenges this status quo with a protagonist, Clay Dillion, who transforms in so many ways throughout its story arc. Nominated for a 2016 Lambda Literary Award in the Transgender Fiction category, it’s LGBT literature documenting a transgender autistic experience. As Clay moves through a world that is messy, chaotic, horrifically dark, and morbid, watching him begin to embody the qualities in the book’s title makes for an intrinsically gratifying read.

Queer Narratives in Barking Sycamores

Barking Sycamores is a journal entirely edited by transgender people of color, publishing work by neurodivergent creatives. The journal joined the AutPress family in March 2016 with the release of its Barking Sycamores: Year One print and digital anthology. Year One, and the soon-to-be-released Barking Sycamores: Year Two anthology, both include LGBT poetry and short fiction. They’re both collections where neurodiversity and LBGT literature meet, featuring stunning work by several dozen authors from all over the world.

Neurodivergent LGBT Lit in Multiple Genres

We’ve spotlighted just a few queer lit books here, but don’t forget to check out our other titles from LGBT writers and contributors! That includes both the first Spoon Knife Anthology and Spoon Knife 2: Test Chamber, as well as The US Book. All of these and more are available directly from the AutPress store. So…what are you waiting for?

Real, Authentic Autistic Representation in Fiction

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Autism has been a hot topic for at least two decades, but mainstream media and literature is replete with material written about autistic people rather than by autistic people. At Autonomous Press, we’re one of the independent publishers set on radically change that. That’s why AutPress’ catalog heavily features fiction with autistic characters created by autistic writers. If you’re looking for new books to keep you company this fall, you’ll want to add “Shaping Clay: The Elemental Trilogy” to your list.

Autistic Storytelling From the Inside Out

Autistic readers may feel an eerie sense of recognition when they immerse themselves in the saga of Clay Dillion. Currently at three books and counting, “Shaping Clay: The Elemental Trilogy” includes:

  • Nothing Is Right
  • Defiant
  • Imaginary Friends

Nothing Is Right introduces us to Clay Dillon, a young autistic child starting first grade. As you read, you peer over his shoulder while he experiences frustration, sensory overload, self-injury and the sheer panic of suddenly being unable to speak. The author’s storytelling method focuses on autistic characters’ experiences and in this case, depicts Clay’s struggle between desiring to be known for who he truly is and retreating from the pain that comes from how others treat him.

Clay’s story arc continues in both Defiant and Imaginary Friends. Defiant shows us Clay at age 30, finally discovering that he is, indeed, autistic. With this new knowledge comes more challenges as he questions what his desires are, and even who he is, while his world shifts around him.  Published in 2016, Imaginary Friends takes a journey to earlier in Clay’s timeline, showing readers the hellish world around him that the adults in his life construct.

Engaging Books That Keep You Reading

This is not literature that gazes at autistic characters from the outside. Author and AutPress partner Athena Lynn Michaels-Dillon opens a portal to give readers a view from the inside. Going beyond the issue of autistic representation, the works in “Shaping Clay: The Elemental Trilogy” are intensely gripping with a ferocity that both affects deeply and rewards you for journeying through the hells Clay Dillon encounters. As one reviewer put it, “I started reading Imaginary Friends in the evening, big mistake. Dawn was just breaking when I finally finished, tears in my eyes, wanting more.”

AutPress: Stepping Up the Representation Game

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Representation of marginalized groups in media and literature is critical. The Oscar-winning film Moonlight and the innovative television series Sense8 both speak to the importance of seeing oneself in film, television, literature, and other modes of artistic expression. Now more than ever, neurodivergent people seek to find representations of themselves, their voices, and their experiences in literary form. Mainstream publishers have mostly ignored this community, or have relied on neurotypical authors producing hackneyed, inaccurate portrayals rooted in the same repeated stereotypes. You’ve seen them before: the Sheldon Coopers, the Christian Wolffs, the Simon Lynches. At Autonomous Press, we’re an independent publisher of diverse books aiming to change this trend.

Weird Books for Weird People

Founded in 2015, AutPress focuses solidly on bringing transformative works to print and digital formats. Its catalog consists of both single-author books and multi-contributor anthologies featuring voices that are usually marginalized in mainstream publishing: queer, transgender, neurodivergent, mad, disabled, racialized, presently or formerly homeless, and incarcerated. That translates to our single-author titles such as The US Book, a mic-dropping work that brings together science fiction, hip-hop, art history, music history and other influences to craft its own spectacular, full-color multiverse between the pages.

Among our yearly anthologies, you’ll find the Spoon Knife series, which already has two volumes under its belt with the release of Spoon Knife 2: Test Chamber this past spring. Debuting in 2016 with the first Spoon Knife Anthology, the annual collections bring together work that pushes boundaries and centers on themes salient to neurodivergent, queer, and mad people. The series continues in 2018 with the release of Spoon Knife 3: Incursions, which will include works of one reality or theme breaking through into another.

New NeuroQueer Books for Fall

We’ve given you a couple of suggestions for fall reading picks, but you’ll want to stay tuned for our next set of releases. Read the story of exolinguist Richard Hayek’s quest to solve the mystery of a rogue computer virus, a missing child and a major threat capable of wiping out an entire alien species in Nantais, a new sci-fi novel by Verity Reynolds. Coming this autumn, we also have Barking Sycamores: Year Two. It’s the second installment in the annual anthologies from one of the only literary journals explicitly publishing literature and art by neurodivergent contributors. Between groundbreaking books like The US Book and Spoon Knife 2: Test Chamber and upcoming titles like Nantais and Barking Sycamores: Year Two, you’ll have plenty of books to stock up on for your fall reading.