Write, Print, Fold and Staple

In Write, Print, Fold and Staple Jim Johnstone details the enduring importance of chapbook micropresses to the ecology of Canadian literature, arguing that the chapbook is the ideal form for publishing poetry. Small and provisional, micropresses generally operate outside of the commercial anxieties of trade publishing, pursuing unmediated aesthetic, cultural and personal aims.“Can’t find the book you’re looking to read? Fold and distribute something new. Generate the change you want to see.” At the heart of Johnstone’s discussion is a useful survey of fifteen notable Canadian micropresses active during the past two decades, presses whose output ranges from lo-fi, zine-like, counter-cultural productions through to works whose editing and production values far exceed those of mainstream publishers, and everything in between.