Curbside Splendor and the Literateur...

...both have new reviews of Rose Metal Press titles, and both of those reviews are lovely.

In Curbside, Joey Pizzolato writes of But Our Princess Is in Another Castle by B.J. Best that: "This is not a book you read quickly; rather, dissect, spend the same innumerable hours with as you did playing video games when you were young and trying to get the high score in Pacman or beat Ganon in The Legend of Zelda.  Like video games, Best’s prose poems will take you to secret worlds filled with anything you can imagine (and some things you never thought you could). "

And in The Literateur, Nikolai Duffy writes of The Louisiana Purchase by Jim Goar that "It’s the ambition of this book that really sets it apart from much recent poetry. It’s tradition and life and learning shot through with the quirks of the individual. The fact that Rose Metal Press have wrapped all this up in the surrounds of a beautifully and thoughtfully produced book makes the experience of engaging with Goar’s text all the more enjoyable."

Thanks, Joey and Nikolai!

The Believer believes in Rose Metal Press...

...specifically in But Our Princess Is in Another Castle by B.J. Best, which Stephen Burt reviews here in the June 2013 issue of the magazine, writing: "You might expect this collection of prose poems—whose puns, extended metaphors, and multiple-purpose generalizations string together the story of the author’s life, from childhood to fatherhood, by way of sixty-three video games—to be a sweet exercise in old-school nerd nostalgia. [...]And yet B. J. Best gathers his power not from nostalgia, not from the mere contrast between a kid’s joys and a grown-up’s cares, but from a deeper dichotomy."

Over here at Redivider, Charlotte Seley reviews Shampoo Horns by Aaron Teel, writing that it "...does more than entice with the specificity of location and objects. Although it could be arguably considered a 'coming of age' story in flash fiction, the centrality of the chapbook appears anchored in brotherhood and solidarity among boys trying to define themselves as me."

And last but not least, over here at New Pages, Elizabeth O'Brien reviews The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing Flash Nonfiction edited by Dinty W. Moore, writing: "The feel of the book is part inspiration, part technical craft talk—some chapters feel geared toward beginners while others feel more appropriate to advanced/more experienced writers—guaranteeing that the book will well serve writers of every experience level interested in flash nonfiction." 

Thanks to Stephen, Charlotte, and Elizabeth for the thoughtful reviews! 

Sneak Peek of the cover of Liliane's Balcony!

We're very excited about publishing Kelcey Parker's novella-in-flash Liliane's Balcony, set at Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater! The book launches in October, and RMP designer Heather Butterfield has just finished creating this amazing cover for the book, featuring Fran Forman's artwork.

B.J. Best is among the best...

...poets to read in honor of the recently concluded National Poetry Month, according to Library Journal. They list his book But Our Princess Is in Another Castle among their 30 new books to  help you rediscover poetry here.

Gawker's video-game arm, Kotaku, seems to agree, and they interviewed B.J. about the collection here.

J.A. Tyler conducted an equally impressive interview with B.J. for Monkeybicycle and you can read the whole thing here.

And if that weren't enough, Verse Daily ran "Ms. and Super Pac-Man" here.

Bonnie ZoBell interviewed us about Rose Metal Press for The Flash Fiction Chronicles, and you can read her Qs and our A's here.

Interviews and Inner sanctums...

....are a few of the items of Rose Metal Press news that have cropped up on the Internet in the past week or so. First, here is an interview with Dinty W. Moore, editor of The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing Flash Nonfiction at Stated Magazine by Danielle Shine. In it, you can see him answer such insightful questions as "In terms of the controversy that you describe in the introduction of this book— subjectivity clashing with the genre of nonfiction, has there ever been a work of flash nonfiction submitted to you that was not believable?" Thanks, Danielle! 

You can also read a review of the Field Guide itself by Alizabeth Rasmussen at Literary Mama here. "The Field Guide is remarkable on many levels. The essays at the end of each chapter could stand alone as a collection worth reading—even if you have no desire to explore writing in this genre. Brian Doyle's "Leap" is haunting, beautiful, and thoroughly unforgettable. In fewer than 300 words, Brenda Miller's "Swerve" not only communicates the essence of a relationship gone bad, but takes the reader inside it. And "Off the Top of My Head," by Patrick Madden, is a sweet story and a perfect example of how kids so often give us our best writing material," she says. Thanks, Alizabeth!

And another review of the Field Guide is here on the New Orleans Review site, in which they write "With the rise in popularity of flash nonfiction, this Field Guide demonstrates how and why the genre is so inviting to both writers and readers: this is a form well-suited for experimentation and hybridization." Thanks, New Orleans Review!

As for inner sanctums, here is the one belonging to B.J. Best as profiled by The Next Best Book Club. He evidently writes in a room filled with beautiful vintage typewriters and other ephemera. Thanks to Lori of TNBCC for including B.J. in the "Where Writers Write" series. 

And speaking of B.J., here is a lovely review of his book But Our Princess Is in Another Castle by Thomas Michael Duncan for Sundog Lit. "To some people these games are a mindless activity, or vintage art at best, but to someone with a stronger, deeper connection to the games, they are the gateway to a living, breathing, complex world. Best makes that world accessible to readers through this collection of vivid prose poems. Far more than a nostalgia bender, But Our Princess is a smart collection that can be as fun to pick up as that  8-bit console controller," he says. Thanks, Thomas!

Video games and what's in a name...

...are the subjects included in some recent coverage of Rose Metal Press authors B.J. Best and Dinty W. Moore.

In the Printers Row section of yesterday's Chicago Tribune, Courtney Crowder writes of Best's collection But Our Princess Is in Another Castle that, "Like how Mario must keep searching for his princess, Best wants the book to encourage readres to continue seeking whatever or whoever makes them happy. He also hopes the book will help legitimize video games as an art form. " You can read the whole thing, "B.J. Best's power-up poetry," here. Thanks, Courtney!

In Vol. 1 Brooklyn, Nick Ostdick interviews Best, asking him such questions as "I'd be remiss, given this whole discussion, if I didn't ask what game(s) you're playing right now? I mean, I assume you're playing something, be it classic or modern." You can read the whole interview here. Thanks, Nick!

And in The Nervous Breakdown, the goofily named Matthew Batt asks the equally well-named Dinty W. Moore, editor of The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Flash Nonfiction, questions about his moniker. You can read their delightful exchange here. Thanks, Matthew Batt!

On the radio and in the Editor's Corner...

...that's where you can learn about Rose Metal Press this week.

Stephanie Lecci interviewed B.J. Best about his videogame-inspired prose poetry collection But Our Princess Is in Another Castle last week for the program "Lake Effect" on Wisconsin Public Radio's WUWM  89.7. You can listen to the whole program here, and we recommend that you do. Thanks, Stephanie!

And Melinda Wilson interviewed Abby and Kathleen for the Editor's Corner feature on the VIDA: Women in Literary Arts website. We value the work that VIDA does not just with The Count but overall to help make editors and publishers more mindful of who and what they publish. You can see the entire interview here. Thanks, Melinda!