Small Press
gunpowderpress.comGunpowder Press
Open nowAbout the press
Publishing focus
Gunpowder Press is an independent literary 501(c)(3) organization based in Santa Barbara, California. Founded in 2013, Gunpowder values community and craft. The press publishes the annual Barry Spacks Poetry Prize (open to all US residents), the John Ridland Poetry Prize (for poets 55 and older), the bilingual Alta California Chapbook series, the Dryden-Vreeland Book Prize (for poets working in K-12 schools), the California Poets Series, and others. Their online journal, Anacapa Review , brings together new and established poets, including voices outside of the United States.
Selected authors
Fred Arroyo, Kellam Ayres, Aaron Baker, Christopher Blackman, Michelle Bonczek Evory, David Allen Case, Nan Cohen, Todd Copeland, Meghan Dunn, Keith Ekiss, Glenn Freeman, Lee Herrick, Catherine Abbey Hodges, Gabriel Ibarra, Holly Karapetkova, Susan Kelly-Dewitt, Joshua McKinney, Florencia Milito, Sandra McPherson, Florencia Milito, Kurt Olsson, Jim Peterson, Catherine Esposito Prescott, Peg Quinn, Nicholas Reiner, Amelia Rodriguez, Crystal AC Salas, Dennis Schmitz, Gary Soto, Barry Spacks, SM Stubbs, Chryss Yost
Calls & opportunities
7 listedManuscript submissions
Poets should approach Gunpowder Press with a manuscript that demonstrates both technical mastery and a distinctive voice. The John Ridland Poetry Prize is the primary avenue for unsolicited submissions; read the guidelines carefully and submit only during the reading period. The press values poems that are accessible without being simplistic, and that reward rereading. Include a brief, professional cover letter and ensure your manuscript is free of typographical errors. Simultaneous submissions are typically accepted, but notify promptly if your work is placed elsewhere. Above all, let the poems speak for themselves—avoid over-explaining your aesthetic in the cover letter.
Gunpowder Press values craft. Poets interested in the Gunpowder Press aesthetic may wish to visit Anacapa Review is available to read online for free.
Read official guidelinesBooks
4 itemsExplore titles from the press’s catalogue.