Soft Skull

(from Publisher's Weekly)

Richard Nash will step down as editorial director of Soft Skull Press and executive editor of parent company Counterpoint March 10. Nash joined Counterpoint approximately 18 months ago when he sold the financially struggling but highly regarded Soft Skull to Charlie Winton’s Counterpoint. The purchase gave the Berkeley, Calif.-based Counterpoint a New York office and in a release Winton said he intends to keep an editorial office in New York and to maintain the Soft Skull imprint.

Both Winton and Nash said Soft Skull is now on sound financial footing, with Nash calling 2008 Soft Skull’s “best financial year ever.” He said he was grateful for the reprieve Counterpoint gave to Soft Skull’s writers and readers, but said, “It is time to let Soft Skull move onto the next phase of its existence, and to allow me to take on the new challenges our industry is facing.” The departure of Nash does not come as a surprise to many in the indie press world who have been speculating for several months that Nash was looking to getting back to try something new.

Nash told PW, "This is about the future of publishing. I really want to be engaged in helping figure out a new model for independents. And I am enormously optimistic. I'm not going to do consulting or freelancing, in the sense of eupemisms for 'I don't have a clue' or 'I'm getting the hell out of publishing,' but as a way of doubling down, betting it all on the future of publishing, and it's easier to bet if you have a clean slate rather than a legacy project." Nash also indicated he looks forward to having time to "play with others," after working "70-hour weeks for eight years inside the Soft Skull pod."

Submissions open again, new poetry editor

Jake Mooney has left his post as poetry editor. Jake was huge, and he had been editing at TJ for like three years. Gonna miss him. Check out his poetry book, which was among the better things I read last year. "New Layman's Almanac."

Taking his place will be Spencer Troxell, who we've been publishing almost since we started. I think Spencer has a pretty good sensibility. I have his blog (medicine cabinet) linked from the front page of TJ now. He's thoughtful and kind of still a kid. I think it'll be a fine fit.

Unsolicited submissions are also open again.

Kin Corn Karn

Little roots maneuver to go along with Bradley Sands' piece this week.

Denis Johnson's editor

At least for "Tree of Smoke" and "Nobody Move" (the Playboy serial that comes out as a book in April).

Dave Cole.

Once Upon a Time in the West

A little western flavor to accompany Mulvey's piece this week.

Shoot it Sonny, I'm scared

Welcome home, Kenneth Mulvey. It's been too long.

We missed you.

You do that beat up beat beat proud.

And people like Mather will hate you because I said that.

Coupla Wavy Lines

Bow Down

Riverbed gets the girl

"Before Riverbed and Cleaver had lived together for two years, when they had just met at a bookstore they both worked in, they had kissed on top of a parking lot. The next day, Riverbed told her that he wasn’t looking for a girlfriend, and they said they’d see each other again. But Cleaver stood him up again and again; he tried to communicate with her, and she wrote him a letter calling him a junky, an overgrown baby. Riverbed skipped out of town for three weeks; he bummed around Asheville, and when he returned, he had a beard and Cleaver said she was in love with him."

Buy his new poetry book, Damaged, because there's no way it's not out by now, right?

Lolita

Yowch.

Now THIS is a book...