by Bonnie ZoBell
Roxane Gay lives and writes in the Midwest. She is the publisher of Tiny Hardcore Press.
Bonnie ZoBell: Thanks for agreeing to talk today, Roxane. PANK Little Books and TINY Hardcore Press have both been such wonderful presses.
Roxane Gay: It’s my pleasure.
BZ: I just read on PANK’s website that Tiny Hardcore Press will absorb PANK Books in January of 2014 and that good things will come of this. Through our correspondence you indicate that THC has already absorbed PANK Little Books. If that’s already true, I’m going to go ahead and just talk about Tiny Hardcore Press below. What made you decide to merge the two, and how will this be better?
RG: It’s mostly a logistical merge. It simply makes more sense for me to have two of my editorial projects, and certainly the ones I spend the most time on, under the same banner. This will also allow me to cede some of the distribution responsibilities for the books, to my PANK co-editor, M. Bartley Seigel, who handles PANK’s distribution. I’m also in the process of hiring an editor to handle the manuscript work with writers. I’ll still be involved in the role of publisher, handling the financial end of the press. Ultimately, Tiny Hardcore Press is now an imprint of PANK.
We just want great writing. We don’t care where it comes from.
BZ: Does Tiny Hardcore Press have a philosophy?
RG: I’m looking for great books that might not get a chance to thrive elsewhere.
BZ: What would you say Tiny Hardcore Press is looking for in the way of fiction chapbook submissions?
RG: I tend to enjoy realism or gritty realism and writing that will move me and make me think.
BZ: What mistakes do you see writers making who submit fiction chapbooks?
RG: Far too many writers send book projects into the world before they are ready. There seems to be a lot of pressure for writers to “have a book” without considering that perhaps it’s better to have a good book.
BZ: What’s Tiny Hardcore Press’s idea of a perfect fiction chapbook submission?
Far too many writers send book projects into the world before they are ready. There seems to be a lot of pressure for writers to “have a book” without considering that perhaps it’s better to have a good book.
RG: I’m definitely not looking for perfection and think it’s dangerous to imagine that there could be a perfect submission because then you close yourself off to so much writing that is flawed but deeply memorable.
BZ: Name a few writers whose fiction chapbooks Tiny Hardcore 
Press has published and tell us a few words about their chapbooks.
RG: We’ve published books by xTx, Robb Todd, Brandi Wells, Casey Hannan, Frank Hinton, and James Tadd Adcox, to name a few. Their books are each worlds unto themselves. Each of these writers has created stories that are raw and honest and human and that’s all you can ask from a book.
BZ: If you could put a fold-out in one of your fiction chapbooks, who or what would it be of?
RG: A diagram of the human heart.
BZ: Talk a little about the production of Tiny Hardcore Press’s fiction chapbooks. Will this change now that the two presses have merged? What size are they? How are they made? Perfect bound, stapled, or? How much color do you use? What is the page range of most of them?
RG: Production processes won’t change. The books are all 4.25” x 5.5” and perfect bound. The covers are all full color and the interiors are black and white. I originally did the design myself. I use a freelance designer for the books now. The last several books have been done by the wonderful Alban Fischer. I have them printed through David McNamara who runs Sunnyoutside/Cloudy Outside.
BZ: Do you accept manuscripts all year round, or only during certain times of the year?
RG: We are closed to submissions for the foreseeable future.
BZ: Is Tiny Hardcore Press interested in fiction chapbooks from new writers who haven’t had books or chapbooks published before?
RG: Absolutely. We just want great writing. We don’t care where it comes from.
BZ: How many stories in the chapbooks submitted to you do you like to see already published?
RG: I have no particular preference, but the more the merrier.
BZ: I appreciate these answers, Roxane, and learning about the two presses merging. It’s great to hear from you since you’ve published some high-quality fiction chapbooks.
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