Feminism Friday: A Little CALYX History

The Fall CALYX Glitterati is celebrating Frida Kahlo’s art and Dia de los muertos (October 21^st, Corvallis Arts Center), and as I was looking through old files searching for extra copies of the artist Frida Kahlo’s color plates that we published in the International Anthology I was digging through dusty files in the back room. This resulted in an impromptu lesson to staff and interns on the history of publication layout. I actually don’t remember the exact date we switched to laying out publications completely on the computer. But as I pulled out the complicated cover layouts—hand done in the days before art was handled from computer images—the layers of plastic and instructions for each layer of color were a surprise for the younger staff and interns—particularly the mathematical computations that had to be done for each piece of art. Most surprising was recognizing my handwriting on some of the covers, having forgotten I often had to lay out covers myself.

Kelsey (Assistant Director) and Meghan (intern) with Women and Aging publication layout

Life is so much easier with computerized cover design. As we finalized the cover art and design for the new book Crow Mercies (by Penelope Schott), Cheryl McLean (of Imprint Service who does our production and design) sent 4 variations on 3 different pieces of art for our final consideration. Our Senior Editor watched Cheryl do the magical design and said some of the variations took place in minutes. What a difference from the days we did all those mathematical computations, cut out the red gelatin borders, and wrote instructions to the printer on each page of the layout.

Different alternatives for the cover of Crow Mercies

~Margarita Donnelly, Director

Feminism Friday: Reflections on Interning at a Feminist Press

It is hard to narrow down my experience with CALYX in just one short paragraph, so I’ve been trying to think of a few key elements that made my internship memorable. Maybe it was being surrounded by women who have dedicated their lives to literature and art by women, the fact that everyone there is a great inspiration with intriguing stories, the charm of being involved with something wonderful and important, or maybe I was lucky to get along with my fellow interns. I can’t really put a number on any of these things. I can say that this internship fulfilled my questions: yes, I do want to be involved in the publishing world, and yes, it is an amazingly lengthy and complicated process to publish. I have always enjoyed being involved with the development of a story or a poem—reading, editing, workshopping—almost as much as I love writing itself. At CALYX, this was my favorite part. I had the opportunity to participate with the copy-editing meeting and I’ll never forget the tricks Beverly showed us with editing. It’s nice to be in an environment where discussing the use of a comma or dash is exciting work, and I hope to continue it. This internship has given me great insight as a writer, someone who wishes to be in the publishing world and as an avid lover of literature. Seeing all the manuscripts going through CALYX, watching them be processed and handled by so many people, sending out rejects and holds to wonderful writers, gave me such a different view and respect for the publishing world. I love this business because it is not about money, but the love of something wonderful. Along with experience, this internship has given me a better sense of direction. I’ll never forget my time with CALYX or the lovely women I had the opportunity of learning from. You are all an inspiration to me, and I hope I’m able to put as much love into my work as you all do.

Your adoring intern,

Jan Colley

Staff Pick of the Week

The Violet Shyness of Their Eyes: Notes from Nepal

Revised edition, 2005, by Barbara J. Scot

Pacific Northwest Bookseller Award

The Violet Shyness of Their Eyes: Notes from Nepal, winner of the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Award, is a moving memoir of a western woman’s transformative sojourn in Nepal. Scot’s vivid account of living, teaching, and trekking in Nepal demonstrated insight into cultural difference while confronting the complex issues of development work and the status of Nepali women. In 2004, Scot returned to Nepal, and in this new edition she records her reactions to the changes the country experienced in the last decade, particularly the current political unrest and the effects on the country of a Maoist insurgency. Scot looks back on her original experience in Nepal and its impact on her life, and reacts to the differences she observed during her recent journey.

Check out the book here