Red Hen Press, Inc.

Our History: 25 Years of Literary Independence and Community Impact In 1994, Dr. Kate Gale and Mark E. Cull co-founded the press from their San Fernando Valley home, selling nearly all they owned to begin publishing talented writers whose works had been overlooked by large-scale publishers. Red Hen Press has since transformed into a thriving organization that supports the Greater Los Angeles Area and international communities with arts-based events and literary advocacy. The press maintains five unique programs: Publishing: Red Hen publishes approximately twenty-five books of poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction each year, with over 500 books released to date and distributed internationally. Representative fiction writers include Aimee Liu, Martha Cooley, Donna Hemans, Judy Grahn, Yuvi Zalkow, and Andrew Lam. Representative poets include Chris Abani, Katharine Coles, Camille Dungy, Eloise Klein Healy, Brynn Saito, Peggy Shumaker, Doug Manuel, and Francesca Bell. The press also publishes ten imprints that highlight underrepresented authors from diverse locations and backgrounds. The newest series, Quill, publishes one book of fiction by a queer author per year. Literary Events: The press cultivates nearly thirty readings annually, at a variety of venues in the Greater Los Angeles Area, New York City, and internationally. Events feature both acclaimed and emerging writers from throughout the U.S, are either free or low-cost, and average 1,000 audience members yearly. Additionally, author events contribute up to 300 – 350 events per year. Writing in the Schools (WITS): Founded in 2003, this literary education program has served over 4,000 underserved students by placing published authors into fourth through twelfth-grade classrooms. WITS provides free creative writing workshops and books to low-income students and at the end of the school year students receive a professionally bound anthology of their work. The Los Angeles Review (LAR): A literary journal available online with a “best of” annual print edition, LAR provides a platform for writers to share their standalone pieces of short stories, flash fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry. Literary Awards: Red Hen Press and LAR proudly present ten awards (prizes totaling $12,000) each year to emerging writers. All winners receive a monetary award ranging from $1,000 to $3,000. Red Hen Press Awards winners are guaranteed book publication.