Digital Launch

About the publishing of Solar Winds and Ions.

This blog affords me an opportunity to share the story behind Solar Winds and Ions. I think that, from a publishing viewpoint, Lapwing and I have tried to do something slightly different from the more traditional release and distribution of a poetry collection.

The publishing world is experiencing a tense transition, in terms of finding the appropriate relationship between the publication of hard copy and digital formats. The strengthening role of digital publishing, with regards poetry, can be clearly seen by the influx of literary ezines. It is out of this emerging context that Solar Winds and Ions raises its flag.

1. Solar Winds and Ions in a nutshell.

Solar Winds and Ions is my fourth poetry collection with Lapwing Publications. It is a PDF file that contains the five poems:

1. Paper Trail

2. Tuner

3. Mindset

4. Out of Print

5. Embayment

People are free to print, download, host or email this file to any interested parties.

Note: The file is NOT free to use, if for commercial purposes.

2. The prelude to Solar Winds and Ions.

As I mentioned earlier, where digital publishing has really become notably innovative and important to poetry, is with the explosion of literary ezines. Websites like ‘issuu’ have created a very user friendly and slick means by which people can easily publish material on the web. These sites, with their low entry costs, enable more people to explore and participate in literary publishing.

Over the last couple of years, I have had poems published in the literary ezines Minus 9 Squared and THE GREEN DOOR. The fact that these poems were now freely available, online, provided an opportunity for Lapwing and me to rethink how we might approach the publication of these poems, under the Lapwing name.

3. The shaping of Solar Winds and Ions.

We had three concerns with this project. Our first concern was that we did not want to charge people money for something they could already freely receive online. Our second concern was that we wanted Solar Winds and Ions to have value for those who might have previously read the poems online. Our third concern was that we wanted to give people, who would prefer to read a hard copy as opposed to a digital copy, the choice of doing so.

In tackling the first concern we decided there would be a free, downloadable version. In dealing with the second concern we decided to add an additional unpublished poem entitled: Embayment. We also decided that we would publish a very limited edition hard copy for those who wanted it.

4. Solar Winds and Ions’ artwork

An integral part of any collection is the artwork that accompanies it. Artwork that works in harmony with the poetry can enhance the aesthetical experience for the reader. In my previous collections, I have been very fortunate to have had people submit original art work, specifically designed for each collection. Sean Rudden’s work on the covers of Fallen Eyelashes and Braille Lips in the Dark, and Aoife McQuinn’s work on Stopwatch, contribute to the overall experience of those collections.

For Solar Winds and Ions, I sought the assistance of Karl Kinsella. The idea behind the artwork was to have the cover-image overspill into the collection and be expressed through different conceptual viewpoints. There is the image of the ‘sun‘, which ties into the collection’s title, told through three different visual perspectives. The artwork is especially rewarding because of its collaborative nature: I designed the cover image while Karl designed the two internal images.

5. Solar Winds and Ions’ two distinct launches.

Once the artwork was finished, Lapwing and I had to think about the best approach for launching this collection. The tricky aspect to this was to find a suitable manner to equally honour both the hard copy and digital format.

I thought that it was vital to give each format its own separate launch, suited to the distinct needs posed by each format. In order to achieve this we turned to two of Ireland’s most prominent literary organisations. The Irish Writers' Centre hosted the launch of the hard copy in September 2011. Poetry Ireland is hosting the launch of the digital copy as a free download on their website. Both organisations have been very supportive of the project. Poetry Ireland’s role has been especially important. The pivotal ingredient to a digital launch is a credible website from which to launch it.

6. A reflection on Solar Winds and Ions’ publishing process.

To conclude, I would like to give a brief reflection on my experience of launching a collection in this manner. At a personal level, it has been very rewarding. This is my fourth publication and I really wanted to ‘shake things up’ for myself and create a different dynamic about how I might share my work.

There was a different type of energy surrounding the launch at the Irish Writers’ Centre, in September 2011. Launching a limited edition publication has a more distinct ‘vibe’ to it than a standard publication launch. As a poet, I got a real sense of immediacy in the room: I was aware that the people seated in front of me, might be the only ones to receive a hard copy.

With regards the online launch, there is a feeling of leaping into the unknown. Every poet imbues each publication with a strong emotional investment. To publish on the web, is a very strange experience, but strange in a good sense. It is exciting because there is so much potential with a web launch. It is risky because such potential might not become realised. Either way, I am glad that Lapwing and I did this. I am also very grateful to Poetry Ireland for giving us the online context to make this endeavour possible.

Adam Rudden 01/03/2012