Archived Letters

Fall 2008

Does Canada really need another literary publisher? From the Kilimanjaro of submissions we’ve received, it’s clear that Canada’s writers think so. But what about readers?

Festival programmers, bookstore owners, and book-buyers themselves tell us there are too many books being published. They are overwhelmed by volume and by choice.

We think that makes a small, highly selective imprint like Freehand all the more vital. Our books have been painstakingly chosen and just as painstakingly edited and produced. Extremely good books that people, lots of them, will want to read: the formula is simple—and it isn’t.

Freehand. I’ve thought a lot about those two powerful syllables as this inaugural list has taken shape. Most immediately, they evoke a playful, unfettered creativity, a personal stamp and verve, within an area of expert endeavour. There’s freehand lacemaking. Freehand drawing, of course. And the list goes on—freehand circle drawing, freehand yo-yo tricking, and freehand glowsticking (hello, ravers). But there’s something else, too. An ice dancer, one arm entwined with her partner’s, is routinely warned not to flail her free hand around. And bull riders, who might think they have nothing in common with figure skaters, must pay a similar kind of attention. Touch the bull or the reins with that all-important free hand, and you’re out.

So there’s a tension, clearly, between freedom and discipline here. Dennis Lee, that avatar of controlled anarchy, calls this duality “the nag and improv” of good writing. We look for writers who are equally engaged in this exacting dance.

Our first list is eclectic, representing the range of genres we intend to publish throughout the coming years. We are presenting a novel, a collection of short stories, a non-fiction memoir-in-essays, and a collection of poetry. Yet each of our first four writers have a single, vital thing in common: they all marry great creativity and imagination with an astonishing level of control over their craft. The result, as we’re sure you’ll agree, is a collection of four of the best books being published in Canada, or anywhere else, this year. These are books to admire and enjoy in equal measure. Happy reading.

Melanie Little, Editor