Tupelo Quarterly in Conversation With Janaka Stucky

Kristina Marie Darling spends time with poet, performer, and founding editor of Black Ocean Press, Janaka Stucky, in the latest update at Tupelo Quarterly. Darling begins the interview by asking Stucky what drew him to the publisher of his own writing, Third Man Books. "I am less interested in craft as I am in experience—whether you call it mystical, ecstatic, or simply transcendent from the mundane world," Stucky explains. Picking up from there: 

So as I started thinking about publishers for my work I knew out of the gate that the right match might be difficult to find. When Third Man Records began dipping their toes into the world of books and literature they tapped Chet Weise to be their editor, who in turn tapped me to consult on navigating the brave new world of book publishing—which is very different from record-making. In working with them, and being included as an author in their first box-set anthology, I was really impressed with the attention to detail everyone there had, as well as their enthusiasm for the transformative potential of poetry. As publisher for Black Ocean, I seek content that gives me a sense of dread and awe, that mysterium tremendum, and then I want to package it in the beautiful physical artifact of the well-designed and produced book. While I realized I would be Third Man’s first single-author title, they had demonstrated the kindred dedication to aesthetics I was looking for, and so I decided to pitch my book to them. They picked me up as their first author two weeks later, and here we are.

There have been other, unexpected ways that the pairing has turned out to be a great match. As an artist, performing my work is almost as important to me as writing it. I tour heavily and Third Man knows how to support a touring artist. As a publisher, I often talk with my authors about the various paths of book promotion: touring, reviews & interviews, awards, social media, getting bylines. I think successful book promotion involves a combination of at least 2, and ideally 3, of those avenues. I had over 35 dates in the first year of my book tour behind The Truth Is We Are Perfect in 2015, and I’m on track to exceed that number for Ascend Ascend. A lot of publishers wouldn’t know how to partner with me on a book tour that involved music festivals, multimedia performances, and sharing bills with bands or experimental artists. But to Third Man tour support is their bread & butter for the musicians they work with, and I’m another touring act in their stable. Ben Swank, Third Man’s co-owner has said to me that he wishes some of his musicians hustled as hard as I do—which is a great complement. It’s hard to make that kind of tour schedule work with a family to take care of and a full-time job to navigate, but it has paid off. My first book sold upwards of 2,000 copies and it looks like Ascend Ascend is on-track to do the same. Those are great numbers for poetry, where the average sales for a book is more like 200. So it’s hard work, but I’m also finding my audience.

Read on at Tupelo Quarterly.