Hoopla poetry series

Hoopla Poetry Series

Project 2014-02-05 15:37:19 +1300

An albino huia, a stranger in the attic and a pink-haired woman ... Bird murder by Stefanie Lash is a gothic murder mystery narrating the demise of a ruined banker set in the not-quite-fictional town of Tusk.

The poems in Helen Rickerby's Cinema look at the personal through the lens of a camera and the world of cinema through the unfiltered eye. Meet the boy who learns to kiss from action movies, the girl made up of symbols and the director with the aesthetic of a sniper on the roof.

Heart absolutely I can by Michael Harlow: Five fresh poems and a number from past collections form this book on the hoopla of love – a theme long a part of the poet’s fascination with the mysteries of human nature and his job in finding the language and music to express it. Michael Harlow calls on ‘the music of the heart to sing us alive’.   

Meet the first three books of the new Hoopla poetry series – all designed, edited, typeset and ready to launch in March! However, we need help with funding the print run of 450 books (150 of each). We are a small Wellington publisher called Mākaro Press, and we're very excited about the Hoopla series which we have been working on and funding ourselves since we opened for business in April 2013. The last hurdle is a big one: $2500 for printing three beautiful books, and we're applying for $2000 of that. Anything you pledge will make a huge difference to the success of this project. 

Hoopla is about enticing people to buy and read poetry books through the quality of the poets, the attraction of a series with three books launching at once, vibrant design and the accessibility of a clear narrative or theme.

We like strong work that steps onto the tightrope without hesitation and gives the performance of its life. It’s no accident the word Hoopla has connotations of commotion, extravagance and play about it. 

Hoopla books are published annually in sets of three. A new poet joins a mid-career and a late-career poet. This means the poets and their books work for and support each other rather than braving the tightrope (and hoops) on their own. 

Mākaro publisher Mary McCallum is Hoopla founder and editor. She is a poet and novelist, the founder and co-curator of Tuesday Poem online, and co-editor of Eastbourne: an anthology (2013). She is assisted in this project by Paul Stewart who has typset the books and worked on the text design, Billy Sushi on cover design, and Billy Sushi and Helen Reynolds who have contributed the cover images. 

The Hoopla poets:

Stefanie Lash is a poet and archivist who lives in Wellington. Her poems have appeared in journals including Sport, Takahē and Turbine.

Helen Rickerby is a poet, editor and publisher who lives in Wellington. She has published 2.5 collections of poetry with the chapbook Heading North (Kilmog 2010) her most recent. She is co-managing editor of JAAM and runs boutique poetry publisher Seraph Press. 

Michael Harlow is a poet, publisher and librettist who lives in Alexandra. Born in the USA with Greek and Ukrainian heritage, he settled in New Zealand in 1968. Michael has published seven collections of poetry including Giotto’s Elephant and The Tram Conductor’s Blue Cap, both finalists in the NZ Book Awards, and has been awarded a number of writer residencies.

Mākaro contact:

Mary McCallum +6427 6003313
[email protected]    makaropress.wordpress.com 
PO Box 41 032 Eastbourne 5047 New Zealand

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