Our History

WordTech Communications is based in Cincinnati, Ohio. We were founded in 1998 by Kevin Walzer and Lori Jareo, and shifted into poetry publishing in 2000. From the start, we were interested in publishing the finest poetry we could find. We selected our first manuscript, Rare Space by Leslie Anne Mcilroy, and published the book in the summer of 2001. From that lone title, published through our Word Press imprint, WordTech Communications has grown into a major force in poetry publishing with plans to publish more than 40 books in 2004.

We handle all aspects of the press ourselves. Kevin Walzer, who has a Ph.D. in English, reviews and selects the manuscripts, while Lori Jareo, who has a decade of publishing experience, manages production and finance.We utilize technology to produce a vastly larger number of books than a two-person operation should be able to manage.

Our Vision: A New Paradigm of Poetry

Our tagline is "a new paradigm of poetry." According to Thomas Kuhn in The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, advances in human understanding occur when one paradigm, or accepted foundation of thought, is replaced by another. If we are a new paradigm of poetry, then this means that we are trying to revolutionize poetry. But how?

1. We do not operate as a non-profit.

This differs from nearly every other major poetry publisher, with the exception of the New York houses, which publish poetry more for its prestige than its commercial potential. The vast majority of poetry publishers are a) large, independent non-profits that receive substantial funding from private foundation, government agencies, and philantrophy to supplement their sales revenue; b) university presses that receive subsidy from the academic institution where they are housed; c) small presses operated by a single individual or small group that are incorporated as non-profits to allow them to accept donations, and/or to protect their owners from tax liability from the monetary losses that frequently occur.

Our approach is to operate as a for-profit business, freeing us from having to chase grants and donatations from every conceivable source. Our revenue is derived from reading fees for contests and from book sales.

2. We apply market logic to our selections, targeting several niches instead of a single one.

We do not publish a single style or group of poets. Instead, we publish a wide range of poetry through six imprints, including narrative, lyric, formal, and experimental poetry, as well as poetry with a specific thematic focus on placing human experience in larger historical and natural contexts. Because each imprint has a different focus, this allows us to bring out a great diversity of subjects and styles.

3. We provide more publishing opportunities than most presses.

Each imprint sponsors two contests annually, which means we are running a contest every month. In addition to the winner, who receives $1,000 as well as publication, we select two or three runners-up from each contest for publication in book format. Most presses name finalists, but only publish the winner. Under our approach, we plan to publish 40 to 50 books in 2004. We will also pay out more than $12,000 in prize money.

4. We uses advances in printing technology to reduce our production costs and increase availability while still maintaining high standards of design.

Our printer, Lightning Source, uses digital printing technology to print books one at a time ("print on demand") and ship them within a few days of receiving an order. This frees us from having to invest thousands of dollars up front in a standard press run; the printing costs are spread out over the sales life of the book. This cost savings is re-invested in additional titles. Moreover, because the printing is digital, the book remains in print indefinitely. With standard offset printing, production costs are very high, which usually precludes reprinting. Lightining Source is a subsidiary of Ingram, the leading book distributor, which means that our titles are listed in the Ingram database and are available for order via any bookstore and Amazon, as well as our own web sites.

The Bottom Line

We are small, but we believe our approach allows us to provide substantial publishing opportunities for poets on a national basis, as well as to make a positive contribution to poetry by bringing out a wide range of titles and styles.