Palimpsest Press was founded in 2000 and for the first four years it published a literary journal, Kaleidoscope: An International Journal of Poetry. After its planned four year run Kaleidoscope was ended. In 2004 the first trade book was published, and since then we have published critically acclaimed and award-winning authors such as Kate Braid, Christian Bök, Elisabeth Harvor, Aislinn Hunter, Shawna Lemay, Steven Heighton and Andrea MacPherson.

In 2005 we began to publish limited-edition hand bound chapbooks, printed on specialty papers with letterpress covers. The first to be published was Marty Gervais’ Taking My Blood in two different editions. Then came Aidan Thompson’s So Earnest a Green Point and Steven Heighton’s Paper Lanterns. In 2007 we published Valerie Stetson’s The House Poems and Christian Bök’s stained glass book Triptych. In 2008 we published Ariel Gordon’s The Navel Gaze, which has since sold out. By publishing collectible limited editions, we give authors the opportunity to create something unique and to reach a different market.

In 2007 we joined The Literary Press Group and LitDistCo began to distribute our titles nationally through its sales force. We continued to adapt and diversify our publishing program, looking for the right combination of marketability and literary merit. In 2008, we published our first children’s book and our first nonfiction title. Twice Palimpsest titles were longlisted for a ReLit Award and Shawna Lemay’s Calm Things was nominated for the Wilfred Eggleston Award. In 2010 Ariel Gordon won theJohn Hirsch Award for most Promising Manitoba Writer.   

2010 marks our ten-year anniversary and it has been a very busy year. Palimpsest Press is now incorporated and will be opening its new location in the fall. That’s right! It’s outta’ the basement and into a newly renovated studio / office space, offering design and letterpress services and providing the storage and space needed for Dawn and Sarah, the new publicist, to operate. The first order of business will be our 2010 list, which includes Ariel Gordon’s poetry collection Hump and Alessandro Porco’s Population Me: Essays on David McGimpsey, which gather together, for the first time, essays that serve to highlight and explicate the scope and complexity of McGimpsey’s poetic practice. Also coming out in the fall are Elisabeth Havor’s new poetry collection An Open Door in the Landscape, and a softcover version of Jordan Toutt’s and Sarah Preston’s very popular and fun The Naming Book of Rascally Rhymes.

It is our belief that small presses build literary communities and create audiences. Palimpsest is committed to discovering and fostering new talent, supporting established writers, and ensuring our trade books are well-distributed and kept in print. By publishing in a wide variety of formats, and in beautiful editions, Palimpsest has attracted many of the best writers in Canada. Please help support the continuation of small presses by buying their books. You can purchase Palimpsest Press books at national retail chains and independents or through our online bookstore.

As one can imagine, the costs of this type of endeavor cannot be recuperated through sales alone. To offset some of the costs we now sell design, letterpress and bookbinding services. If you need press releases, cover or interior text design, invitations, catalogues or business cards please email us at info(at)palimpsestpress.ca for a quote. Small presses hiring for design work will get a discount.