New York, NY (May 15, 2024)—The Community of Literary Magazines & Presses (CLMP), the national nonprofit organization that for 57 years has supported the work of independent literary publishers, has announced the finalists for its tenth annual FIRECRACKER AWARDS, given for the best independently published books of fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry and the best literary magazines in the categories of debut and general excellence.
Each winner in the books category will receive $2,000—$1,000 for the press and $1,000 for the author or translator—and each winner in the magazine categories will receive $1,000. Publishers of the winning titles will receive a free one-year membership to CLMP, and magazine winners will also receive a one-year CLMP Member subscription to Submittable. Additionally, the winning publications will be featured in a national publicity campaign that includes promotional materials being distributed to over 500 independent booksellers across the country in coordination with the American Booksellers Association.
The winners of this year’s FIRECRACKER AWARDS will be announced at a virtual awards ceremony on June 27, 2024, at 6 p.m. ET.
2024 FIRECRACKER AWARDS FINALISTS:
FICTION
Landscapes by Christine Lai, published by Two Dollar Radio
You Were Watching from the Sand by Juliana Lamy, published by Red Hen Press
The Simple Art of Killing a Woman by Patrícia Melo, translated by Sophie Lewis, published by Restless Books
The Girl Before Her by Line Papin, translated by Adriana Hunter and Ly Lan Dill, published by Kaya Press
Dearborn by Ghassan Zeineddine, published by Tin House
CREATIVE NONFICTION
None of the Above: Reflections on Life Beyond the Binary by Travis Alabanza, published by Feminist Press
Holy American Burnout! by Sean Enfield, published by Split/Lip Press
On Community by Casey Plett, published by Biblioasis
The Quickening: Antarctica, Motherhood, and Cultivating Hope in a Warming World by Elizabeth Rush, published by Milkweed Editions
Otherwise by Julie Marie Wade, published by Autumn House Press
POETRY
The Limitless Heart by Cheryl Boyce-Taylor, published by Haymarket Books
Village by LaTasha N. Nevada Diggs, published by Coffee House Press
Rebozos of love by Juan Felipe Herrera, published by FlowerSong Press
Hydra Medusa by Brandon Shimoda, published by Nightboat Books
Kaan and Her Sisters by Lena Khalaf Tuffaha, published by Trio House Press
MAGAZINES/BEST DEBUT
Changing Skies
Folly
Mister Magazine
Short Reads
SWING
MAGAZINES/GENERAL EXCELLENCE
The Common
Lampblack
LIBER: A Feminist Review
Virginia Quarterly Review
Words Without Borders
2024 FIRECRACKER AWARD JUDGES
FICTION: Zeyn Joukhadar, author of The Thirty Names of Night, published by Atria Books; Talia Lakshmi Kolluri, author of What We Fed to the Manticore, published by Tin House; Kevin Sampsell, events coordinator and small-press book buyer at Powell’s Books.
CREATIVE NONFICTION: Edgar Gomez, author of High-Risk Homosexual, published by Soft Skull Press; Raquel Gutiérrez, author of Brown Neon, published by Coffee House Press; Gaël LeLamer, head book buyer at Books & Books.
POETRY: Allison Escoto, head librarian and education director at The Center for Fiction; Crystal Wilkinson, author of Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts, published by Clarkson Potter; Shelley Wong, author of As She Appears, published by YesYes Books.
MAGAZINES: Sam Campbell, managing editor, The Arkansas International; Manuel Gonzales, fiction editor, Bennington Review; Dana Isokawa, editor in chief, The Margins.
More information about the judges can be found here.
ABOUT CLMP
CLMP ensures a vibrant, diverse literary landscape by helping mission-driven independent literary magazines and presses thrive. Since 1967, CLMP has provided publishers with funding and technical assistance; facilitated peer-to-peer learning and group action; served as a dependable, essential hub for best practices, resources, and nurturing community support; and connected publishers with other groups of literary stakeholders, including readers, writers, booksellers, librarians, educators, presenting organizations, and funders. Along with directly serving 1,000+ publishers located in every state in the country, CLMP administers the Lit Mag Adoption program, which provides educators and students with discounted magazine subscriptions; the $10,000 Constellation Award, given to honor an independent literary press that is led by and/or champions the writing of people of color for excellence in publishing; and the Firecracker Awards for Independently Published Literature, which celebrate magazines and books that make a significant contribution to our literary culture, among other programs.
