Milkweed Editions is an independent, nonprofit literary publisher founded in Minneapolis in 1980. It releases eighteen to twenty new books each year in the genres of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry. Milkweed Editions annually awards three prizes for poetry: the Lindquist & Vennum Prize for Poetry, the Jake Adam York Prize, and they are a partner publisher for the National Poetry Series. In 2016, they opened an independent bookstore focused on the sale of literary works.
History
Milkweed was co-founded by Emilie Buchwald and R.W. Scholes. The press began as a journal called The Milkweed Chronicle, which was a venue for local writers and artists in Minneapolis. In the mid-1980s, the press published its first book and ceased publication of the journal. Since this first publication, the press has published more than three hundred and fifty titles. In 1999, Milkweed combined forces with Minnesota Center for Book Arts and the Loft Literary Center to purchase an old warehouse in downtown Minneapolis to house each organization. They named the warehouse, the Open Book. In 2007, Daniel Slager was named Publisher & CEO of Milkweed Editions. Since his arrival, Slager has focused the press on the publication of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry, and has focused on publishing more work in translation. In 2016, the press opened a bookstore, Milkweed Books.
Milkweed Prizes
The Lindquist & Vennum Prize for Poetry was established in 2011 by Milkweed Editions and the Lindquist & Vennum Foundation. Submissions for this regional prize are accepted only from poets residing in the states of the Upper Midwest. The winner receives a $10,000 cash prize and a publishing contract. Previous winners have included Patricia Kirkpatrick, Rebecca Dunham, Michael Bazzett, Jennifer Willoughby, and Chris Santiago. In 2017, Milkweed Editions announced the Max Ritvo Poetry Prize, a US$10,000 award supported by the Alan B. Slifka Foundation. Grady Chambers is the Inaugural winner award of this prize, announced December 2017.
