______
______
Contact
In memory of Dakota Jones
by Harry Jones and Kara L.C. Jones
We created KotaPress in April 1999
in
memory of our child Dakota Jones. Our wish is that Dakota’s spirit
will
continue on this earth through the efforts of this independent press
that
is based in Seattle.
At this point all of our efforts have involved poetry to some degree or
another. The poetic focus came as a direct result of using poetry to
process grief after the loss of Dakota. Our poetic efforts led us back
into the world at large in a safe way. For instance, naming our
business
KotaPress gives us the chance to say our son’s name constantly.
Without
this, bringing up the subject of one’s dead child is very much a taboo
in
our society. This has all evolved into creating a poetic space
where many people have been able to express their
art
through our paper & ink books, our online poetry journal and the
various
other projects we produce.
Our first issue of the KotaPress Poetry Journal was published online in
Fall 1999. Featured in theWinter Solstice 1999 Issue was Poet Chat, a question & answer session, with Charles
Fishman–several of his poems were also featured. (Charles Fishman is the Associate Editor of The Drunken Boat, editor’s note.)
Another
featured poet was Esther Altshul Helfgott, author of the recent
KotaPress
book The Homeless One: A Poem In Many Voices. You will also find the
fabulous photography of our “staff” artist, Todd Schneider and Susan
Mello.
The new issue of the Journal is will just out for Spring Equinox in March
2000.
We are featuring feature Elizabeth Gray’s poetry and an interview with her in Poet
Chat. We take submissions of poetry on a constant basis with
issues being published in March, June, September, and December to
coincide with the Equinox and Solstice holidays. Please see our guidelines to submit your work to us.
Our primary project is the Mrs. Duck Project which offers free copies
of
the book, Mrs. Duck and the Woman written by Kara L.C. Jones, to
grieving families. Mrs. Duck and the Woman is the story of a mother
trying
to rebuild her life, her hope, and her dreams, after the loss of her
infant
child. Written in language that is accessible to all ages, the book helps
parents, children, and families to begin the healing process after
suffering
the loss of a child.
The scope of the Mrs. Duck Project is global as we have now sent copies
of
Mrs. Duck and the Woman to families in Germany, Australia, and
South
Africa as well as throughout the U.S. to individuals, hospitals,
clinics,
and grief
organizations–all for free. With the Centers for Disease Control
telling
us that
30,000+ babies per year are stillborn in the United States alone, you
can
see
that helping these grieving families is a major outreach. This Project
relies on
the funds of Sponsors who buy a bit of advertising in exchange for the
cost
of
printing & distribution on the books. To read more about this Project
and
find
out how you can participate, please see our
Loss Section and be in touch with us.
We invite you to take a look at all we have to offer at KotaPress
and we welcome your feedback and inquiries. Email us. We do try to answer every email
personally.
