old scratch press


  • Announcing a New Cozy Mystery With a Supernatural Twist: A Witch Awakens by Ellis Elliott

    Announcing a New Cozy Mystery With a Supernatural Twist: A Witch Awakens by Ellis Elliott

    A Witch Awakens, the First Volume in Author’s Fire Circle Mystery Series, Now Available from Hawkshaw Press. Monrovia, CA – May 5, 2025 — Hawkshaw Press (the crime fiction and cozy mystery imprint of Current Words Publishing, LLC) is thrilled to announce the release of A Witch Awakens, the first book in the Fire Circle…


  • Congratulations Virginia Watts!

    Congratulations Virginia Watts!

    TRACING BODIES, the new Old Scratch Press Collection by poet and short story author Virginia Watts, is live! In Tracing Bodies, Virginia Watts maps the delicate, aching terrain of memory, love, and loss with unflinching honesty. These poems pulse with the ghosts of the past—childhood shadows, family echoes, and the quiet, enduring presence of the natural…


  • Gently Down the Stream

    Gently Down the Stream

    Do you know what’s current? The new INSTANT NOODLES! Have you read it yet? Here’s a peek at “Early Channels,” by Diana Beckett: And don’t forget that submissions close in a week for the next issue of INSTANT NOODLES! Your work could be featured just like Diana’s! INSTANT NOODLES is always free to read, free…


  • Congratulations Ellis Elliott!

    Congratulations Ellis Elliott!

    Two fantastic book reviews, and A WITCH AWAKENS by Ellis Elliott is live! “A Witch Awakens is a ‘Fire Circle Mystery’ steeped in an Appalachian backdrop and traditions. It delivers a punch with the hard-hitting story of Cece Chagall, who moves back to her hometown of Eureka Grove in search of peace, only to herself involved…


  • How Does a Literary Magazine Get Made?

    How Does a Literary Magazine Get Made?

    One of the questions we’re often asked is, “How does a literary magazine get made?” In the following video, Dianne (publisher of Instant Noodles) addresses this topic, highlighting the important elements that need to be managed with consistency, professionalism, and timeliness in order to produce and publish a quality literary magazine audiences will want to…


  • How to Get the Most Out of Critique Groups: A Guest Post by Virginia Watts

    How to Get the Most Out of Critique Groups: A Guest Post by Virginia Watts

    I have participated in quite a few of writing critique groups for many years now, and I can say that the feedback I have received from fellow writers has been critical to my success in publishing my work. It is true that if you remain with the same group over an extended period, there will…


  • Have You Ever Had Your Character Interviewed?

    Have You Ever Had Your Character Interviewed?

    Well, Emilie Khair has. A book tour via blogs is so interesting, because the written word is being taken on tour by the written word. Emilie is about 5 days in on her book tour for Ignoring Alva. So, as an author, you might wonder, how does a virtual book tour help? It helps because…


  • Authors Helping Authors

    Authors Helping Authors

    One of the things we know, from experience, is that publishing your book is only one part of the process. Another vital and incredibly time-consuming process is building an audience. It’s possible that Stephen King’s publisher has a list of email addresses of people who buy Stephen King’s books, and so can spam them with…


  • Come Read Your Work Friday Night

    Come Read Your Work Friday Night

    I want to invite you all to come out and support PERISCOPE CITY: WHERE THE LONELY GO TO LIVE ALONE with our Valentine’s evening “Love Stinks!” reading and open mic. Join Zoom MeetingMeeting ID: 886 1135 6295Passcode: 090540 Ben’s book is, “A captivating series of short stories, both dramatically and philosophically enthralling.”KIRKUS “Ben Talbot excels…


  • Old Scratch Press Presents:

    Old Scratch Press Presents:

    One of my favorite things in life is each time I get to launch a new issue of Instant Noodles. This is our online literary magazine, a folly of a thing created and entered into by me, and now run by the gracious members of Old Scratch Press. Check out the new issue, which just…


  • No-no NA-NO-WRI-MO

    No-no NA-NO-WRI-MO

    Did you know that I am a guest blogger once each month on Authors Electric? I am! And you can check out my latest post, right here. It’s about how to survive NaNoWriMo with out feeling all judged and stuff. 🙂 Dianne


  • New Audiobooks!

    Recipes From My Garden by Nadja Maril is now an AUDIOBOOK! You can get the audiobook one of two ways: buy on Amazon and download to your device of choice. Subscribe to Audible. Pick up the Kindle or the Paperback too! SNOWFLAKES IN THE SOUTH is also now and AUDIOBOOK! You can get the audiobook…


  • A Cold Poem for a Hot Day

    I don’t know about where you are, but we hit 107 degrees today! I need to cool off! How about you? Why not check out a fantastic poem from the new issue of INSTANT NOODLES? This piece is read by the author, so all you gotta do is click, it back, and enjoy! SNOW DEVIL…


  • SNEAK PEEK

    SNEAK PEEK

    INSTANT NOODLES, Volume 4, Issue 2, drops tomorrow. Theme: “Devil’s Party,” perfect for fall, includes art and photography, music, spoken word, poetry, and short form fiction and non-fiction, plus a few full-length pieces of fiction we just couldn’t resist! I love creating the issue; it’s always a time-consuming process, but it’s one of the ones…


  • Under the Rhododendrons Takes Second Nationally!

    Under the Rhododendrons Takes Second Nationally!

    Congratulations to Morgan Golladay whose short story, “Under the Rhododendrons,” published in HALLOWEEN PARTY ’23 took second place in the short story competition nationally for the National Federation of Press Women. Morgan just released her first volume of poetry, THE SONG OF NORTH MOUNTAIN, which she illustrated and which is a National Book Award nominee.…


  • We Missed You Today!

    We Missed You Today!

    Hi All, Today we celebrated the launch of Gabby Gilliam’s book, NO OCEAN SPIT ME OUT, with a Zoom reading by Gabby, Robert, and Alan. Many of the guests were likely friends and family of the authors, and we deeply appreciate their support as we navigated our first live event since 2020. It was in a…


  • 6.15.24 Live (& free) Reading on Zoom for No Ocean Spit Me Out

    6.15.24 Live (& free) Reading on Zoom for No Ocean Spit Me Out

    🌟 Get ready for an unforgettable evening! 🌟 Join us for an electrifying book reading event as the talented Gabby Gilliam unveils her latest masterpiece, No Ocean Spit Me Out! But that’s not all! Friends and fellow literary stars Robert Fleming and Alan Bern will also be captivating us with their powerful readings. 🌟✨ Don’t miss…


  • Towson Here They Come!

    Towson Here They Come!

    I feel so privledged to be able to send two collections off to the Towsend Prize: Gabby Gilliam and No Ocean Spit Me Out, publishing 6/15, and Nadja Maril and Recipes from My Garden, publishing 9/8.I have known both authors for many years now, and their work is always fresh and moving. I think their…


  • Off They Go to Try Their Luck!

    Off They Go to Try Their Luck!

    Today was such an exciting day—I got to send off three new titles from Old Scratch Press to the National Book Awards! If you’ve been keeping tabs on us, you might remember we did the same thing last year. Sending our books to the National Book Awards feels like stepping into the ring with the…


  • Free Books Through Friday, Taxpayers!

    Free Books Through Friday, Taxpayers!

    Did tax day make you feel like you were rear-ended at a traffic light?We recommend putting Charlotte Smart on the case of the Accident. Did you hope for divine intervention?You might find it in the pages of The Holy Ghost and Other Spooky Stories. Did you have trouble telling day from night?Perhaps White Noir can help. Did it seem…