Belladonna Series

Belladonna*, also known as the Belladonna Series or Belladonna* Collaborative, is a small nonprofit literary press and collaborative arts organization based in Brooklyn, New York City. Rachel Levitsky began it in 1999 as a reading and salon series at Bluestockings, a Lower East Side bookstore in New York. The project initially centered on gatherings for avant-garde feminist writers and quickly developed into a broader network combining public readings, informal salons, limited-edition publications, and collaborative editorial work. The organization is distinctive because its publishing program grew directly out of its events. Its earliest printed materials were postcards produced for a May 2000 reading by kari edwards. Belladonna later worked with Boog Literature to issue small, staple-bound pamphlets, commonly called chaplets, featuring work by writers who participated in or were associated with the reading series. These chaplets became a defining format: short, visually varied, often experimental publications produced in limited runs and connected to a specific reading or author. More than 230 individually numbered chaplets have been associated with the series. The organization has also documented readings through audio and visual recordings, with recordings made available through PennSound. Belladonna's editorial interests include feminist writing, queer and transgender poetics, multilingual and translated literature, hybrid forms, performance-oriented work, and writing that tests the boundaries between poetry, prose, criticism, visual art, and political inquiry. Rather than presenting itself as a conventional commercial publisher, Belladonna operates as a non-hierarchical collaborative whose editorial board, reading-series curators, authors, and institutional partners contribute to an evolving literary community. Its roster has included established and emerging writers such as Fanny Howe, Mei-mei Berssenbrugge, Anne Waldman, Alice Notley, Lydia Davis, Maggie Nelson, Susan Howe, Eileen Myles, Cecilia Vicuña, Renee Gladman, and many others. The press expanded from chaplets into book-length publishing during the 2000s. In 2006 it issued chapbooks by Erica Hunt and Akilah Oliver and co-published Four From Japan: Contemporary Poetry & Essays by Women with Litmus Press. In 2007 it released its first independently published full-length titles, Carla Harryman's Open Box and Lila Zemborain's bilingual Mauve Sea-Orchids. Belladonna subsequently published poetry, essays, translations, anthologies, and artistically hybrid works. Its 2008–2009 Elders Series brought together younger or mid-career hosts with influential elder writers, presenting each volume as both anthology and intergenerational conversation. The series marked Belladonna's tenth anniversary and articulated its interest in continuity, transformation, mentorship, and collective literary memory. The organization has also gained recognition through awards connected with its authors and books. kari edwards's Bharat Jiva, co-published with Litmus Press, was a finalist for a Lambda Literary Award in Transgender Literature in 2009. Erica Doyle's proxy was a 2013 Lambda Literary Award finalist and received the Poetry Society of America's Norma Farber First Book Award in 2014. LaTasha N. Nevada Diggs won a 2016 Whiting Award for TwERK, while Beth Murray's Cancer Angel received the 2016 California Book Award for Poetry. Belladonna's translation publishing has likewise received attention, including Sophie Seita's PEN-HEIM Translation Grant for her work on Uljana Wolf's Subsisters. Belladonna remains associated with readings and partnerships across New York's literary, arts, academic, and community institutions. Its program has worked with venues and organizations including the Poetry Project, the Asian American Writers' Workshop, the Brooklyn Museum, the Brooklyn Public Library, the Lesbian Herstory Archives, Lambda Literary, Pioneer Works, Pratt Institute, and CUNY-related i…

Belladonna* was founded in August 1999 by Rachel Levitsky as a reading and salon series at Bluestockings on New York City's Lower East Side. Its earliest identity was therefore that of a literary gathering rather than a conventional publisher. The program emphasized avant-garde feminist writing and created a setting for writers working across poetry, prose, performance, translation, visual art, and literary theory. The first known Belladonna publication was a set of postcards by kari edwards prepared for a May 4, 2000 reading. The project then developed a relationship with Boog Literature and began producing chaplets: very short, staple-bound publications generally issued in small quantities and associated with individual readers or events. This format allowed Belladonna to circulate experimental work quickly while retaining a strong connection between live performance and print. During the mid-2000s, Belladonna broadened its publishing activity. In 2006 it released chapbooks by Erica Hunt and Akilah Oliver and co-published Four From Japan: Contemporary Poetry & Essays by Women with Litmus Press. In 2007, Open Box by Carla Harryman and Mauve Sea-Orchids by Lila Zemborain became the first full-length books Belladonna published independently. The catalog thereafter included poetry, essays, translations, anthologies, and works combining literary and visual practices. Belladonna's tenth-anniversary period produced The Elders Series, a group of eight books issued in 2008 and 2009. Each volume paired a host or curator with one or more influential elder writers or artists, presenting the books as conversations among generations. The series reflected the organization's interest in literary inheritance, collaboration, and the transformation of experimental poetics over time. The reading series has remained central to Belladonna's work. Curators have included Marcella Durand, Rachel Levitsky, erica kaufman, Emily Skillings, Krystal Languell, Jamila Wimberly, Cara Benson, Ariel Goldberg, LaTasha N. Nevada Diggs, Saretta Morgan, Chia-Lun Chang, Ana Paula, and Asiya Wadud. Belladonna has partnered with bookstores, arts spaces, universities, museums, libraries, archives, and literary organizations throughout New York. Its events have featured both established and emerging writers, including Fanny Howe, Mei-mei Berssenbrugge, Anne Waldman, Alice Notley, Lydia Davis, Maggie Nelson, Susan Howe, Eileen Myles, Cecilia Vicuña, and Renee Gladman. The chaplet series eventually exceeded 230 individually numbered publications. Most are short, single-author pamphlets, although some are collaborative or combine text and images. Limited editions have typically been produced in runs of 150 copies. When editions sell out, Belladonna has made reading PDFs available, extending access beyond the original print run. Recordings of readings have also been preserved through PennSound, giving the series an archival dimension in addition to its publishing function. Belladonna's authors and publications have received significant literary recognition. Bharat Jiva was a finalist for a 2009 Lambda Literary Award in Transgender Literature. Erica Doyle's proxy was a Lambda finalist in 2013 and won the Poetry Society of America's Norma Farber First Book Award in 2014. TwERK by LaTasha N. Nevada Diggs received a 2016 Whiting Award, and Beth Murray's Cancer Angel won the 2016 California Book Award for Poetry. Sophie Seita received a PEN-HEIM Translation Grant for her translation of Uljana Wolf's Subsisters, and an excerpt from the translation later placed in Asymptote's Close Approximations Translation Contest. The organization is described as a non-hierarchical collaborative rather than a conventional publisher with a publicly documented corporate executive structure. Its continuing profile rests on the interaction of small-run publishing, public readings, collaborative curation, translation, feminist and queer literary practice, and preservation of experimental writing in both print and recorded form.

1. 2009Tenth-anniversary Elders Series

   Eight collaborative volumes highlight relationships between contemporary hosts and elder writers and artists.

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2. 2007Independent full-length publishing begins

   The press publishes Open Box and Mauve Sea-Orchids as its first independently issued full-length books.

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3. 2006First book collaboration

   Belladonna co-publishes Four From Japan with Litmus Press and releases chapbooks by Erica Hunt and Akilah Oliver.

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4. 2000First publication materials

   Postcards by kari edwards are issued for a Belladonna reading, establishing the link between events and publications.

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5. 1999Reading series founded

   Rachel Levitsky starts Belladonna as a reading and salon series at Bluestockings in New York City.

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A nonprofit, collaborative literary platform for experimental feminist, queer, transgender, multilingual, hybrid, and language-focused writing. Belladonna combines independent publishing with readings, salons, limited editions, and archival access rather than operating solely as a conventional book press.

• Belladonna* chapletsLimited-edition literary pamphlets2000

  Short, usually staple-bound publications connected to Belladonna readings and authors. The series includes more than 230 individually numbered chaplets, most consisting of fewer than 15 pages. Editions have commonly been limited to 150 copies, with reading PDFs sometimes made available after print copies sell out.

• The Elders SeriesCollaborative book series2008

  A set of eight books published around Belladonna's tenth anniversary. Each volume was organized as an anthology and intergenerational conversation, pairing a guest curator or host with influential elder writers or artists.

• Belladonna* full-length booksIndependent literary books2007

  Book-length poetry, essays, translations, anthologies, and hybrid works. Notable titles include Open Box, Mauve Sea-Orchids, Bharat Jiva, TwERK, Cancer Angel, Subsisters, Landia, Sweet Dreams, and Festival.

• Belladonna* reading seriesLiterary events1999

  A continuing program of readings, salons, and performance-oriented literary events. The series has been presented with bookstores, arts organizations, universities, museums, libraries, and community institutions, and its events are documented through recordings and related chaplets.

• 2009The Elders Series anniversary program

  United States · Experimental poetry community

  Belladonna used its tenth anniversary to publish eight collaborative volumes exploring mentorship, literary inheritance, and the continuing development of experimental poetics.

  Outcome. The series became one of the organization's clearest collective publishing projects and extended its reading-series model into book form.

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• 2009Intergenerational collaborative publishingStrategy

  Belladonna's tenth anniversary provided an opportunity to articulate its interest in literary community, continuity, and transformation.

  What changed. It published The Elders Series, pairing hosts and guest curators with influential elder writers and artists.

  Aftermath. The project reinforced Belladonna's identity as a collaborative and community-oriented press.

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• 2006Expansion from chaplets into book publishingStrategy

  After several years centered on readings and very short publications, Belladonna began developing a broader publishing program.

  What changed. The organization issued chapbooks and co-published its first full-length book with Litmus Press.

  Aftermath. Belladonna subsequently established an independent full-length catalog while retaining the chaplet and reading-series formats.

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• 2009The Elders Series marks Belladonna's tenth anniversary

  Belladonna publishes a set of collaborative books linking contemporary hosts with influential elder writers and artists.

  Product launchCampaign
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• 2007Belladonna issues its first independently published full-length books

  Open Box by Carla Harryman and Mauve Sea-Orchids by Lila Zemborain mark the press's move into independent full-length publishing.

  Product launch
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• 2006Belladonna expands into book publishing

  The organization publishes chapbooks and co-publishes Four From Japan: Contemporary Poetry & Essays by Women with Litmus Press.

  Product launchM&A
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• 2000First Belladonna publication materials appear

  Postcards by kari edwards are produced for a Belladonna reading, preceding the organization's chaplet publishing program.

  Product launch
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• 1999Belladonna begins as a reading and salon series

  Rachel Levitsky establishes the project at Bluestockings in New York, creating the event-based foundation for the later publishing collaborative.

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1. Belladonna Series
2. Belladonna Series official website
3. Belladonna at PennSound