Kaya Press

Kaya Press is an independent non-profit publisher of writers of the Asian and Pacific Islander diaspora. Founded in 1994 by the postmodern Korean writer Soo Kyung Kim [1], Kaya Press is currently housed in the Department of American Studies and Ethnicity at the University of Southern California.

Kaya Press is dedicated to the publication of new and innovative fiction, experimental poetry, critical essays, noir fiction, film memoir, avant-garde art, performance pieces, and the recovery of important and overlooked work (e.g. "lost novels") from the Pacific Rim and the API diaspora. Kaya identifies as "a group of dedicated writers, artists, readers, and lovers of books working together to publish the most challenging, thoughtful, and provocative literature being produced throughout the Asian and Pacific Island diasporas."[2] Kaya's recent events include the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Literature Festival and the LA Times Festival of Books.

The current editors of Kaya Press are Sunyoung Lee and Neelanjana Banerjee. The board of directors includes Jean Ho, Huy Hong, Adria Imada, Juliana S. Koo, Sunyoung Lee, Viet Thanh Nguyen, Chez Bryan Ong, and Patricia Wakida, and the editorial committee consists of Lisa Chen, Neelanjana Banerjee, Sunyoung Lee, Warren Liu, Gerald Maa, and Sesshu Foster.

Branding

"Kaya" refers to the tribal confederation of six Korean city-states that existed from the middle of the first until the sixth century CE that is remembered as a utopia of learning, music, and the arts due to its trade and communication with China, Japan, and India. The press also chose this word for its multiple meanings across different languages: in Sanskrit, “kaya” means “body”; in Japanese, “kaya” often refers to a type of yew tree that withstands harsh conditions; in Tagalog , it means “to be able”; and in Turkish it means “rock.” In Zulu, “kaya” means “home.” Kaya Press's publishing vision, like its name, explores the multiple connections, chance or otherwise, between cultures.[2]

Kaya's logo evokes the smoking tiger featured in many Korean folk paintings. Connecting the historical with the contemporary, Kaya's tiger smokes a cigar in lieu of the traditional Asian pipe.

Awards

Kaya press and authors' awards include Gregory Kolovakas Prize for Outstanding New Literary Press, the American Book Award, the Association for Asian American Studies Book Award, the PEN Beyond Margins Open Book Prize, the Asian American Writers’ Workshop Award, and the PEN Oakland Josephine Miles Prize.

Books and authors

Kaya Press writers include Kazim Ali, Anelise Chen, Andrew Leong, Koon Woon, H. T. Tsiang, Kimiko Hahn, Sia Figiel, Q. M. Zhang, Shoshon Nagahara, and Sesshu Foster.

References

  1. ↑ "Publisher Interview: Sunyoung Lee and Kaya Press [in Bookslut] | BookDragon". BookDragon. 2012-12-03. Retrieved 2018-05-12.
  2. 1 2 "About | Kaya Press". Kaya Press. Retrieved 2018-05-12.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.