Some of you may have encountered a mention of our Poetry
Chapbook Program in our recent post about the Center’s publications, and found
yourself wondering what exactly a chapbook is. A chapbook is simply a small
book or pamphlet constructed entirely of paper. Chapbooks first began
circulation in England in the sixteenth century, although the term itself was
not widely used until the early nineteenth century. Chapbooks were marketed to
the lower and lower middle class by itinerant peddlers called chapmen. Many
chapbooks consisted of shortened, and often more vulgar, versions of ballads,
romances, histories, and novels, and frequently contained woodcut prints. Chapbook
production increased as literacy rates rose, until the mid-nineteenth century
when they faced religious opposition and competition from cheap newspapers.
 |
| One of the Center for Book Art's limited edition 2011 chapbooks |
But despair not! For chapbooks have reemerged as a popular
form, now primarily used for printing short collections of poetry or prose. Zines
(technically serialized chapbooks), comic books, and poetry are all genres you may have seen in chapbook form. Contemporary chapbooks range
from simple DIY books, to professionally printed pieces of art. Chapbooks are
an easy way to self-publish material cheaply and creatively.
After creating your content, the first aspect to consider is how you plan to transfer your words to the page. Developments in photocopying and laser printing have made printed pages a simple and inexpensive option. Other options include printing content letterpress, which ensures that your edition will maintain a very professional and classical feel; or, hand-writing your content. Whether working digitally, by hand, or on a letterpress, it is important to consider the book’s imposition (the subject of last week’s Thursday Term) to ensure that you are creating the pages correctly and they will be in the proper order in your book. Typically, chapbooks are stapled through the centerfold, a term known as saddle stitching, but bookmakers can also utilize stab-stitching or Coptic binding. Simple pamphlet binding can be done by stabbing evenly-spaced holes along the center of the book with an awl (be sure to use a template if you need to stab groups of paper separately) and then weaving a piece of linen string through your holes with a needle.
After creating your content, the first aspect to consider is how you plan to transfer your words to the page. Developments in photocopying and laser printing have made printed pages a simple and inexpensive option. Other options include printing content letterpress, which ensures that your edition will maintain a very professional and classical feel; or, hand-writing your content. Whether working digitally, by hand, or on a letterpress, it is important to consider the book’s imposition (the subject of last week’s Thursday Term) to ensure that you are creating the pages correctly and they will be in the proper order in your book. Typically, chapbooks are stapled through the centerfold, a term known as saddle stitching, but bookmakers can also utilize stab-stitching or Coptic binding. Simple pamphlet binding can be done by stabbing evenly-spaced holes along the center of the book with an awl (be sure to use a template if you need to stab groups of paper separately) and then weaving a piece of linen string through your holes with a needle.
Books for the Center’s Poetry Chapbook Program are all designed
by artists and letterpress printed on the Center’s presses. This year's winning manuscript by V. Penelope Pelizzon, Human Field, will be featured at a reading at the Center for Book Arts on
September 12th, after which these limited-edition works will be on
sale at the Center.
-Allison Halff
Have tips for creating your own chapbooks?
Want to give us suggestions or comments? Just want to say hi? Comment on this post, email us
at info@centerforbookarts.org, visit us on Facebook (/centerforbookarts)
or follow us on Twitter (@center4bookarts). Can't wait to see you
there!