Off the Record! Limerick-based publisher discusses investing in ‘little niches’

IN THE city’s Georgian quarter, Limerick-based independent publisher, Sans. PRESS shares surprising tales of finding joy in the most unexpected places. Reviewed by some of the University of Limerick’s most cherished lecturers, the imprint is about to launch their fourth anthology – Into Chaos.

Originally from Brazil, writer and graphic designer, Paula Dias Garcia, moved to Limerick to study Creative Writing at the University of Limerick. That’s where she met her friends and co-editors, Sam Agar, and Marc Clohessy.

With a love for stories and a passion for sharing them, the collective of friends created Sans. PRESS in 2020. Even though they’re an editorial imprint and independent publisher with a focus on short stories, that’s not all they aspire to be. United by their quest to find new voices, the trio hope to support new voices in literature, as well as “be a constant presence” on people’s bookshelves.

“After we finished our Masters, lockdown started, and we asked ourselves how we could get back into reading stories and taking notes, and all of those things we did during the creative writing course,” Paula told Limerick Live.

What started as a lockdown project quickly became much more. After The Last Five Minute of a Storm, Because That’s Where Your Heart Is, and The Secret Lives, the local press is about to launch its fourth anthology. What can readers expect this time around?

Leaving behind what is known to embrace magic, parallel dimensions, alien civilisations and the beauty of reality, Into Chaos explores chaos in every way imaginable. With cover artwork designed by Dominique Ramsey and stories from both Irish and international writers, the anthology celebrates life, adventure, and the capacity of finding joy in unexpected places.
One wonders how does one go about picking a theme for an anthology?

"We have a meeting and look at the stories we've read and the previous edition, the things that interested us, and the things that have stayed in our mind. We go by a general energy we wanted to have," Paula said.

She continued: "Our last book ended up being about grief and endurance. For the next one, we looked at big crisis moments, what comes after you overcome the big hurdle. We look at what we picked up in some stories, that we’d love to see a bit more of, and think about the sensation that we wanted to have."

For their latest submission call, Sans. PRESS received about 800 entries. After receiving so many stories, how do they decide who gets a rejection letter?

“We decide on the cover and title first to have some sense of cohesion, and it’s always a way for us to have a guideline on how to select stories. We’re not choosing the best 15 stories, we’re choosing 15 stories that work best together in a book. If two stories are in the top 10, but are too similar, they can’t both be in the same book,” explains the editor.

As the story selection is anonymous, the editors only look at the author’s name at the end of the process. Open to anyone who writes in English, the submission call welcomes both Irish and international writers.

“Sometimes people contact me and ask if it is OK if English isn’t their first language, and I’m like, it’s not my first language, so definitely - yes!” exclaimed the Brazilian editor.

While they were studying at UL, Paula and her co-editors were taught by some of the country’s most cherished writers, such as Donal Ryan and Joseph O’Connor.

“We're always really intimidated having reviews from them, but we know them because they were our lecturers in college. They’ve always been incredibly supportive of our work. Because they’re both authors and lecturers in creative writing, they have really good insight on what works in a story, and what doesn’t,” she said.

Speaking of independent presses in Ireland, Paula concluded: “I think it’s really cool to bring a lot of effort and expertise into making books based on what we love and not on what is commercially viable. We should invest in our little niches, and follow our passions.”

Founded by The Arts Council, Sans. PRESS’s latest collection of short stories will be launched on December 17, at Wickham Way Market, from 10am to 4pm.

To discover previous anthologies, visit sanspress.com.