Sarabande Books

Sarabande Books is an American not-for-profit literary press founded in 1994, and located in Louisville, Kentucky, publishing poetry, fiction and nonfiction.

The press was co-founded by Sarah Gorham (President and Editor-in-Chief) and Jeffrey Skinner (Chair). According to a CLMP Newswire interview, "The press was named after an Aztec mating dance that was later adopted and banned in Spain and finally made respectable in Britain. Its mission, according to Gorham, is to publish poetry and fiction and to disburse the works of its authors 'with diligence and creativity.' The press also serves as an educational resource to teachers and creative writing students." The press publishes the winners of its national poetry and fiction competitions, as well as manuscripts accepted through general submission.

Sarabande Books titles are distributed by Consortium Book Sales & Distribution. The press has received grants from the Kentucky Arts Council, the National Endowment for the Arts, and private foundations.

Notable authors published by Sarabande Books include Ralph Angel, Mark Jarman, Cleopatra Mathis, Frank Bidart, Louise Glück, Gerald Stern, Sallie Bingham, Alice Fulton, Cate Marvin, Rick Barot, Ann Townsend, James Kimbrell, Alyce Miller, Joan Silber, Brian Leung, Lia Purpura, and Brenda Miller.

Authors have been recipients of many awards including the Whiting Foundation Award, the PEN USA Award in Poetry, the Norma Farber First Book Award, the Pushcart Prize, grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, Guggenheim Fellowships, and numerous other honors.

Sarabande Books titles have been reviewed in The New York Times Book Review, Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, Kirkus Reviews, The Nation, American Book Review, and many other publications.

Awards given by Sarabande Books include The Kathryn A. Morton Prize in Poetry, and the Mary McCarthy Prize in Short Fiction.