There is a common argument for supporting the arts that runs, roughly, as follows: the arts are good for communities, they drive economic activity, they improve quality of life indicators, they have measurable social benefits. This argument is true and sometimes useful. It is not the argument I want to make here.
The argument I want to make is simpler and older: poetry is one of the few uses of language that attempts to tell the full truth about what it is like to be alive. It has been doing this for as long as human beings have made things. It does not do this because it is economically efficient or socially productive. It does it because some things can only be said this way, and the culture that loses the ability to say them loses something it cannot replace. Supporting a poetry press is supporting that capacity — directly, concretely, in the form of actual books that will exist for as long as they are cared for.
The case for poetry specifically
Among the arts, poetry occupies a particular position. It is the art form with the smallest commercial market and the largest cultural weight. A poet who publishes a collection that sells five hundred copies may nonetheless change the way those five hundred readers use language for the rest of their lives. A poem memorised in childhood remains present decades later. Poetry operates on timescales that have nothing to do with the market.
This is why poetry publishing cannot survive as a commercial enterprise, and why it has always depended on patrons. The great presses of the twentieth century — many of which are still operating — were founded by people who believed poetry mattered enough to fund. Copper Canyon Press, founded in 1972, has been supported by donors throughout its history. Graywolf Press, Milkweed Editions, Wave Books: all rely on a combination of sales revenue, grants, and individual donations to publish the books they publish.
"A donation to a poetry press does not fund an abstraction. It funds a specific book, made with specific care, for a specific poet whose work was judged worth the world's attention."
How nonprofit poetry publishing works
A nonprofit poetry press operates on a model that is fundamentally different from commercial publishing. There are no shareholders. There are no sales targets. There is no remainder bin. Books are selected because they are excellent and because they fit the press's editorial vision — not because they are likely to sell in volume.
Revenue comes from three main sources: book sales, grants, and individual donations. Book sales typically cover a portion of production costs but rarely break even — a limited edition of 250 copies at $18.95 generates roughly $4,700 in gross sales against a production cost of $2,500 to $3,000, leaving little margin for editorial costs, administrative overhead, or the prizes and programmes that sustain a press's community. Grants from foundations and arts councils can cover specific programme costs but are competitive, time-limited, and subject to application cycles. Individual donations — from readers, from the literary community, from people who believe in the work — provide the flexible, unrestricted funding that allows a press to operate with independence and intention.
Where the money actually goes
At Ink & Ribbon Press, we try to be direct about this. Here is what it costs to make the books we make, and what your donation funds:
What donors receive
The Bound Circle is our patron membership programme — the formal structure through which readers and supporters join the press community. Members receive every book we publish, ahead of release, numbered from the early sequence of our limited print run. They receive the LemonLight Prize poem, printed and mailed. They are named in the colophon of every book published during their membership.
This is not primarily a transactional relationship. The books are worth having, and the acknowledgement is genuine, but the deeper reason to join the Bound Circle is the one at the heart of all literary patronage: the belief that this work matters and that supporting it is the right use of the resources you have to give. The Bound Circle makes that belief concrete and ongoing.
Full details — tiers, benefits, and how to join — are on our Bound Circle page.
For foundations and institutional funders
Ink & Ribbon Press is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organisation (EIN 39-5059998). All donations are tax-deductible as allowed by law. We maintain full financial transparency and file annual 990 returns with the IRS.
We are an appropriate recipient for grants in the following programme areas: literary arts, independent publishing, cultural preservation, arts education, and Pacific Northwest cultural programmes. We are based on Bainbridge Island, Washington, and our work serves both regional and national literary communities.
We are happy to provide letters of inquiry, full grant proposals, financial statements, board information, and any documentation a foundation requires. Our current programmes include book publishing (two to three titles per year), the LemonLight Prize ($3,000 annual award), and an extensive free Learn library of guides to poetry and publishing.
If you are considering a grant to Ink & Ribbon Press and need additional information — our current strategic plan, financial statements, IRS determination letter, or a conversation with our leadership — please write to us at admin@inkandribbon.org. We respond to all foundation enquiries promptly and are glad to tailor an application to your programme's specific requirements.
Major gifts and legacy giving
A major gift to Ink & Ribbon Press — typically $5,000 or above — enters a different kind of relationship than a membership or a general donation. A major gift funds a complete book: the printing, the binding, the design, the poet's honorarium, the distribution. It is acknowledged in the book itself. It places the donor in the permanent record of a work of literary art.
We have a small number of major gift relationships and we treat each one with care. If you are considering a major gift, or if you are interested in discussing legacy or planned giving, please contact us directly. These conversations are best had personally.
How to support Ink & Ribbon Press
There are several ways to support the press, depending on the scale and nature of your giving.
The most immediate is to join The Bound Circle — our patron membership, which begins at $200 per year and gives you the books, the community, and the knowledge that your support is directly producing literary art. If you are considering a larger contribution, or if you represent a foundation or institutional funder, write to us at admin@inkandribbon.org and we will respond promptly.
Join the Circle — or Give Directly
Every contribution funds a book. Your name goes in the colophon. The book goes into the world and stays there.
Join The Bound Circle Discuss a major gift →