thrivtopia book
lowercase press is doing a Book (in 2024) !
And you are invited to contribute to our new anthology book about the ideas and themes of Thrivtopia and Thrutopia! (definitions below)
We are looking for stories in any genre including: fiction, creative nonfiction, poetry, graphics, comics, and hybrids of any kind!
Why this theme?
As empire continues to tear apart our lives, and the land beneath us, we think storytelling about place is one of the best ways to imagine the many paths towards an autonomous future and more collective freedom (thrutopias) for all. We also believe it’s equally as important to write about all the creative ways we can thrive now in the very place we are located (Thrivtopias).
As well, like many of you, we think that creating works that focus on world-making is also good for us creators (e.g., cultivating thriving in the everyday!). Connected to this, sometimes we need new words to help us imagine the most generative just worlds in our stories. So, we borrowed the wonderful word ‘Thrutopia’ (coined by Rupert Read), and we built a new word: ‘Thrivtopia’, to provide a start off point to orient the book from.
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Affirming a Just Future Together
We are often encouraged to write what we are against, and while it’s important to name the horrors and violence we are facing so we can ground in a solid resistance to the many intersecting oppressions — and to let the screams out, as John Holloway reminds us — we do think more stories that are affirming and amplifying what we are for and what and who we love are extremely essential for our collective imaginations to take flight.
In short: we can both scream Land Back! and give it back, while also remaining curious as we carve out ways to thrive together, co-creating many worlds across differences.
We also acknowledge that for many folks (historically and in the present) surviving is what is paramount in their daily lives. We are also interested in hearing these nuanced stories of how survival intersects with world making — especially how the discipline of love and care animate many lives, as folks find ways to survive the horrors they face.
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If you want to join us in a workshop about writing Thrivtopias, check out the details at the bottom of the page!
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Want to Contribute?
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We welcome works from all ages and abilities, from new and emerging writers to experienced writers, and beyond. We will prioritize stories from folks who face barriers to being published.
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Send us a short pitch of your idea, or a draft of something you have, in a word or open-office document, or your art can be in a jpg, to bergmancreatives@gmail.com.
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Length: for short stories, please keep them under 4000 words. Everything else is fairly open (unsure, email us and ask!)
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Due date for pitch: OPEN
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due dates for the final works: TBD
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release date: we hope to publish later 2024
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FAQ at the bottom of the page
Thrivtopia is about cultivating thriving right here right now, in this place (topia), even amid disasters and hard times. There are many ways to cultivate thriving for yourself and for and with your Kin, and we want to hear your stories!
Thrutopia is about using storytelling as a way to imagine and create just futures for us all, and for our future ancestors (including more-than-humans, plants, and fungi). Through story we can learn and uncover where to find some of the stepping stones we need to forage new (and unknown) pathways towards these thriving and just worlds.
Thank you!
carla joy and chris time
“We don’t have to wait for anything at all. What we have to do is start.”
— Octavia E. Butler
A Writing Thrivtopias Workshop!
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when: Wed, Aug 17th @ 6 PM Pacific Time
where & how long: Online & 2 hrs
costs: Pay What You Can!*
To sign up for the first session, email: thrivtopias@proton.me
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Once you've signed up we will provide further information about the workshop and if you can pay a bit, how to pay for it.
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We plan to hold part two for folks to return with some writings to share with each other and to inspire more writing!
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Our stories can affirm a thriving now!
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We look forward to co-learning with you!
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carla joy & chris time
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*we’d love to do these for free, but we are trying to survive capitalism, so if you have the means, perhaps give a bit more! Recommendation: $20-$50. We are attempting to both value our time while keeping this accessible.
FAQ About Contributing to Thrivtopia
Listening House Media
Q: Do they have to be positive, does my story need to be happy?
A: No! Happiness and positivity are usually byproducts of the systems we are living under/resisting. Yes, happiness might be part of thriving but it doesn’t have to be the entire story. In fact, oftentimes rage, sadness, grief, and other emotions are all part of connecting to thriving in the everyday. Hearing about the struggles that are part of surviving the many horrors, and the interplay of finding thriving moments amidst that can be necessary for us to write about and read about, too.
Q: I am unclear on what styles you want?
A: Thank you for asking. We are very open about the process and style for your contribution to Thrivtopia. It can be art work — drawings, comics, etc. It can be fiction, creative nonfiction, or nonfiction, or a new kind of merging of them! It can be something we haven’t thought of before. You can do an entire piece that is based on dialogue or it can be a play, a verse, poem, science fiction, speculative fiction, memoir, fantasy, mystery, and beyond. Or a mashup/composition of a few of them. In short, we are open to new ways to share stories. If you are uncertain, reach out to us!
Listening House Media