About my first full-length book, The Weeds Grow Anyway!
If you haven't heard, the handmade first edition is available for preorder!
I am going to be publishing my first full-length book of poetry, The Weeds Grow Anyway, and releasing it later this year. And if you like my poems, you’ll probably like the book, because it is chock-full of ‘em!
This softcover handmade first edition is going to feature a linocut printed cover, and I’ll be binding the books myself, in-house. My house, specifically!
About the book (according to my dear friend Mallory Everhart)
Nico Wilkinson's debut full-length poetry collection "The Weeds Grow Anyway" is a celebration of that which lies beyond resilience in the face of adversity: audacity. Writing from Colorado Springs amidst a time of anti-trans violence, they examine the relationship of trans people to this world through the lens of nature's relationship to humans. What makes a plant into a weed, something deemed unacceptable to the landscape? The poetry within - much like the local flora and trans people who live there - is rooted in the experience of queering the inhospitable landscape that is Colorado Springs.
Aw shucks. <3
About the Book’s Creation:
In April and May of last year, I compiled my poetry from the last few years, dating back to 2016. Poems about transness, farming, sex, nature, being a human in a time of turmoil, and finding hope and joy in community with others.
I formatted the manuscript, got it printed at the local copy shop, and bound the signatures together with a needle and thread. I case bound the book using bookboard and fabric from the local craft supply recycler, as well as some wallpaper samples I had lying around. I used the laser cutter at the local makerspace to make stamps which I then used to print the title with gold ink. This was the result:
[Please note! The books I’ll be making won’t look like the hardcover version. It took me about seven to ten hours to make this casebound copy.]
I assembled the first physical copy of The Weeds Grow Anyway as both a fun creative exercise, as well as a tool for visualization. I wanted to get this book published and out in the world, and being able to see it as a book made it so much more real than seeing it in my word processor.
The process reminded me of how much I loved making books, which I hadn’t done since assembling We Grow Anyway Volume 2, an anthology of queer love, joy, and growth, with my friends Joy and Bri. (The title of my book is also an homage to the projects of We Grow Anyway 1 and 2). The realization had me wondering — well, why not make it myself?
Plus, I realized that when I was editing the manuscript to submit it to publishers, I found myself removing any poems that I worried wouldn’t fit that specific publisher’s vision, regardless of my own. In deciding to publish the book myself, I’ve been adding in more poems of mine that I enjoy, and that I think other people will enjoy as well. As someone who came up in the spoken word and poetry slam scene, I often find myself very aware of a certain written word versus spoken word spectrum, and I’m not always sure where I fit on it. Plus, as someone who cares a whole lot, I always want to put my best foot forward. It’s just not always so clear cut as to which foot that is (and in this case, I have so many potential feet!) That said, I am really pleased with how the book is shaping up, and I think you’ll like it too.
So, it’s official. My first full length poetry collection, The Weeds Grow Anyway, will be available this summer, and you can support its creation by pre-ordering it now. The book will be softcover, and bound using my little binding machine. The cover will be printed using linoleum relief printing. Given the fact that it’s handmade, it will need to be limited edition, but by pre-ordering, you’re guaranteed to receive one!
I’ll also be documenting the process here and on social media, for anyone else who is interested in designing and printing their own books. So if that’s something you’d like to eventually do, follow along, either here or on Instagram! And maybe YouTube soon — things are in the works!
P.S. While you’re here, I’ve got lots of upcoming classes and performances in Denver and Colorado Springs in May and April! Check them out / register here.