“The book is the meal.”
With a passion for simple design and good work, knife | fork | book has been publishing poetry chapbooks since 2017. “Our aim,” says KFB’s publisher Kirby, “is to serve the book,” tending to the beauty of the book in hand. In 2019, KFB launched a second imprint, What Queer Reading [wQr], edited by Fan Wu, with a directive to publish queer/BIPOC poets. Also in 2019, KFB launched a NOT YOUR BEST series, the premiere issue edited by Eric Schmaltz. This turned out to be the springboard evolving into our yearly Fertile Festival of New & Inventive Works. We have since branched out into broadsides, ephemera, and full-length collections, distributed by Asterism Books.
KFB PUBLICATIONS
2025
SADIQA DE MEIJER Fieldwork Preorder
MAUREEN SCOTT HARRIS Unnamed Broadside
2024
JACOB ALVARADO I Can Make It All Up To You Fertil3 Sold Out
ANNICK MACASKILL Lesbos / lesbos Broadside Fertil3
COLE KIRBY SMITH Broadsides Fertil3
NORMA COLE R A I N Y D A Y Purchase
DALE MARTIN SMITH The Size of Paradise Purchase
KIRBY She Purchase
2023
NEIL SURKAN Ruin Purchase
JAY BESEMER [Your tongue is as long as a Tuesday.] Purchase
SHE WHO HAS NO MASTER[s] Broadside Fertile
OANA AVASILICHIOAEI Improbable Theatres Purchase
WILL MANNING Joan Would Say Purchase
SUBHANYA SIVAJOTHY [wQr] Purchase
DEAN GARLICK Domestic Sublime Sold Out
KATE SUTHERLAND Nuptials Purchase
MICHAEL FLATT I Can Focus If I Try Purchase
AYAZ PIRANI Martyrs’ Garden Purchase
2022
MAUREEN SCOTT HARRIS More Than One Homage Sold Out
DALE MARTIN SMITH Blur Purchase
LANNII LAYKE Os Sold Out
PAOLA FERRANTE The Dark Unwind Purchase
KLARA DU PLESSIS + KADIE SALMON Skin & Meat Sky Fertile Sold Out
SACHA ARCHER Kim Fetile Sold Out
BRIAN DEDORA Get Lost Fertile
BILLY MAVREAS tenderness Fertile
TRAVIS SHARP Behind the Poet Reading Their Poem Is a Sign Saying Applause Fertile Sold Out
AARON TUCKER The Passage Bird’s Farewell Fertile Sold Out
VICTORIA MBABAZI FLIP Sold Out
MARK TRUSCOTT RAIN Purchase
JAMES LINDSAY THE LAKE Purchase
2021
BEN ROBINSON WITHOUT FORM Co-Published w/THE BLASTED TREE Sold Out
KFB SERIES NOT YOUR BEST NO. 2 Edited by KIRBY Sold Out
JENNIFER LOVEGROVE THE TINDER SONNETS Sold Out
AMANDA EARL MATTHEW Sold Out
TRAVIS SHARP YES, I AM A CORPSE FLOWER Sold Out
JIM JOHNSTONE THE OUROBOROS Sold Out
R. KOLEWE THE WILD FOX Sold Out
SHANE NEILSON WALT Purchase
2020
CORY LAVENDER Ballad of Bernie “Bear” Roy KFB Pamphlet Series 001 Sold Out
GARY BARWIN + KATHRYN MOCKLER ME THEN YOU THEN ME THEN Sold Out
NEIL SURKAN THEIR QUEER TENDERNESS Sold Out
PHILIP HARE | KIRBY “YOU’RE WELCOME” BANDANA Sold Out
HAMISH BALLANTYNE IMITATION CRAB Purchase
MICHAEL CAVUTO COUNTRY POEMS Sold Out
JOHN NYMAN THE DEVIL Sold Out
ANDY VERBOOM DBL Purchase
2019
ROXANNA BENNETT “BLUE ROSE” BROADSIDE Sold Out
HOA NGUYEN ASK ABOUT LANGUAGE AS IF IT FORGETS Sold Out
brandy ryan KERRY MANDERS AFTER PULSE Sold Out
ERIC SCHMALTZ [editor] NOT YOUR BEST BEST VOL 1 Sold Out
KHASHAYAR MOHAMMADI DEAR KESTREL Sold Out
R. KOLEWE SILENCE, THEN Sold Out [eBook]
CODY CAETANO PLEASURE DOME POEMS [wQr] Sold Out
PRATHNA LOR 7,2 [wQr] Sold Out
2018
KATE SUTHERLAND BEASTS OF THE SEA Sold Out
ROXANNA BENNETT UNSEEN GARDEN Sold Out
JOHN ELIZABETH STINTZI THE MACHETE TOURIST Sold Out
LAUREN TURNER WE’RE NOT GOING TO DO BETTER NEXT TIME Sold Out
DALE SMITH SONS BROADSIDE Purchase
2017
DALE SMITH SONS Sold Out [eBook]
ELIANNA LEV SEX MADE ME Sold Out
DAVID BRADFORD CALL OUT Sold Out
JONATHAN GARFINKEL BOCIANY (STORKS) Sold Out [eBook]
Knife Fork Book 