CWP COLLECTIVE

CWP Collective Press (“Cringe-Worthy Poets”) is a small chapbook press on the West Side of Buffalo New York. They have been producing handmade chapbooks of fine poetry since 2016. In this short time, they have published nearly 20 chapbooks of poetry by poets from New Jersey to Texas.

CWP is also a small band of young poets who are attempting to keep the art of the chapbook alive while making poetry more accessible and approachable. CWP is a diverse group of poets with actualized voices that differ greatly yet complement each other. They have been featured poets from New Jersey to New Mexico. They have extensively toured the Rust Belt and the Midwest.

JOHN DORSEY John Dorsey is the author of several collections of poetry, including Sodomy is a City in New Jersey (American Mettle Books, 2010), Tombstone Factory (Epic Rites Press, 2013) and most recently, Appalachian Frankenstein (GTK Press, 2015), and his work has appeared in multiple anthologies. He’s performed frequently with S.A. Griffin and Scott Wannberg‡; in 2005 as part of “NOW: New Word Order”; in 2006 as the “Deciders,” which included Ellyn Maybe; and as “Rebels Without Applause,” which included David Smith, in 2007. He’s also worked extensively in theatre and film.

JULIO MONTALVO VALENTIN Julio Montalvo Valentine is the author of two chapbooks, Don’t Give up the Shipand Ship Lost. He is an editor and founder of CWP Collective Press. He is a Blogger for Plurality Press. Julio is also an editor for Mutata Re, Erie Community Colleges literary journal. He has been a featured reader from New Jersey to New Mexico and many a town in between. Julio has two forthcoming chapbooks in 2017. His poems have appeared in various journals and magazines. Julio is a reluctant heart.

NATHANAEL WILLIAM STOLTE Nathanael William Stolte is the author of five chapbooks, A Beggars Book of Poems, Bumblebee Petting Zoo, Fools’ Song, Origami Creature, & A Beggar’s Prayer Book. His poems have appeared in Ghost City Review, Guide to Kulture Creative Journal, Five:2:One Magazine‘s #thesideshow, Rusty Truck, Poems-For-All, Your One Phone Call, In Between Hangovers, Le Mot Juste, The Rising Phoenix Review, The Buffalo News, Iconoclast, Foundlings Zine, & Plurality Press. He is a founder and the Acquisitions Editor for CWP Collective Press. He was voted best poet in Buffalo by Artvoices’ “Best of Buffalo” in 2016. He is a madcap, flower-punk, D.I.Y. Buffalo bred & corn-fed poet.

JENNI SKELTON Jennifer Skelton is a poet from Buffalo, NY. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in English from SUNY Buffalo State. Her first chapbook Gin came out this year. The themes in her poetry include the comedies and tragedies of personal relationships, from mother to lover, from American to Japan and back again. She has been a featured reader at Innisfree Poetry, Buffalo State College’s Rooftop Poetry Series, Queen City Gallery, and Words on the Rocks. She is the social media handler for CWP Collective Press.

MISTRAL CELESTE KHAN-BECERRA Mistral Khan-Becerra is a poet and fiction writer. Born and raised in Buffalo, NY by her Chilean family, she loves the city and finds nostalgia around its every corner. In her work Mistral frequently draws on the complex relationship between Mother and Daughter. She attempts to bridge the gap between what is expected of or from this relationship, and how stark (or truly inspired) its reality can be. She also fiddles around with how this dynamic presents itself in romantic relationships. Mistral is a cofounder of Cringe Worthy Poets Collective, and Editor in Chief of CWP Collective Press. Born a strict Taurus, she is stubborn in her form, but rages on. She is the author of Could I Stay Here? and Where Have You Been For So Long?

WILLIAM TAYLOR JR.William Taylor Jr. is the author of several collections of poetry and fiction, including So Much is Burning, Words for Songs Never Written, The Hunger Season, An Age of Monsters, Broken When We Got Here, The Blood of a Tourist, To Break the Heart of the Sun, and most recently The Song of What’s Become of Us. He lives in San Francisco’s Tenderloin.