Our Mission
Backwoods Literary Press exists to reclaim, expand, and document the stories of rural life—including small towns, hollers, reservations, and borderlands—through the voices of those too often pushed to the margins.
In an era of book bans, censorship, and political erasure, we champion artists and storytellers who are rooted in or connected to rural places—especially LGBTQIA2S+ people, Black and Indigenous creators, people of color, immigrants, and disabled communities.
Through publications, digital media, and gatherings both online and in-person, we work to reshape how rural culture is understood—amplifying the complexity, resilience, and beauty of our communities.
Photo by Trish J. Gibson
Reclaiming the Narrative
Documentation is political. Who gets remembered—and how their story is told—is often determined by those in power, not those most impacted. For centuries, history has been carefully curated to serve the few. But writing is a tool for truth-telling, and documentation is a claim to being believed.
In a time when our histories are being erased, silenced, or rewritten, we hold the responsibility to record who we really are—not who institutions say we are. By documenting our lives on our terms, we build an archive of resistance, care, and clarity. We make space for future generations to understand the full truth of what came before them.
