Understory. an underlying layer of vegetation
specifically : the vegetative layer and especially the trees and shrubs between the forest canopy and the ground cover. (Merriam-Webster Dictionary)
Understory Books was founded in 2019 by Tom Lecky. The imprint draws inspiration from 20th-century small presses like Robert Creeley’s Divers Press and Jonathan Williams’s Jargon Society, and from poet-publishers such as Bernadette Mayer (0 to 9), Rosemarie and Keith Waldrop (Burning Deck), Lyn Hejinian (Tuumba Press), Douglas Messerli (Sun & Moon), and Stephen Gill (Nobody Books).
Understory explores the book as both tradition and experiment—publishing works that may appear classic in form yet are made with a deliberate, probing craft that uncover emotional depth and the uncanny. We publish without a fixed schedule, releasing books that speak to these sensibilities.
I once asked Rosemarie Waldrop in an interview what she looked for in a book that might become a Burning Deck title. Her response is a useful analog for Understory’s variable concerns: “This is a hard one: I guess we look for the ‘delight and surprise’ bell in our heads to go off. In the work, I suppose, we look for a blend of imagination, inventiveness, daring, intelligence, ear etc.” Hear hear.
Understory is the imprint of Riverrun Books & Manuscripts.