About AHP
Our Mission
Animal Heart Press was born out of a desire to make a difference in the world of poetry. The press is fiercely feminist, and we’re interested in lifting up feminist voices, and those who support them. AHP doesn’t care if you have an MFA, or if you didn’t finish high school – if you’re a good poet, that’s what counts. We love seeing people who do the work – who take on feedback, read widely, and make a serious attempt to better their writing. These are our kind of people.
We’re extremely author focused. We work very closely with all our authors and everyone we publish has a unique experience, shaped around their book and the kind of work they’re interested in doing to promote it (that part is kind of a two way street). We pay good royalties on our standard publishing contracts. We only charge entry fees for our contests so we can give juicy cash prizes to the winners. We NEVER charge for general submissions.
At the core of everything AHP is love. We’re about solid, honest, reciprocal relationships with our authors and our community. We’d love you to be a part of it.
Meet Our Team
Elisabeth Horan – Founding Editor
Elisabeth Horan is an imperfect creature from Vermont advocating for animals, children and those suffering alone and in pain – especially those ostracized by disability and mental illness. Elisabeth is the Founding Editor of Animal Heart Press.
She earned her MFA from Lindenwood University and received a 2018 Best of the Net Nomination from Midnight Lane Boutique and a 2018 Pushcart Nomination from Cease Cows. She has books with Fly on the Wall Poetry Press, Twist in Time Press, Rhythm & Bones Press, and Flypaper Magazine.
Follow her on Twitter @ehoranpoet or connect on her website ehoranpoet.com
Amanda McLeod – Managing Editor
Amanda McLeod is an Australian author and artist, with a penchant for wild places and quiet. Her work has appeared in many places both in print and online, and she received a 2019 Pushcart Prize nomination from Ellipsis Zine. Her work has been shortlisted in several writing prizes, and won the 2018 Marjorie Graber-McInnis Short Story Award. She is the managing editor of Animal Heart Press, and designs the literary magazine FERAL: A Journal of Poetry and Art.
Follow her on Twitter and Instagram @AmandaMWrites
Beth Gordon – Managing Editor and Logistics Manager
Beth Gordon is a poet, mother and grandmother currently plotting her escape from “the gateway to the West” to the city that Rolling Stone Magazine once crowned “the freak capital of the United States.” Her poems have been published in numerous journals and nominated for Best of the Net and Pushcart. She is the author of the chapbook, Morning Walk with Dead Possum, Breakfast and Parallel Universe, published by Animal Heart Press. She is also Poetry Editor of Gone Lawn.
Jude Marr – Managing Editor and Social Media Manager
Jude Marr is a poet and teacher originally from Scotland, and holds a PhD from University of Louisiana. Their poetry collection We Know Each Other By Our Wounds was released by Animal Heart Press in 2020. Find Jude on Twitter @JudeMarr1.