Puncher & Wattmann

Puncher & Wattmann is an independent Australian publishing house founded by David Musgrave in 2005. It specialises in publishing Australian poetry and literary fiction. Launched by David Malouf, its first title, "James Stinks (and so does Chuck)" by Nick Riemer (2005) was placed third in the Mary Gilmore Award in 2006. Subsequent poetry titles have included Simon West's "First Names" (2006), shortlisted for the 2006 Kenneth Slessor Award, Peter Kirkpatrick's "Westering" (2006), shortlisted for the 2008 Kenneth Slessor Award, John Watson's "Montale: An Autobiographical Anthology" (2006), shortlisted for the 2007 Victorian Premier's and Adeliade festival Award for Innovation and Phyllis Perlstone's "The Edge of Everything", also shortlisted for the 2008 Kenneth Slessor Award. Both "Westering" and "First Names" wewre awarded the William Baylebridge Prize in 2007.

In late 2006 P&W published its first novel, "Helen Garner and the Meaning of Everything" by Alex Jones. In 2007 P&W published "Basket of Sunlight" by Meredith Wattison and "The Kurri Kurri Book of the Dead" by Greg McLaren. In 2008 P&W published "Morris in Iceland" by Alex Jones, a novel concerned with the socialist artist William Morris, "A Shrine to Lata Mangeshkar" by Kerry Leves and "Moving Along: Selected Verse" by J.K. Murphy, "Erasure Traces" and "Views From Mt Brogden & A Dictionary of Minor Poets" by John Watson; later in the year it will publish "Fishing in the Devonian" by Carol Jenkins, "paragliding in a warzone" by Louise Wakeling, "Skin Theory" by Philip Hammial, "Squeezing Desire Through a Sieve" Micro-Essays on Law and Poetry" by M T C Cronin and "The Right" by Matthew Karpin.

Puncher & Wattmann is a member of SPUNC [http://www.spunc.com.au/home.htm] , (Small Press Underground networking Community - Australia).

The names "Puncher and Wattman" come from Samuel Beckett's play "Waiting for Godot (1952)," specifically from a speech by Lucky when he is given his hat to think. The excerpt is as follows:

Given the existence as uttered forth in the public works of Puncher and Wattmann of a personal God quaquaquaqua with white beard quaquaquaqua outside time without extension who from the heights of divine apathia divine athambia divine aphasia loves us dearly with some exceptions for reasons unknown but time will tell and suffers like the divine Miranda with those who for reasons unknown but time will tell are plunged in torment plunged in fire whose fire flames if that continues and who can doubt it will fire the firmament that is to say blast hell to heaven so blue still and calm so calm with a calm which even though intermittent is better than nothing but not so fast and considering what is more that as a result of the labors left unfinished crowned by the Acacacacademy of Anthropopopometry of Essy-in-Possy of Testew and Cunard it is established beyond all doubt all other doubt than that which clings to the labors of men that as a result of the labors unfinished of Testew and Cunnard it is established as hereinafter but not so fast for reasons unknown that as a result of the public works of Puncher and Wattmann it is established beyond all doubt that in view of the labors of Fartov and Belcher left unfinished for reasons unknown...

External links

* [http://puncherandwattmann.com/ Puncher & Wattmann's Website]