Madrone Avenue Press is a small press which specializes in publishing anthologies and work by women authors.

Publications:

To date, the Press has published two anthologies of poetry and prose, the first titled, This Cannot Be Me, published in 2005, and the second, I Want You to Know, just released in December, 2007. The writings included in these publications come from the members of Rachel de Baere's writing practice groups (www.racheldebaere.com) and present a diversity of voice, style, subject and truth. All pieces are personal and universal in nature.

History:

Madrone Avenue Press was established in 2005 by writer, editor and teacher, Rachel de Baere. The inspiration for the Press' name comes from the Madrone Tree, a native deciduous and evergreen tree found on the Western Coast of the United States and particularly in Marin County, California where Rachel was born and raised.

The Madrone Tree:

Arching over beaches and shallow waters or at the base of rolling hills, the Madrone Tree offers a rich metaphor for the process of writing. Like the written word, the solid, oval leaves of the Madrone are layered with all kinds of life color and meaning - darker greens above and lighter greens beneath. With this diverse layering of leaves, the Madrone trunk's rich, reddish bark peels away and renews itself into a greenish, silvery smoothness - as in the polish of craft. Together, the trunk and its leaves offer a spiral of expression and meaning.