Tramp Press is a publishing company founded in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

in 2014 by Lisa Coen and Sarah Davis-Goff. It is an independent publisher that specialises in Irish fiction. The company is named after

John Millington Synge Edmund John Millington Synge (; 16 April 1871 – 24 March 1909) was an Irish playwright, poet, writer, collector of folklore, and a key figure in the Irish Literary Revival. His best known play ''The Playboy of the Western World'' was poorly r ...

's tramp, a reference to the bold outsider.

Publishing history

Tramp Press published its inaugural title in April 2014. ''Flight'', the debut novel of Oona Frawley, went on to be shortlisted for Best Newcomer Award at the

Bord Gáis Energy Bord Gáis Energy is a utility that supplies gas and electricity and boiler services to customers in the Republic of Ireland. Bord Gáis Energy has been in operation in some form since 1976 and supplies over 750,000 customers with energy in Irel ...

Irish Book Awards. The book also received positive reviews in both ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' and ''

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

''. ''Dubliners 100: 15 New Stories Inspired by the Original'', edited by Thomas Morris, was released in June 2014 on the centenary of the publication of

James Joyce James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (2 February 1882 – 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist, poet, and literary critic. He contributed to the modernist avant-garde movement and is regarded as one of the most influential and important writers of ...

's ''

Dubliners ''Dubliners'' is a collection of fifteen short stories by James Joyce, first published in 1914. It presents a naturalistic depiction of Irish middle class life in and around Dublin in the early years of the 20th century. The stories were writt ...

''. It comprises short fiction from established and emerging writers – including

John Kelly John or Jack Kelly may refer to: People Academics and scientists * John Kelly (engineer), Irish professor, former Registrar of University College Dublin *John Kelly (scholar) (1750–1809), at Douglas, Isle of Man *John Forrest Kelly (1859–1922) ...

, Mary Morrissy, Belinda McKeon and

Eimear McBride Eimear McBride (born 16 April 1976) is an Irish novelist, whose debut novel, ''A Girl Is a Half-formed Thing'', won the inaugural Goldsmiths Prize in 2013 and the 2014 Baileys Women's Prize for Fiction. Published works McBride wrote ''A Girl Is ...

– and an introduction by Morris. ''Dubliners 100'' won the Journal.ie Best Irish-Published Book Award at the Bord Gáis Energy Irish Book Awards while Donal Ryan's story for the collection, entitled ''Eveline'', was shortlisted for the Writing.ie Best Short Story Award. It also received positive reviews in ''The Guardian'', ''Irish Times'' and ''

The Times Literary Supplement ''The Times Literary Supplement'' (''TLS'') is a weekly literary review published in London by News UK, a subsidiary of News Corp. History The ''TLS'' first appeared in 1902 as a supplement to ''The Times'' but became a separate publication i ...

''. The book was mentioned ahead of its publication in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''. ''A Struggle for Fame'' by

Charlotte Riddell Charlotte Eliza Lawson Riddell (nee Cowan; 30 September 1832 – 24 September 1906), known also as Mrs J. H. Riddell, was a popular and influential Irish-born writer in the Victorian period. She was the author of 56 books, novels and short stor ...

was the first in a series called 'Recovered Voices', which aims to showcase literature that has been largely forgotten. The ''

Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper and online publication which is owned by Independent News & Media (INM), a subsidiary of Mediahuis. The newspaper version often includes glossy magazines. Traditionally a broadsheet new ...

'' described this rediscovered book by a prolific author as a "rare treat". In 2015, Tramp Press published

Sara Baume Sara Baume (born 1984) is an Irish novelist. Life Her father is of English descent while her mother is of Irish descent. As her parents travelled around in a caravan, Sara Baume was born "on the road to Wigan Pier". When she was 4, they moved ...

's debut novel ''Spill Simmer Falter Wither''. Baume won the Davy Byrnes Award and the Hennessy New Irish Writer 2015 award. The novel was described as an exciting debut by writer

Joseph O'Connor Joseph Victor O'Connor (born 20 September 1963) is an Irish novelist. His 2002 historical novel '' Star of the Sea'' was an international number one bestseller. Before success as an author, he was a journalist with the ''Sunday Tribune'' newspap ...

and rights were sold to UK publisher

Heinemann Heinemann may refer to: * Heinemann (surname) * Heinemann (publisher), a publishing company * Heinemann Park, a.k.a. Pelican Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States See also * Heineman * Jamie Hyneman James Franklin Hyneman (born Se ...

. In May 2016, Tramp Press published Mike McCormack's novel ''Solar Bones'' which won the year's

Goldsmiths Prize The Goldsmiths Prize is a British literary award, founded in 2013 by Goldsmiths, University of London, in association with the ''New Statesman.'' It is awarded annually to a piece of fiction that "breaks the mould or extends the possibilities of ...

. ''Vertigo'' by Joanna Walsh was published in March 2016. ''Orange Horses'' by

Maeve Kelly Maeve Kelly (born 1930) is an Irish writer. Career Kelly was born in Ennis, County Clare and raised in Dundalk, County Louth, Ireland. She settled in Limerick and studied nursing at St. Andrew's Hospital in London London is the capital ...

was 2016's Recovered Voices title. Tramp Press' 2017 catalogue included ''The Iron Age'' by

Arja Kajermo Arja Kajermo is a cartoonist, born in Finland, raised in Sweden, currently residing in Ireland. Kajermo was born in Kiuruvesi, Northern Savonia, where her family had a small farm. They moved to Stockholm in 1955 when she was six years old. Kajerm ...

, A Line Made By Walking by

and ''The Unforeseen'' by Dorothy Macardle. ''The Unforeseen'' was part of the ''Recovered Voices'' series. 2018 saw the publication of Emilie Pine's essay collection ''Notes to Self''. This was Tramp's first foray into non-fiction. The book won the

An Post (; literally 'The Post') is the state-owned provider of postal services in Ireland. An Post provides a "universal postal service" to all parts of the country as a member of the Universal Postal Union. Services provided include letter post, p ...

Irish Book of the Year of 2018. Tramp Press also published the novel ''Problems'' by Jade Sharma in May 2018 and ''A Brilliant Void: A Selection of Classic Irish Science Fiction,'' which was edited by Irish academic Jack Fennell. ''A Brilliant Void'' was part of the Recovered Voices series. In 2019, Tramp Press published a novel, ''The Red Word'' by Sarah Henstra, and ''Minor Monuments'', an essay collection by Irish journalist Ian Maleney. In 2020, Tramp Press published "A Ghost In The Throat" by

Doireann Ní Ghríofa Doireann Ní Ghríofa is an Irish poet and essayist who writes in both Irish and English. Biography Doireann Ní Ghríofa was born in Galway in 1981, but grew up in County Clare. She now lives in County Cork. Ní Ghríofa has been published wi ...

Tramp Press books

''Flight'' by Oona Frawley – 2014 ''Dubliners 100: 15 New Stories Inspired by the Original'' edited by Thomas Morris - 2014 ''A Struggle for Fame'' by

- 2014 ''A Kind of Compass: Stories on Distance'' edited by Belinda McKeon - 2015 ''Spill Simmer Falter Wither'' by

- 2015 ''The Uninvited'' by

Dorothy Macardle Dorothy Macardle (2 February 1889, in Dundalk – 23 December 1958, in Drogheda)Luke Gibbons, ''The Irish Times'', Weekend Review, "A Cosmopolitan Reclaimed: A Review of ''Dorothy Macardle: A Life''", by Nadia Clare Smith, 10 November 2007, p.13 ...

- 2015 ''Vertigo'' by

Joanna Walsh Life Joanna Walsh is an author, editor and artist. She currently lives in Dublin. Works and Reviews Joanna Walsh is the author of: * Seed, a digital work. This work is featured in the British Library's Digital Storytelling Exhibit June 2, ...

- 2016 ''Solar Bones'' by Mike McCormack - 2016 ''Orange Horses'' by

- 2016 ''The Iron Age'' by

- 2017 ''A Line Made By Walking'' by

- 2017 ''The Unforeseen'' by Dorothy Macardle - 2017 ''Notes to Self'' by Emilie Pine - 2018 ''Problems'' by Jade Sharma - 2018 ''A Brilliant Void: A Selection of Classic Irish Science Fiction'' edited by Jack Fennell – 2018 ''The Red Word'' by Sarah Henstra – 2019 ''Minor Monuments'' by Ian Maleney – 2019

Publishing awards

In 2015, Tramp Press won the David Manley Award for Emerging Arts Entrepreneur and was also shortlisted for a Blacknight SME award.

References

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External links

Tramp Press website
Book publishing companies of Ireland Irish companies established in 2014 Companies based in Dublin (city)