Shoreline Voices: Santa Barbara Food & Drink
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Gunpowder Press is inviting poems inspired by or celebrating Santa Barbara County food, drinks, restaurants, and agriculture, to be edited by Santa Barbara Poet Laureate George Yatchisin. Open to poets living in Santa Barbara, Ventura, and San Luis Obispo counties.
Blessed by a year-round temperate climate, geography nestling it between the Pacific and the Santa Ynez Mountains, an unusual transverse range of mountains that cools north county growing regions, Santa Barbara glories in bounteous and beautiful products and produce from land and sea. Our farmers and fisherpeople provide us with a great start to create culinary delights. This anthology will attest to all that food and drink means to Santa Barbarans, and the ways that food shapes our culture and relationships.
For example, selected poems might include the following (these are suggestions, by no means a full list):
- Farms, agriculture, or fishing
- Strolling Farmer's Markets
- Native edible plants or vegetable gardens
- Ranching and vineyards
- Wineries/distilleries in Santa Barbara County
- Labor (from farm laborers to chefs to bartenders to dishwashers)
- Cafes/bars/restaurants
- Local specialty dishes
- Home cooking, especially foods particular to Santa Barbara
Submissions will accepted through September 30, 2025 (original deadline extended). There is no fee to submit; please submit only one time.
How to Submit: Send 1-3 poems in a single document. Poems of 40 lines or fewer are preferred. Prose poems considered (up to 300 words). Please send files in Word .doc or .docx format. Poems should be previously unpublished.
Please include a brief bio of 100 words or less, written in third person, and mention in it one of your favorite foods or drinks in Santa Barbara County (yes, it can be the one you write about!). Contributors selected for publication will receive one copy of the published anthology and a contributor's discount on additional copies.
We plan to hold a range of readings and events celebrating the book’s publication in Spring 2026.
About the Editor: George Yatchisin is Santa Barbara's Poet Laureate (2025-2027). His books include Feast Days and The First Night We Thought the World Would End. In addition to poetry, he writes journalism about food and drink for the Santa Barbara Independent, Edible Santa Barbara, and other venues, and hosts the "Spirits in the Air: Potent Potable Poetry" reading series. He is thrilled to have a flourishing avocado tree in his backyard.
About Gunpowder Press: Founded in 2013 by David Starkey and co-edited by David Starkey and Chryss Yost, Gunpowder Press is part of Gunpowder Poetry, a literary 501(c)(3) located in Santa Barbara, California. Our name honors our city's namesake, Saint Barbara, patron saint of gunpowder. For more information about the press, visit https://gunpowderpress.com.