IAN MARTIN

VISIT THE IAN MARTIN MEMORIAL LIBRARY

chapbooks

2016-2022

preview image for EVERYONE IS MY ENEMY

EVERYONE IS MY ENEMY

a chapbook about video games, bodies, and attacking anything that moves.

Self-published (2022) — [ read ]

preview image for I DON'T TRUST SKINNY PEOPLE

I DON'T TRUST SKINNY PEOPLE

a chapbook about desire, size, and morally-conflicted cryptids.

Ghost City Press (2020) — [ read ]

preview image for YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO KEEP THIS UP FOREVER

YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO KEEP THIS UP FOREVER

a chapbook about existing incorrectly and being bad at sex.

"This is an unfailingly clever collection, and maybe all (or partly) in jest or an experiment. If so, Martin plays the role of malcontent well. Read this to feel better about your own life."
—Scott Bryson, Broken Pencil Issue 82
"...there’s an immediacy to Martin’s short pieces, as well as a rush to his prose; one that manages a speed without tripping, and a rush without obscuring meaning or purpose."
rob mclennan

AngelHousePress (2018) — [ SOLD OUT ]

preview image for PLACES TO HIDE

PLACES TO HIDE

a chapbook about recursion, symbolism, and carving out space.

coven editions (2018) — [ buy ]

preview image for YOU ARE A BAD PERSON

YOU ARE A BAD PERSON

an interactive chapbook that i wrote about a bad person (not you specifically).

Self-published (2016) — [ read ]

preview image for CLIMBING OUT OF OTHER PEOPLE'S HANDS

CLIMBING OUT OF OTHER PEOPLE'S HANDS

a chapbook about hands, dreams, and other fake things.

"In Martin’s hands though, the emotionalism and the punchlines are of a piece, both ironic, both sincere [...] a very promising first collection."
JM Francheteau

In/Words Press (2016) — [ SOLD OUT ]


published work

2024

  • "MADE FOR CONSUMPTION"

VANITY. — [ read ]

  • "DREAM JOB"

These Days Issue 26 — [ buy ]

2023

  • a short take on the prose poem
  • "I'VE LOST MY VIRGINITY BEFORE AND I'LL LOSE IT AGAIN"

periodicities — [ read ]

2021

  • "A UNIVERSAL UNDERSTANDING"
  • "IF MICHELANGEO SAW MY TITS HE'D LOSE HIS MIND"

NOT YOUR BEST no. 2 — [ buy ]

  • "roguelike"
  • "MOTIVATION"

Touch the Donkey Issue 30 — [ buy ]

"FLOW STATE"

Arc Magazine Issue 94 — [ buy ]

  • "LET YOUR BODY RAGDOLL"
  • "I WAS BORN A PREDATOR / YOU MUST HAVE YOUR REVENGE"
  • "THE PRINCESS IS IN ANOTHER CASTLE"
  • "THE GARDENER"

n-o-b-o-d-y Issue 2 — [ read ]

"CHOKING ON THE BREATH OF LIFE"

Neutral Spaces Issue 2 — [ read ]

2020

"I WANT TO UNLOCK ALL YOUR ADDITIONAL COSTUMES"

The Puritan — [ read ]

"MY GOD I AM NOT COPING"

ottawater #16 — [ read ]

"I LOVE THE MACHINE THAT IS KEEPING ME ALIVE"

Cypress: Poetry Journal — [ read ]

"THE FUNNY THING ABOUT PATTERNS IS THAT ALL OF THEM CAN BE FOUND II"

The Wild Literary Magazine — [ read ]

"ALL OVER"

SURFACES.cx — [ read ]

2019

"Selling yourself (Short)"

release any words stuck inside you II — [ buy ]

"history"

small poems 🍓 — [ read ]

"THE UNIVERSAL EXPERIENCE"

DUSIE Tuesday poem — [ read ]

"To All The Boys I've Blocked On Social Media"

G U E S T Issue #5 — [ read ]

  • "pornographic"
  • "RE: CALLUSING"

BAD DOG Issue 2 — [ read ]

"Who is Ian Martin?"

➰➰➰ Issue 2 — [ read ]

"I WANT TO BE PERFECT AND IN LOVE FOREVER"

self-published — [ read ]

  • "A PAINTING OF A CLOWN THAT ISN'T SAD ANYMORE ($5)"
  • "jitters"
  • "pity dig"

talking about strawberries all of the time issue 2 — [ read ]

"UNLOCKED: Spell of Rejuvenation"

Chaudiere Books for National Poetry Month — [ read ]

"ONE DAY I WILL BE NAKED ON THE COVER OF A MAGAZINE"

Train: a poetry journal blog — [ read ]

"AS A PROFESSIONAL TWERP/GARDENER"


Train: a journal of prose poems — [ read ]

"to find a new stability"

Half a Grapefruit Magazine — [ read ]

2018

  • "withdrawal / withdrawing"
  • "to disappear"
  • "meeting an older version of myself in a dream"
  • "aubade for baron"
  • "the 'you' in breakup songs

where is the river issue eight — [ read ]

"a fear of fireworks"

Plenitude Magazine — [ read ]

"what i learned from the field behind my house"

Bad Nudes Issue 3.2 — [ read ]

  • "why are there so many missed connections in dollar stores"
  • "i am going to be strong and good if it kills me"

Pretty Owl Poetry: Winter 2018 — [ read ]

2017

"RE: COMMITMENT"

a broadside published by coven editions — [ ???? ]

"deep dream"

published in a public park as part of rout/e — [ find ]

"mensch"

In/Words Magazine: lorem ipsum — [ ???? ]

"let me be unhappy in peace"

indistinguishable Issue 1 — [ ???? ]

"pods"

Absolutely Orbital: Issue 1 — [ read ]

"THE FUNNY THING ABOUT PATTERNS IS THAT ALL OF THEM CAN BE FOUND"

30 under 30: A collection of Canadian millennial poets (In/Words Press)

pre-2017

"How to make mushroom gravy"

L’dor vador (shreeking violet press) — [ buy ]

"night shift"

a broadside published by In/Words — [ ???? ]

"blythe"

Absolutely Orbital: Issue 0 — [ read ]

"echoes"

In/Words — [ read  ]

"driving home from london, ontario"

The Steel Chisel January 2015 — [ ???? ]

  • "roots"
  • "recursions"
  • "party foul"

Ygdrasil November 2014 — [ read ]

  • "grim"
  • "when it is too late to say no"

In/Words — [ read ]

"hemlock"

Bywords June 2014 — [ read ]

"enoch"

text lit mag Issue 4 — [ read ]

"growing pains"

In/Words — [ ???? ]

"spat"

The Steel Chisel April 2013 — [ ???? ]

"false appetite"

Bywords January 2012 — [ ???? ]


awards & nominations

  • "single-use"
  • "WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE"

Both runners-up for Arc's Award of Awesomeness for September 2020 — [ see ]

"why are there so many missed connections in dollar stores"

Nominated for Sundress Publications's 2018 Best of the Net — [ see ]

"apotropaic"

Shortlisted for Arc Magazine's 2014 Poem of the Year contest


interviews

An interview for Touch the Donkey

read ]

An interview for Chaudiere Books

read ]

An interview for poetry mini interviews

read ]

An interview for Train: a poetry journal

read ]

An interview for the small machine talks

listen ]


workshops

"The Poetics of Play: How Games and Poems Intersect"

for Tree Reading Series at Black Squirrel Books — [ event ]


readings

Special Event: Riverbed x Qu'ART

w/ Rhiannon Ng Chen Hin and John Ian — [ event ]

Riverbed Reading Series: iteration two

w/ Nathan Adler, Set L. Shuter, and Melody McKiver — [ event ]

periodicities virtual reading series #2

w/ Gil McElroy, Conyer Clayton, K.I. Press, and Gary Barwin — [ hear ]

One-Off Reading

w/ Syd Lazarus, Rachel Gray, and christian scott — [ event ]

blUe mOndays

w/ Ugly Duckling — [ event ]

Tree Reading Series presents: Hot Ottawa Voices 2018

w/ Leah Maclean-Evans and Manahil Bandukwala — [ event ]

the small press book fair pre-fair reading

w/ David Alexander, Kate Siklosi, Stan Rogal, Bruce Geddes, and Manahil Bandukwala — [ event ]

Coven Editions Launch Party

at Bar Robo w/ Manahil Bandukwala and Conyer Clayton — [ event ]

In/Words Issue 17.1 Launch

w/ Conyer Clayton, Amanda Earl, and Colin Mylrea — [ event ]

Facilitate

w/ Myer Mendelson — [ event ]

CSArt Ottawa rout/e launch

w/ other rout/e contributors — [ ????? ]

Jeremy HF & Catriona W Ottawa book launch

w/ Jason Christie, Jeremy Hanson-Finger, and Catriona Wright — [ event ]

In/Words Reading Series

w/ Jessica Bebenek — [ event ]

Sawdust Reading Series

w/ Gary Barwin — [ event ]

CUAG Fall Art Party

w/ Dana Carly Andrews — [ event ]

Slackline Creative Arts Series

w/ Karen Lee, Jake Byrne, Eddie Anki, and Brolin Devine — [ event ]

VERSEFest Volunteer Appreciation Night

w/ Eric Charlebois, Brecken Hancock, Daniel Groleau Landry, and Call Me Katie — [ event ]

In/Words Reading Series

w/ Graeme O'Farrell — [ event ]

In/Words Reading Series

w/ Scott Cleland — [ event ]


zines

POTENTIAL WAYS TO COMPLETELY REJECT CULTURE

a collection of musings on culture made for the ottawa zine swap.

May 2019 — [ ???? ]

PUT YOUR BEST FOOT FORWARD AND TRIP DOWN THE STAIRS

a collection of love stories.

October 2017 — [ ???? ]

chapbook title ideas II: electric boogaloo

a collection of fake covers for chapbooks i could potentially write.

April 2017 — [ read ]

chapbook title ideas

a collection of ideas i had for titling my next chapbook.

June 2016 — [ read ]

messages

w/ Justin Lam. a short horror story written around randomly generated text files.

February 2016 — [ ???? ]

GOD VS. SJWs

a short story about the fallibility in everyone.

April 2015 — [ read ]

RETWEETING TO MAKE YOURSELF LOOK GOOD AND OTHER STORIES

a collection of poems written by assembling cutouts of my twitter feed.

November 2014 — [ ???? ]

Overstock

a collection of poems written during breaktime at my old overnight stock job.

June 2014 — [ ???? ]