An excerpt from my new book The Golden Age of Trance and Other Stories is included in Alien Buddha Zine #92 (November)!
Official site of poet James Schwartz, author of The Literary Party: Growing Up Gay and Amish in America
In the Alien Buddha's Dreams
In The Alien Buddha’s Dreams is made of 183 pages of sweet revelations and spicy night terrors. This lucid, looping collection from 28 dreamers is a cosmic and liminal nocturnal emission of fiction, poetry, and prose.
In “A False Bright Joy” by Kendra Augustin, life’s a dystopian drag when they vaporize your best friend for no good reason. What’s even real anyway? Might as well rebel.
4 poems by Clarabelle Miray Fields, including one devoted to witch-mother, goddess, and guide Hekate.
The Rest of the Dream by Dorthy LaVern McCarthy shadows Marion throughout a bizarre nightmare when she lets go of a plane wing in her recurring dream.
In Wallace Alton’s “Surprise-Surprise,” a man is imprisoned in his apartment by a repetitive entity, trapped in a cigarette-smoking, shoe-shining loop.
In “dream sequence” by Jack Giaour, the narrator has a penis, magic, and money.
Nature, memory, and surreal landscapes intertwine with poetry from Cosmic Birch, Aishwaria Laxmi, Alan Hardy, James Benger, Lynn White, Linda M. Crate, and many others.
A preview of Nighttime Logic by Damon Hubbs, his new chapbook from Alien Buddha Press, a restlessly unstable portrait of relationships, artistic purpose, and death.
“Ice Cream With The Dead” by Joseph Farley follows Liam, who is tasked with serving ice cream to dead people and helping them with their problems.
“Melatonin 2:03” by Lemmy Winegardner follows a haunted wildcard trapped in increasingly surreal layers of dreams and waking reality, where a mysterious third exit leads him back home.
Finally, “The Secret Destiny of Michigan” by James Schwartz blends memoir, mysticism, UFO lore, and Michigan history.
All this, and much more! Don’t sleep on this collection.
Diversity Rules Magazine: "The Golden Age of Trance"
My book The Golden Age of Trance and Other Stories is featured in the September issue of Diversity Rules Magazine, now available! Read here.
New Generation Beats 2026 Anthology
Just announced! - I'm honored to have my Sleepcast Poem included in the forthcoming New Generation Beat Publications anthology New Generation Beats 2026!
"The Golden Age of Trance" Now Available!
The Golden Age of Trance and Other Stories by James Schwartz is now available!
Read an excerpt here.
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Cities have no accommodations for Amish hitching rails. Joe tethered his horse and buggy several blocks from the gay bar.
James Schwartz returns with his seventh book from Alien Buddha Press, following acclaimed titles such as Motor City Mix (2022) and AMISH ALCHEMY (2026). The Golden Age of Trance and Other Stories is a fearless collection that explores identity, memory, desire, and the complicated search for belonging. Whether set beneath the flashing lights of Chicago nightlife or the quiet isolation of rural America, these stories pulse with emotional honesty, sharp wit, and unforgettable characters who refuse to fit neatly into anyone else's expectations. Schwartz writes with compassion for outsiders while never looking away from the contradictions that make them real.
Foreword by Perry Brass
A poet, slam performer, speaker, and author, James Schwartz is the Lambda Literary Award nominated author of The Literary Party: Growing Up Gay and Amish in America and a Pushcart Prize nominee whose work has appeared in numerous literary journals. Bold, heartfelt, and impossible to forget, this collection further cements Schwartz as one of Alien Buddha Press's defining voices.
"The Golden Age of Trance and Other Stories" Press Kit
The Golden Age of Trance and Other Stories (Alien Buddha Press) by James Schwartz. Available on Amazon Aug. 17! Foreword by Perry Brass
James Schwartz returns with his seventh book from Alien Buddha Press, following acclaimed titles such as Motor City Mix (2022) and AMISH ALCHEMY (2026). The Golden Age of Trance and Other Stories is a fearless collection that explores identity, memory, desire, and the complicated search for belonging. Whether set beneath the flashing lights of Chicago nightlife or the quiet isolation of rural America, these stories pulse with emotional honesty, sharp wit, and unforgettable characters who refuse to fit neatly into anyone else's expectations. Schwartz writes with compassion for outsiders while never looking away from the contradictions that make them real.
A poet, slam performer, speaker, and author, James Schwartz is the Lambda Literary Award nominated author of The Literary Party: Growing Up Gay and Amish in America and a Pushcart Prize nominee whose work has appeared in numerous literary journals. Bold, heartfelt, and impossible to forget, this collection further cements Schwartz as one of Alien Buddha Press's defining voices.
"James has the spirit of many writers flowing through his blood." - Fevers of the Mind
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The Great Lakes Review: Portraits of Palmer Park
My Detroit photography has been published by The Great Lakes Review!
Photography by James Schwartz
— Great Lakes Review (@Greatlakesrev) July 30, 2026
Portraits of Palmer Park #Photography with #GreatLakesReview https://t.co/YhVwfOnDQJ
The New Verse News: Portrait of a Primary
My Portrait of a Primary has been published via The New Verse News today!
Michigan Primary 2026 🗳
Dear Michigan friends,
August 4th is the Michigan primary, please vote yes to fund public transit and Abdul El-Sayed for US Senate! I don't usually post political content but I love my home state and how we vote shapes our communities.
I was happy to attend Abdul's Senate launch in 2025 and also volunteer for his campaign, he is the leader we need!
Q & A with James Schwartz
Q & A with James Schwartz
Q: Describe your new book and your writing process?
JS: This book is over a decade in the making. I don't actually write a lot of fiction so this is a collection of nearly all of my short stories.
I like to write longhand in a notebook with black ink, never blue, and then type it up later. Also I write lying down. Sometimes I'll play electronic music like 90s trance but usually not.
Q: Why now?
JS: The declining literacy rates in my home state of Michigan and the US was on my mind.
I read that piece in The Atlantic declaring the Literary Age over - depressing. I wanted to share my love of books, reading and writing. In my Introduction I write about that.
The Amish are big on reading though, I wonder if that too will change.
I have always been a reader and it bothers me that we as a collective are moving away from books and into mindless scrolling. I make it a point to limit my own screentime, you have to protect your time.
Earlier this summer I had a health scare and almost died. I have actually had a lot of near death experiences throughout my life but I was reminded that I still have a few things on my bucket list like a short story collection.
Q: What are your favorite short stories?
JS: "Rain" by W. Somerset Maugham, "A Day's Work" by Truman Capote come to mind.
Q: Your characters are rebels challenging the status quo, art imitating life?
JS: Of course! LGBTQ Amish are persecuted and shunned by the church today as when I left over thirty years ago.
Perry Brass wrote a profound Foreword for this book about religious intolerance and queer desire which sets the vibe for my stories.
Q: What are your summer plans?
JS: I will be hosting a book launch party in August and otherwise catching up on my reading!
Summer Preview! 🏖 📚
* Poems 2 (with Sourav Sarkar) now available!
* Detroit themed photography in The Great Lakes Review 7/31!
* Short story collection (late summer release date, details TBA)!
* The Secret Destiny of Michigan a creative non-fic essay via In the Alien Buddha's Dreams anthology (dropping in September)!
"Raining Hymns Anthology" Now Available!
My Volcanic Rain poem is in the Raining Hymns Anthology, now available!
Book Announcement!
I'm very happy to share my VERY FIRST book of short stories will be dropping later this summer by Alien Buddha Press! Details TBA!
Happy Pride! 🏳️🌈
Happy Pride 2026! To celebrate I have a new short story titled The End of the World in The Alien Buddha Pride feature, read it here!
Pic from Ferndale Pride:
"Environmental Anthology" Now Available!
Several poems of mine appear in the Environmental Anthology, now available!
The New Verse News: Detroit Dispatch 🛸
My poem Detroit Dispatch is up today at The New Verse News, read it here!
"World Poetry 2026 Anthology" Now Available!
WORLD POETRY 2026 ANTHOLOGY includes my poem East / West Symphony, now available!
"Great American Poets 4" Anthology!
My Night Portrait of the Fisher Buidling is featured in the Great American Poets 4 anthology, now available!
Spring 2026 Update! 🌷
National Poetry Month is over but spring is here in Michigan! Sharing a photo from Hamtramck, where I spent today.
I have a new book of Poems with Sourav Sarkar just released along with several anthologies - links below!
2 New Anthologies!
The sequel anthology Great American Poets 2 is now available - Includes my poem City of Refuge! Also the new A Glimpse of Nature Anthology includes my poem Michigan Volcano!
"Poems" with Sourav Sarkar Now Available!
Poems (with Sourav Sarkar) is now available! Our collaborative book (edited and published by Sourav Sarkar) features a selection of my Hawaii / volcano / travel poetry!
"The Alien Buddha's Got Beef" Anthology Now Available!
The Alien Buddha's Got Beef Anthology is now available! Includes 2 poems by me: "Monday in Detroit" and "Amish Hollywood."
231 PAGES OF PURE GRADE A BEEF, SERVED UP FROM 43 INDIE WRITERS READY TO THROW DOWN AND BLOW SMOKE STRAIGHT OFF THESE PAGES, NOW AVAILABLE!!!
129 PAGES OF FICTION FROM 17 AUTHORS, INCLUDING ED AHERN, ANDREW BUCKNER, ASHLEY GRANT, LB SEDLACEK, AND MANY MORE!!! AN ADDITIONAL 92 PAGES OF POETRY FEATURING JULEIGH HOWARD HOBSON, HEATH BROUGHER, LEMMY WINEGARDNER, SANJEEV SETHI, JAMES SCHWARTZ, LOUISA REID, LINDA M. CRATE, ALICE BLACKWELL, AND MANY MORE!!!
IN ‘A DOSE OF TRIBAL MEDICINE’ BY MARK T. BATES, A SEEDY GUY TRIES TO SCREW SOME DRUG DEALERS AND THEIR DOG WITH FAKE CASH, GETS A CARDIO SESSION HE DID NOT SIGN UP FOR, AND ENDS UP IN A HAUNTED RAVE GRAVEYARD GHOSTLY BURN-VICTIM DANCE PARTY FROM HELL!!!
A WASHED-UP EX-NFL LINEMAN, STUCK IN A TOXIC MARRIAGE, A BROKE EGO, AND A HOUSE FULL OF PEOPLE WHO CAN’T STAND HIM, DECIDES TO FIX EVERYTHING BY RAGE-QUITTING HIS ENTIRE LIFE IN HUT, HUT, HIKE BY TONY PENA!!!
SHIT POPS OFF IN THE BALLOON MAN BY JOSEPH FARLEY, A HALF-MAN, HALF-BALLOON MENACE GOES TO WAR WITH ANYTHING SHARP, TURNING PORCUPINES, SCISSORS, AND BASIC HOUSEHOLD OBJECTS INTO HIS MORTAL ENEMIES LIKE IT’S THE WORLD’S WEIRDST DAMN SUPERVILLAIN ORIGIN STORY!!! MEANWHILE, THE ONLY GUY WHO FIGURES IT OUT IS A MIGRAINE-RIDDLED DETECTIVE NOBODY LISTENS TO!
ALL THIS AND MUCH, MUCH MORE!!!
WHAT’S YOUR PROBLEM, BRO?!!
THE ALIEN BUDDHA’S GOT BEEF!!!
NOW AVAILABLE, ON F***ING AMAZON (SPIT)!!!
Amish x Aliens Essay 🛸
My new creative non-fic essay about a possible UFO in Amish country (based on a childhood memory), a Manly P. Hall conspiracy theory, Michigan and more will be published in IN THE ALIEN BUDDHA'S DREAMS anthology, out in September!
Wilde in Detroit
For National Poetry Month I'm posting this previously unpublished historical trivia tidbit in poetic form, Wilde in Detroit which I wrote in 2025. Oscar Wilde was in Detroit on February 17, 1882 to deliver his lecture on the Decorative Arts at the Music Hall.
Walking downtown Detroit,
Dreaming over history,
Wild to think of Wilde,
On February 17, 1882,
On Fort street,
Or Lafayette,
His feet,
Encased in,
Buckle &
Rosette slippers,
Per the Detroit Free Press,
Noting he kept,
His audience
"Waiting until
Doomsday."
Amish Alchemy Interview
Author of the Lambda Literary Award nominated book The Literary Party: Growing Up Gay and Amish in America (2011) James Schwartz is a Detroit based poet whose credits include Motor City Mix (2022) and his latest Alien Buddha Press poetry chapbook Amish Alchemy.
Q: What inspired your new book?
JS: Amish Alchemy was inspired by many things including the juxtiposition of being gay and Amish. There are poems on Amish life, love sonnets, an autobiographical haiku sequence, a one minute horror play, a look at Swiss / French Amish history and illustrations from the Public Domain Image Archive.
Q: Who are your go-to authors?
JS: I love the South Pacific short stories by W. Somerset Maugham and read a lot of books on Kilauea and volcanoes. Willa Cather, Oscar Wilde, James Baldwin, Truman Capote, Paul Bowles and to list more modern authors, Michael Cunningham and Garth Greenwell. I've been reading Dante with Ascend: The Great Books podcast.
Q: How do you stay creative?
JS: Hiking and connecting with both my city and nature. Museums, theater, art, poetry, listening to 90s trance / club music. I recently collaborated with my friend Detroit techno artist Butch Baxter and wrote lyrics for Acceleration (Detroit Mix) which is on all streaming platforms and YouTube! I love Detroit techno so to contribute to the Detroit techno genre was way cool!
Q: Any projects to shout out?
JS: You can find a new poem of mine titled After the Enlightenment (prefaced by a Hemingway quote) in semiosis issue 1 (poetry from poets who express solidarity against the rise of violent authoritarianism) along with poets Robert Kelly, Louis Armand, Dennis Formento, Deborah Tosun Kilday, Jonathan Cant, Marc Olmsted, Larry Goodell, Wang Ping, Ron Whitehead, Strider Marcus Jones, Rita S. Spalding, John Stickney, John Holding, Danny Shot, Richard Modiano, Jay Simpson, Mark Lipman, Eliot Katz, Dan Flore III, R.M. Engelhardt, Randy Barnes, Bernard Pearson, Merritt Waldon, Gabor Gyukics, Terry Wheeler, Dave Boles and Chris Bodor.
'Gay and Amish' Charts on Amazon Gay Poetry Bestseller List!
Congrats to The Literary Party: Growing Up Gay and Amish in America (Kindle, 2011) for reentering the Top 100 Gay Poetry Bestseller list! My Literary debut previously reached #1 in 2011 and in the Top Ten several times over the years.
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"The Literary Party: Growing Up Gay and Amish in America" Book Reviews + Media Highlights
THE LITERARY PARTY: GROWING UP GAY AND AMISH IN AMERICA (EBOOK) BOOK REVIEWS: As a country boy in Kentucky, I’m acquainted with the Ami...
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My Night Portrait of the Fisher Buidling is featured in the Great American Poets 4 anthology, now available! -
Congrats Mary (and Rosanna!) on your newest book, We're Not Wrong, You Are: Amish vs. Mennonite now available! Sure to shake up the sys... -
WORLD POETRY 2026 ANTHOLOGY includes my poem East / West Symphony, now available! -
With "Burning Rainbow Farm" author Dean Kuipers in Michigan. September is the 19th anniversary of the Rainbow Farm tragedy.
