Announcing the winner of the 2025 New Constructions Hybrid Book Contest
My Prayer a Slit Throat by Ellen Kombiyil
A lyric visual essay, composed of erasures, collages, and military ephemera, My Prayer a Slit Throat is a timely work engaged in “erasing the inheritance of war.” Using text from the Iliad, with its startling clarity and energy, tenderness and horror, the work explores the narratives that continue to shape our conceptions of war. My Prayer a Slit Throat clears new territory for dialogue. Congratulations to Ellen, her book will be published in Spring 2026!
Ellen Kombiyil is a visual artist, poet, and educator from the Bronx. Her latest poetry collection, Love as Invasive Species (Cornerstone 2024) is a tête-bêche exploring matrilineal inheritances. Find her at www.ellenkombiyil.com.
Paul Jackson
from CONCRETE CORNERS
Paul Jackson
Paul Jackson is a flâneur observing and documenting mundane urban details. A lifelong urban walker and observer, he sees the process as the medium. His practice has led him to less edited outcomes, preferring first takes and accidents. Paul has a history of writing, performing and recording popular music, notably with the punk ska band The Uptones from Berkeley, California. He played electric organ on the platinum album ...And Out Come the Wolves by Rancid. Paul holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Industrial Design from San Francisco State University.
More about Concrete Corners: blurb.com/b/10729861-concrete-corners