About

Dame Rocket Press is named after the dame’s rocket flower—a cultivated, nocturnally fragrant bloom that outgrew its tame garden origins in Europe and has since spread worldwide. Eclectic and passionate, Dame Rocket publishes works that emphasize pioneers in all walks of life and time. From nonfiction biographies to children’s books and women’s stories, Dame Rocket seeks to share the voice of lived experience—a connection among readers and nature alike.

While walking about the sacred spaces of Pipestone National Monument in Minnesota, Jen Weaver-Neist’s father pointed out some colorful clusters of dame’s rocket flowers among the prairie grasses. The name struck Jen immediately with its unique and fiery kick. Having just graduated from college with a BA in English and American Studies, and a growing interest in publishing, she noted how grand it would be to combine the name with a press someday.

After floating around the imagination for a while, Dame Rocket Press finally planted roots in Portland, Oregon, in 2007, stemming from the larger publishing family of Ink & Paper Group. Then came its first release of Hate Mail in June of that year, and the words began spreading like wildflower!

Today the press sits proudly among the creative greats of Ink & Paper (Bowler Hat Comics & Three Muses Press), looking forward to whatever frontiers lie ahead and gathering fine stories along the way.

Here’s to the journey and the road less traveled!