about

Countershade Press is the brainchild of author Jonah Barnett (with their husband Austin Barnett helping them do all the boring paperwork). Originally conceived in a coffee shop with poet Frances Gregory, Countershade aims to publish queer speculative fiction that both uplifts and drags us down into the depths of the gay human soul.

Countershading is the juxtaposition between light and dark, oil and water one in the same. Borrowed from biological colorations, countershaded animals often sport darkened backs and brighter bellies—think orcas and magpies. It’s this combination of shades that our press gets its name.

Life itself is a mixture of beauty and horror, joy and sorrow, ecstasy and tragedy. We aim to publish our queer stories in just the same way. A backlash against “bury your gays” has resulted in what we call “happywashing” LGBTQ tales, combined with the combination of BookTok trends and tropes galore. Queer people deserve their happy endings, but we also deserve to see our lives reflected—the good and the ugly. We aim to strike a balance between happily-ever-after (hokey) and writhing (depressing).

We aren’t realists, though, and are lovers of the fantastique. Have you seen the shit world we live in? The necessity to invent alternatives has never been more urgent than this moment, as our society eats its tail. There’s where speculative fiction—science fiction, fantasy, horror, weird fiction, what-have-you—comes into play. An umbrella genre that functions as a playground for the mind, aided by a queer slant, bound by the balance between light and dark.

That’s Countershade.

  • Jonah Barnett is a genderqueer author, ex-filmmaker, and interdisciplinary artist from the forests of Tenino, Washington. They take inspiration from their life in the mossy Pacific Northwest. A lifelong storyteller, Jonah's work ranges from feature films, web series, books, plays, and a radio drama or two. Aside from their own creative practice, Jonah has helped strengthen the arts ecosystem throughout the South Sound Region—including cultivating space for local filmmakers at the Olympia Film Society, aiding in the launch of Orca Books Cooperative, revitalizing The Evergreen State College's art collection, and now serving as Collections Coordinator for the Washington State Arts Commission's Art in Public Places program. Their work focuses on queer fantasy, the natural world, prehistory, and a love of books—all while preserving regional arts heritage and building creative community with fellow weirdos.

    Jonah’s storytelling history reaches back all the way to the age of four, when they asked their parents to set up the family camcorder for them so they could act out Jurassic Park scenes with toys. They went on to learn stop-motion at age six (albeit it wasn’t very good) and began writing stories the following year. Almost every story, no matter what medium, featured dinosaurs in one form or another. They wrote their first script at age eleven on an old Corona-Smith typewriter, although again, it wasn’t very good (and also featured dinosaurs). Going on to create their own webseries in high school, Jonah received a Young Playwright’s Award in 2011 for a gay-themed one act in Seattle. In 2015 Jonah released their debut feature film, The Fabricated Partner of Cody McGuire, in collaboration with filmmaker Jacob Earl, while simultaneously debuting their artist moniker “Malicious Wallydrags.” Overall, Jonah has directed and written three feature films, a dozen-ish short films, and four web series—with their film work being presented at the Olympia Film Festival, Northwest Film Forum, Grand Cinema, and Trans Stellar Film Festival. Their debut book, Moss-Covered Claws, came out from Blue Cactus Press in March 2021. It is essentially about gay people running around in forests being chased by monsters. Unlike the stop-motion and the typewriter script, it is actually pretty good. There is one dinosaur in it, though. Jonah has also been published in the Forest Avenue Press collections Dispatches From Anarres and City of Weird.

  • Austin Barnett serves as the Theatre Program Director at Olympia High School. He is also an active leader in the broader arts community, serving on the Washington State Thespians Advisory Board and participating as a current member of the Connected Arts Network cohort. His work reflects a strong commitment not just to performance, but to mentorship, advocacy, and access to arts education. He is the 2026 technical director of Creative Theatre Experience Olympia.

    You may also recognize Austin from local stages around the South Sound. His recent and past performances include work with Lakewood Playhouse, Harlequin Productions, The Evergreen Playhouse, Centralia College, Animal Fire Theatre, and more—bringing a wide range of theatrical experience into the classroom and rehearsal space.

  • Transparency: We want open communication with our collaborators, with them having an understanding of our processes and stakes for each project. We also acknowledge that healthy conflict is a site of productive movement and relationship building. 

    Equity: We are open to feedback from our collaborators, in order to assess the best way forward with a project. We also acknowledge that each project will have different needs, and may have different contracts that are needs-based.

    Community Building: We prioritize good relationships with our collaborators and recognize that we are taking part in a literary ecosystem that is larger than us. Everyone is stronger together when we support one another. We also like to practice healthy conflict as a site of productive movement and relationship building.

    Craftsmanship: We want to do a good job whenever we make something. We prioritize deliberate actions, and want to take time when creating a quality artifact.

    Authenticity: We publish content that follows both the values of the press and taste of the publishers. Our actions are in line with our values. We better put our money where our mouths are!

    Made in collaboration with Frances Gregory.