Firethroat Press was founded in 2011 by Renshin Barbara Verkuilen and Taizen Dale Verkuilen. Buddhist literature was offered for contemporary Western practitioners that focused on practical applications and solutions for issues that arise within meditation practice. Business was suspended in 2019 because of illness, but circumstances have changed and Firethroat Press 2.0 is back online.
Renshin and Taizen were married and partners in Zen practice for over 50 years studying with a number of pioneering priest, including Soyu Matsuoka Roshi, Dainin Katagiri Roshi, and Shoken Winecoff Roshi, and others. Both were Zen priests, ordained as certified teachers in Katagiri Roshi’s lineage. They founded the Midwest Soto Zen Community in Madison, WI, and served at Ryumonji Zen Monastery and other Zen Centers in the Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin on a temporary basis.
The first book of Firethroat Press 2.0 is a posthumous publication, Renshin’s Dancing with the Benefactors: Exploring the Wisdom of the Flower Ornament Sutra. She died in March 2024. The book captures the creativity and pioneering aptitude she brought to her psychotherapy and Zen practices. She devised original introspective and symbolic skillful means capable of quickly identifying and resolving barriers, while providing guidance and clarity in negotiating the process of awakening.
The six books currently tendered are in line with the “how to” mission along with a number of tutorials and essays. There are plans to expand our selection of offerings for individual and group study, as well as to publish new books and study guides by a variety of author-practitioners who voices might otherwise remain unheard. Two additional titles are planned for publication in the summer/fall 2025. Please accept our invitation invite to visit our website and sign up for our newsletter for up-to-date information on our latest offerings and author events.
Firethroat Press encourages inquiries by authors who wish to publish.
