CCLaP is currently a one-person operation, put together by me, Jason Pettus; for those who don't know, I studied photography at the University of Missouri in the '80s and '90s, and then became a full-time creative writer myself once moving to Chicago in 1994. Among other fun experiences during those years, I was invited to perform on National Public Radio and at the Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art; placed second at the 1997 National Poetry Slam as part of the Chicago/Green Mill team; received a grant from the Illinois Arts Council; released three novels, two travel books and a host of miniature "chapbooks;" went on numerous American tours and two European ones; and was featured in such diverse locations as the Canadian Broadcasting Channel, the Frankfurt Book Fair, and Hustler "Leg World" magazine, all while remaining a self-publisher the entire time and without once hiring a publicist or agent.

I put that entire part of my life into retirement in 2004 to open CCLaP; indeed, for the first two years I did nothing but give myself a self-taught education on small business, then in 2006 opened a version of CCLaP under a different plan that unfortunately was not successful. The current version of CCLaP, open now since June 2007, is as a private for-profit company being entirely self-financed; it's for that reason that the center's plans for growth are so slow, and why right now nothing is being done through the CCLaP name other than daily essays published electronically for free through this website, the half-dozen electronic books the organizations publishes each year, as well as a semi-regular free podcast.

As further years progress, I hope to add a virtual photography gallery here at the site, more opportunities for CCLaP's community to interact directly, classes and workshops, live-audience episodes of the CCLaP Podcast featuring more well-known artists, and the sponsoring of weekly literary events for Chicago performers, hopefully culminating next decade in CCLaP finally owning its own permanent physical space in the city. Remember, as a for-profit company your donations to CCLaP are unfortunately not tax-deductible; since CCLaP falls outside of government regulation, however, we are available for accepting private investment money and private sponsorship/underwriting of various events and podcast episodes. To express a serious interest, please contact me directly at cclapcenter [at] gmail.com.