Literary MagNet: Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah
A fiction writer discusses five journals that published stories from his debut collection, Friday Black.
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Articles from Poet & Writers Magazine include material from the print edition plus exclusive online-only material.
A fiction writer discusses five journals that published stories from his debut collection, Friday Black.
A fiction writer breaks up with her novel and learns that sometimes it’s more important to follow your intuition than take advice.
Sue Landers takes over as executive director of the nonprofit dedicated to LGBTQ writers.
An agent answers questions on referrals, pitching a self-published book, and what to do if you’re dropped by an agency.
With recent grant funding of $1.4 million, the National Book Foundation aims to reach more readers.
The Millay Society attempts to save Steepletop, Edna St. Vincent Millay’s former home in in Austerlitz, New York.
“In a system that doesn’t value writing, but only the marketing possibility of the writer and the written object, to write is the ‘success’ itself.” —Jos Charles, author of feeld
“I don’t think beyond the book I’m writing, and I’m always writing one.” —Catherine Lacey, author of Certain American States
“I write every day and walk every day.” —Amitava Kumar, author of the novel Immigrant, Montana
The author of If You Leave Me focuses not on a character’s likability but rather on making that character feel true.
“I’ve gotten messages from people who tell me that they were waiting on a book like mine.” —Alexia Arthurs, author of the story collection How to Love a Jamaican
The pleasures and pitfalls of writing a novel with multiple perspectives.
“I’m coming to believe more and more that the whole body should be engaged in the writing process.”—Amy Bonnaffons, author of the debut story collection The Wrong Heaven
Brian Turner is best known for his award-winning poetry collections and memoir about the Iraq War, but with his new project he has pushed into an entirely new dimension of creative expression.
How does a writer tell a story set in another country during a time before she was even born? Research, research, research.
“You can almost always make something better by making it shorter.” —Keith Gessen, author of the novel A Terrible Country
The desire to tell stories is one thing; finding the stories you want to tell is something else entirely.
“Get in where you fit in, and where you don’t, break it.” —Jasmine Gibson, author of Don’t Let Them See Me Like This
A simple exercise to help lead you closer to the fiery core of your own, utterly unique, narrative style.
“Avoid the word ‘it’ whenever possible. Which is to say, specificity whenever possible.” —Lillian Li, author of the debut novel Number One Chinese Restaurant
Simon Van Booy writes about opening your whole life to creativity.
“That was the scariest part in making this come together: the endless possible permutations of inclusion, exclusion, order; the fear of endless possibility.” —Grady Chambers, author of the poetry collection North American Stadiums
This year’s debut fiction roundup features emerging writers R. O. Kwon, Fatima Farheen Mirza, Jamel Brinkley, Katharine Dion, and Tommy Orange.
In a continuing series on international writing communities, contributing editor Stephen Morison Jr. spends time with authors and publishers in Bogotá, Colombia.
Creating local reading spaces for young Black boys.