Perversity of Spirit: What It Takes to Be a Writer
One author argues that talent is the least important part of becoming a writer.
From the Magazine
Internet Reading and the Anxiety of Influence, the Language of Restaurant Menus, and More
The life and work of Martin Amis; books about race in America; a library taxi in Tehran; and other news.
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Why We Write: The Wounded and Enduring
Through her work with the Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop, a poet discovers that writing can grant a type of freedom to incarcerated men—and in the process finds her own sense of peace in the wake of personal trauma.
Labor of Love: The Anthology from Conception to Publication
Two novelists discuss the excitement and challenges of editing an anthology of essays.
The Aha! Moment: Carl Phillips, Judge for the Yale Series of Younger Poets Prize
The current judge for America’s oldest and most prestigious first-book prize for poets discusses his encounter with the poems from Blue Yodel, Ansel Elkins’s 2014 prize-winning collection, which will be published next year by Yale University Press.
Apple Loses Again in E-book Battle, Amazon Offers Buyouts to Warehouse Employees, and More
Novelist Eleanor Catton on writing strategies; why science fiction should be taken seriously; from blog to book; and other news.
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Books Bound in Human Skin, Ian Fleming’s Love Letters, and More
Christina Baker Kline novels move from mid-list to bestseller; a day in the life of Meg Wolitzer; two authors consider the strength of the adage “write what you know”; and other news.
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Republicans Denounce Amtrak Residency, U.K. Nonprofit Protests Gendered Children’s Books, and More
A San Diego writer celebrates a novel fifteen years in the making; a South African novelist explores E. M. Forster’s private life; New Orleans gears up for Tennessee Williams Literary Festival; and other news.
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Dani Shapiro: Los Angeles 2014
Dani Shapiro is the author of five novels and three memoirs, including most recently Still Writing: The Perils and Pleasures of a Creative Life, published last October by Atlantic Monthly Press. With an introduction from Poets & Writers...
Rethinking Restriction: Creative Limitation as a Positive Force
While writers often express the need for fewer restrictions in their writing lives, one author argues that implementing limitations may actually lead to surprising—and productive—results.