The Future of Barnes & Noble
Publishing insiders weigh in on the challenges facing the U.S. bookstore chain, which was sold to a hedge fund in June for $683 million.
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Genre: Cross-Genre
Page One: Where New and Noteworthy Books Begin
The first lines of a dozen noteworthy books, including Everything Inside by Edwidge Danticat and Make It Scream, Make It Burn by Leslie Jamison.
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Hot Spots in Detroit
Exploring events in Detroit has been exciting this summer. There are a number of lesser-known venues in the city that have recently started hosting literary events. For those looking for a space to write or build community, the Room Project in the North End has been a go-to location for me. A membership includes use of the workspace, library, and podcast equipment. They also have an event space that hosts artist talks, readings, and writing workshops.
For a change of scenery and an interactive experience, Signal-Return in Eastern Market has hands-on workshops in their letterpress print shop as well as a range of public programming including exhibitions, book release parties, and the Motor Signal Reading Series cohosted by Literary Detroit. The series pairs a local writer with a traveling writer in a double-feature reading that includes an intermission activity with the audience.
Visiting these locations has been a pleasant learning opportunity on how to help build up the literary community across the city. Shout-out to other spots I’ve visited that I encourage all to check out: Artist Village Detroit, Book Suey, the Commons on Mack Avenue, and the Corner Ballpark.
Search the Literary Places and Reading Venues databases for spots to visit near you!
Justin Rogers is the literary outreach coordinator for Poets & Writers in Detroit. Contact him at Detroit@pw.org or on Twitter, @Detroitpworg.Green Brain Comics
Green Brain Comics, along with the Emerging Writers Network, hosts Brain Candy, a free, curated live program of prose, music, poetry, and visual art. Brain Candy readings occur every third Monday of the month with new monthly guests.
The shop also hosts book club discussions, comic book signings and release parties, and movie screenings.
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Artist Village Detroit
Artist Village Detroit is located in the Old Redford district of Detroit and was founded in 2003 by Alicia Marion George, affectionately known as the Queen of the Village, Charles “Chazz” Miller, founder of Public Art Workz and resident artist of AVD, and John George, founder of the Motor City Blight Busters. AVD is a nonprofit organization with the mission to revitalize the community through public art and educate the youth on ways they can market their art.
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Upcoming Contest Deadlines
July’s final deadlines include several awards with purses of $1,000 or more for individual poems, short stories, and essays. Or, if you’ve been busy this summer and have a collection ready for submission, consider three contests for short story and essay manuscripts.
F(r)iction Short Story Contest: A prize of $1,000 is given three times a year for a short story. Entry fee: $15. Deadline: July 31.
Hidden River Arts Hawk Mountain Short Story Collection Award: A prize of $1,000 and publication by Hidden River Press is given annually for a story collection. Entry fee: $22. Deadline: July 30.
Munster Literature Centre Seán Ó Faoláin Short Story Competition: A prize of €2,000 (approximately $2,250) and publication in Southword is given annually for a short story. The winner also receives a weeklong residency at the Anam Cara Writer’s Retreat on the Beara Peninsula in West Cork. Entry fee: €18. Deadline: July 31.
Narrative Spring Story Contest: A prize of $2,500 and publication in Narrative is given annually for a short story, a short short story, an essay, or an excerpt from a work of fiction or creative nonfiction. A second-place prize of $1,000 is also awarded. The editors will judge. Entry fee: $27. Deadline: July 31.
New Millennium Writings New Millennium Awards: Four prizes of $1,000 each and publication in New Millennium Writings and on the journal's website are given twice yearly for a poem, a short story, a short short story, and an essay that have not appeared in a print publication with a circulation over 5,000. Entry fee: $20. Deadline: July 31.
Seneca Review Books Deborah Tall Lyric Essay Book Prize: A prize of $2,000 and publication by Seneca Review Books will be given biennially for a collection of lyric essays. Jenny Boully will judge. Cross-genre, hybrid, and verse forms, as well as image and text works, are also eligible. Entry fee: $27. Deadline: August 1.
Sewanee Review Poetry and Fiction Contest: Two prizes of $1,000 each and publication in Sewanee Review will be given annually for a group of poems and a short story. Carl Phillips will judge in poetry and Roxane Gay will judge in fiction. Entry fee: $30. Deadline: July 31.
University of Notre Dame Sullivan Prize in Short Fiction: A prize of $1,000 and publication by the University of Notre Dame Press is given biennially for a story collection. Writers who have published at least one story collection are eligible. Entry fee: $15. Deadline: July 31.
Visit the contest websites for complete guidelines, and check out the Grants & Awards database and Submission Calendar for more contests in poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction.
Barbershop Books
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“At the end of the day, we want them to say three words: I’m a reader.” Alvin Irby speaks about Barbershop Books, the literacy program he founded that creates child-friendly reading spaces in barbershops, and how reading can be empowering. For more on the program, read “Barbershop Books” from the July/August 2018 issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.
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University at Albany, SUNY
PhD Program
Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, Cross-Genre
Albany, NY
Application Deadline:
Thu, 01/15/2026
Application Fee:
$75
University at Albany, SUNY
MA Program
Poetry, Fiction, Creative Nonfiction, Cross-Genre
Albany, NY
Application Deadline:
Rolling Admissions
Application Fee:
$75
The Writer’s Center
Founded in 1976, The Writer’s Center supports writers and everyone who wants to write. The Center offers hundreds of creative writing workshops and dozens of free events for writers, both in person and online, and publishes Poet Lore, America’s oldest poetry journal.
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