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“I love the deep attribute of poetry to pause, to look, to listen, to respect, to pay attention to variety and learn something new.” Naomi Shihab Nye, Juan Felipe Herrera, and Jane Hirschfield discuss poetry and the poet’s role in America at the 2015 National Book Festival in this video from the Academy of American Poets.
“I think one of the civic responsibilities of poets in America today is to continue to encourage a sense of civility among us and a sense of curiosity about one another’s lives,” says Naomi Shihab Nye in a conversation with Juan Felipe Herrera and Jane Hirshfield at the 2015 National Book Festival captured on video by the Academy of American Poets. What do you feel is one of your responsibilities as a writer? Write a poem that answers this question by considering timely issues—whether global or personal—that fuel your passion for writing.
Abigail Chabitnoy reads from her collections How to Dress a Fish (Wesleyan University Press, 2019) and In the Current Where Drowning Is Beautiful (Wesleyan University Press, 2022) after an introduction by poet Peter Gizzi for this event presented in conjunction with University of Massachusetts MFA for Poets & Writers’ Visiting Writers Series. Chabitnoy is featured in Literary MagNet in the November/December issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.
“What I like about teaching is that it is always an experiment in unfolding a new language of value that isn’t a dominant value of the day, that needs to be developed to stay human,” says Ben Lerner, author of The Hatred of Poetry (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2016), about some of his approaches to mentoring and teaching poets in this interview with his Danish translator Tonny Vorm at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in Denmark.
Writers have until the end of the month to submit to LitMag’s 2023 Anton Chekhov Award for Flash Fiction. Offered annually, the award comes with a prize of $1,250, publication in LitMag, and an introduction to agents from the Bent Agency, Brandt & Hochman, Folio Literary Management, InkWell Management, Sobel Weber Associates, and Triangle House Literary, who will review the winner’s work.
Using only the online submission system, submit a story of 500 to 1,500 words with a $16 entry fee by November 30. All entries are considered for publication. The editors will judge. Visit the website for complete guidelines.
The 2022 winner of the contest was Caroline Kim for “The End of the Dynasty.” Finalists included Jared Carlson for “Invention,” William Hawkins for “Easter Morning,” and Delano S. C. Parisi for “The Immortal Ontologist in the Apocalypse,” which was published by LitMag.
An annual print journal released each fall, LitMag features established and emerging writers of fiction, poetry, and nonfiction. LitMag also publishes writing on its website. “We seek work that moves and amazes us,” the editors say. “We are drawn to big minds and large hearts.”
Akwaeke Emezi talks about their love of romance novels, exploring stories of grief, and writing seven books in four years, including Dear Senthuran: A Black Spirit Memoir (Riverhead Books, 2021) and You Made a Fool of Death With Your Beauty (Atria Books, 2022), in this interview for The Daily Show With Trevor Noah. For more from Emezi, read their installment of our Ten Questions series.
The Day of the Dead holiday is traditionally celebrated on the first two days of November, a time for families to remember and honor their dearly departed. The festivities have increasingly become more global but date back to the eleventh century and hold great significance for Mexico’s Indigenous communities. Public places and homes are filled with altars and offerings to commemorate loved ones with their favorite things, including traditional dishes and treats as well as elaborate decorations. Inspired by the celebratory spirit of the Day of the Dead, write an essay that explores how you remember your ancestors. Does this holiday reframe your understanding of grief and loss?
“I never know what to say after someone says ‘that’s beautiful’ except to agree with them. For me, beauty is an end of conversation.” In this 2011 video for the Cortland Review, as a part of the documentary series Poets in Person, the late Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Stephen Dunn speaks about his writing practice from his home. Dunn died at the age of eighty-two on June 24, 2021.
In many parts of the Northern Hemisphere, autumn means catching the colorful, vibrant, and fleeting fall foliage, prompting many to take in the majestic display. Resources like the Smoky Mountain National Park’s Fall Foliage Prediction Map can help travelers locate areas in the United States where leaves are starting to change color, are at their peak, or past peak. Using this map as research, write a story in which your protagonist ventures out to a region where the leaves have changed their color. How does this bright, dramatic scenery affect your character’s mood and choices?
“A free society does not ban books.” Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times reporter Nikole Hannah-Jones speaks about her personal journey to develop The 1619 Project: A New Origin Story (One World, 2021) as well as the attempts in certain states to ban the book from schools in this interview for The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.
