The City of Philadelphia Office of Arts, Culture and the Creative Economy (OACCE) is currently seeking the city’s next Poet Laureate. Applications will be accepted until September 30.

Poets who are residents of Philadelphia, and who are able to demonstrate both a significant body of work and a record of commitment to community service, are eligible to apply. Using the online application form, applicants may submit four poems (up to ten pages total), a list of publications, a résumé, an artistic statement, and three references. Applicants may also submit up to three links to videos of public readings or performances. Applications must be completed and submitted online.

The Philadelphia Poet Laureate position was established in 2012 "in order to give one talented poet the opportunity to publicly represent the city in the medium of poetry and to serve the art form and field of poetry within the city.” The Poet Laureate will serve a two-year term, from January 2014 through December 2015, during which time they will be expected to raise awareness of poetry and creative writing within the city of Philadelphia through public events, readings, and community service activities, and provide mentorship to the city’s Youth Poet Laureate. The Poet Laureate will receive a stipend of $5,000 over the two-year term.

The city's inaugural Poet Laureate position has been held since January 2012 by poet and retired Temple University professor Sonia Sanchez. Her term ends in December.

The Poet Laureate Governing Committee—which is comprised of writers, editors, professors, and arts organization professionals from the Philadelphia area—will review all applications and make its recommendation to the mayor. Visit the OACCE website for more information and complete guidelines.

Social media has changed human interaction. Twitter, Facebook, and other digital platforms force us to create versions of ourselves that often misrepresent our true feelings and situations. This disconnect can interfere with our relationships and even distort our own identities. Write about a time when social media added turmoil to your life. Explore the difference between who you are online, and who you are at the dinner table.

Resist the temptation to build characters according to stereotypes. Character development must reflect the complexities of real people. Even Pure Evil buys his favorite niece a pony for her birthday. Learn to love your villains as people, and they will reward you as characters. Write a scene where the most despicable character in your fiction does something deeply touching and loving. Then send them on their evil way.

The Chicago–based MacArthur Foundation announced last week that it will increase the value of its annual fellowships—also known as “genius grants”—to $625,000.

Previously, grants of $500,000 have been given through the MacArthur Fellows Program to individuals working in various fields including literature, music, visual art, science, and medicine. Past winners—nearly nine hundred since the program's inception—have included poet Kay Ryan and fiction writer Junot Díaz. The foundation last increased the grant amount in 2000.

“We looked at many benchmarks and decided it was time to make an adjustment,” said Cecilia Conrad, vice president of the Fellows Program, who cited inflation as one factor in the decision to increase the grant amounts.

Established in 1970 by philanthropists John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur, the MacArthur Foundation bestows the unrestricted five-year grants to individuals based not on their past accomplishments, but instead on their potential.

“We believe the program inspires people from all walks of life to think about how they can use their own skills and ideas to make the world a better place,” Conrad wrote in a recent report on the inspiration and impact of the fellows program.

There is no application process for the grants, and recipients are nominated anonymously. The 2013 fellows will be announced September 25.

In the following video from the MacArthur Foundation, 2012 Fiction Fellow Junot Díaz discusses his work and the impact of the grant.

The end of summer means the beginning of autumn. This is a time of change. Write a poem about the changes occurring in your life. Choose powerful verbs. Focus on the feelings of expectation, fear, and relief that come with change. Use vivid imagery. It is during change that we are often the most alive.