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In this Books Are Magic event, Jimin Han reads from her novel Dreamt I Found You (Little, Brown, 2026) and talks about the book’s setting and the diversity of Korean American enclaves in New England in a conversation with Marie Myung-Ok Lee. For more from Han, read “A Win Right on Time: Contests for Older Writers” in the May/June 2026 issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.
Jacaranda trees, whose abundant violet-colored flowers dominate the streets of Los Angeles from late spring through early summer, have bloomed about a month earlier this year due to an unexpected heat wave in March. The trees have filled the city with large swaths of purple, both on the tree canopies and sprinkling carpets of blooms when they fall. Think of a sign in your local environment that annually signals a change from spring to summer and write a story that takes place against the backdrop of this seasonal indicator occurring earlier than usual. Experiment with how this subtle or explicit phenomenon in the natural environment can be expressed through various sensory details. How does this occurrence create a sense of tension in relation to the plot arc and character development of your narrative? Do your characters take notice of this anomaly or is it simply playing out in the background?
In this Free Library of Philadelphia event, M Lin reads from her debut story collection, The Memory Museum (Graywolf Press, 2026), and discusses how her background in film and art history shapes her writing in a conversation with ‘Pemi Aguda. Lin’s book is featured in Page One in the May/June 2026 issue of Poets & Writers Magazine.
The author of Discipline (Random House, 2026) reflects on fusing points of view in fiction.
Recently, the New Yorker published an article by Julian Lucas about the devastation experienced when losing digital data and the experts who are able to repair and recover data for victims. Steve Burgess, a “data-recovery pioneer,” talks about how the value of a person’s data is dependent on whether or not they have it. “Once they have it, it really wasn’t worth anything,” he says. “But, if they don’t have it, it’s worth an arm and a leg and their children.” Write a short story that launches from the starting point of a character experiencing an unfortunate mishap with their phone or computer, resulting in the loss of irreplaceable photos, texts, audio files, writing, and contact information. Were the lost items something that they took for granted before? What is your character willing to do to retrieve the data?
“I think every mistake or every moment of doubt is just part of the process.” —Douglas Stuart, author of John of John
In this Enoch Pratt Free Library event, Jung Yun reads from her third novel, All the World Can Hold (37 INK, 2026), and talks about complicated characters and how she stays focused and motivated through writer’s block in a conversation with Jane Delury.
Early last year, a group of three thousand people across the United States were surveyed for a study published by Brigham Young University’s Wheatley Institute which found that nearly one out of five adults had chatted with an AI romantic partner. Considering this growing trend, write a short story that revolves around the unexpected consequences that arise when a character develops a romantic relationship with an AI-generated companion. Is there an inciting incident that prompts your character to turn to technology for comfort? Does anyone else know about this new love interest or is the relationship kept a secret? Aside from possible elements of sci-fi dystopia or tropes from mystery and thriller genres, consider incorporating some unexpected humor and satire into your story.
“I had to become a different person in order to write the version of this book that readers will hold in their hands, and for a long time I wasn’t that person yet.” —Emma Copley Eisenberg, author of Fat Swim
The author of Unstuck: A Writer’s Guide (Tin House, April 2026) offers insight on how to make time for writing when it feels like there’s no time to spare.
