Poets & Writers
@pw.org
Official account of Poets & Writers, the primary source of information, support, and guidance for creative writers since 1970. Sign up for our newsletter: at.pw.org/newsletter
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Poets & Writers
@pw.org
· Dec 17
Get ready for 2026 with our January/February issue! 🎉 Inside you’ll find tips for starting the new year with confidence, an essay on computer-free productivity for writers, a portfolio of our Inspiration Issue covers since 2010, our debut poets roundup, and so much more. at.pw.org/JanFeb2026
We know the publishing industry can feel like wandering a maze. If you're running into one dead end after another, our Mapping the Maze workshop is for you. The next edition is designed for creative nonfiction writers. Learn more and reserve your spot:
Mapping the Maze for Creative Nonfiction Writers: Chart Your Path to Publication — Poets & Writers
Trying to get your work published can feel like wandering in a maze. If you're running into one dead end after another, not sure which way to turn, this workshop can demystify the process and help…
at.pw.org
January 18, 2026 at 4:15 PM
We know the publishing industry can feel like wandering a maze. If you're running into one dead end after another, our Mapping the Maze workshop is for you. The next edition is designed for creative nonfiction writers. Learn more and reserve your spot:
What do One Aladdin Two Lamps (Grove Press) by Jeanette Winterson and Fit Into Me: A Novel: A Memoir (Rose Metal Press) by Molly Gaudry have in common? They’re two hybrid books included in our new #PageOne installment. Read the opening lines of these titles and ten others: at.pw.org/PageOne2026x1
Page One: Where New and Noteworthy Books Begin
The first lines of a dozen noteworthy books, including The Palace by Andrés Cerpa and The Flower Bearers by Rachel Eliza Griffiths.
at.pw.org
January 17, 2026 at 8:33 PM
What do One Aladdin Two Lamps (Grove Press) by Jeanette Winterson and Fit Into Me: A Novel: A Memoir (Rose Metal Press) by Molly Gaudry have in common? They’re two hybrid books included in our new #PageOne installment. Read the opening lines of these titles and ten others: at.pw.org/PageOne2026x1
“I could go to the office and spend the day inside without my computer. This option felt, quite honestly, the least logical. What was a workday without my laptop?” Writer Lauren Harkawik forgets her laptop on a mini writing retreat and discovers new paths through creativity. at.pw.org/ComputerFree
January 17, 2026 at 4:15 PM
“I could go to the office and spend the day inside without my computer. This option felt, quite honestly, the least logical. What was a workday without my laptop?” Writer Lauren Harkawik forgets her laptop on a mini writing retreat and discovers new paths through creativity. at.pw.org/ComputerFree
#PWNonfictionPrompt: Write a personal essay about a time when you experienced a stroke of luck, good or bad. Has the significance of luck in your life changed over time? #FromTheArchive: at.pw.org/StrokeOfLuck
January 17, 2026 at 2:00 PM
#PWNonfictionPrompt: Write a personal essay about a time when you experienced a stroke of luck, good or bad. Has the significance of luck in your life changed over time? #FromTheArchive: at.pw.org/StrokeOfLuck
#ClipOfTheDay: In this Books Are Magic event, Maggie Millner, Lynne Tillman, and Ann Stephenson discuss the life and legacy of author and playwright Jane Bowles in celebration of the reissue of two of her books, Plain Pleasure and Two Serious Ladies, published by Picador. at.pw.org/JaneBowlesReading
January 17, 2026 at 1:00 AM
#ClipOfTheDay: In this Books Are Magic event, Maggie Millner, Lynne Tillman, and Ann Stephenson discuss the life and legacy of author and playwright Jane Bowles in celebration of the reissue of two of her books, Plain Pleasure and Two Serious Ladies, published by Picador. at.pw.org/JaneBowlesReading
The Time Is Now to spark your writing! This week we recommend a a guide to writing about grief and loss by Jessica Handler, and #PWWritingPrompts on wonder and brutality, investigations, and mortality. Read more: at.pw.org/TTIN
January 16, 2026 at 11:30 PM
The Time Is Now to spark your writing! This week we recommend a a guide to writing about grief and loss by Jessica Handler, and #PWWritingPrompts on wonder and brutality, investigations, and mortality. Read more: at.pw.org/TTIN
“Poetry necessitates that we slow down, deepen our attention, practice care with language and with each other; poetry is an essential language…and it affirms our shared humanity.” Read our interview with Arthur Sze, the newly appointed U.S. poet laureate: at.pw.org/PoetLaureateSze
January 16, 2026 at 4:15 PM
“Poetry necessitates that we slow down, deepen our attention, practice care with language and with each other; poetry is an essential language…and it affirms our shared humanity.” Read our interview with Arthur Sze, the newly appointed U.S. poet laureate: at.pw.org/PoetLaureateSze
“Literature, from the fury of Emma Bovary and the loneliness of Jane Eyre to the Old Testament and Greek mythology—by which I learned to read English—and some pop culture, like The Walking Dead television series and the X-Men comics.” —Esther Lin on what inspires her: at.pw.org/EstherLinDebutPoet
January 15, 2026 at 10:00 PM
“Literature, from the fury of Emma Bovary and the loneliness of Jane Eyre to the Old Testament and Greek mythology—by which I learned to read English—and some pop culture, like The Walking Dead television series and the X-Men comics.” —Esther Lin on what inspires her: at.pw.org/EstherLinDebutPoet
ICYMI: Our team is hosting an event tonight, Thursday, January 15, at 7 PM EST, for a tour of our new community platform for writers, Poets & Writers Groups. We'll show you how to make a profile, meet other writers, and get a new group started. Hope to see you there! Register: at.pw.org/groupsintro
Welcome! You are invited to join a meeting: An Intro to Poets & Writers Groups. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the meeting.
Looking for more community and support? Join this event for a sneak peek into Poets & Writers Groups, our platform to find or create your own writers group. Learn how to connect with the hundreds of…
at.pw.org
January 15, 2026 at 8:33 PM
ICYMI: Our team is hosting an event tonight, Thursday, January 15, at 7 PM EST, for a tour of our new community platform for writers, Poets & Writers Groups. We'll show you how to make a profile, meet other writers, and get a new group started. Hope to see you there! Register: at.pw.org/groupsintro
Looking for the right literary magazine for your writing? Check out our free Literary Magazines database and browse over nearly 1,000 magazines that have been curated and vetted by our editors. Use the filters to easily find the right home for your writing. Browse now: www.pw.org/literary_mag...
January 15, 2026 at 4:15 PM
Looking for the right literary magazine for your writing? Check out our free Literary Magazines database and browse over nearly 1,000 magazines that have been curated and vetted by our editors. Use the filters to easily find the right home for your writing. Browse now: www.pw.org/literary_mag...
#ClipOfTheDay: In this 2024 Furious Flower Poetry Center virtual event for “Abundance II: A Global Poetry Performance” hosted by Gbenga Adesina, fourteen Black poets from ten different countries read in multiple languages and in translation. at.pw.org/Abundance
January 15, 2026 at 1:00 AM
#ClipOfTheDay: In this 2024 Furious Flower Poetry Center virtual event for “Abundance II: A Global Poetry Performance” hosted by Gbenga Adesina, fourteen Black poets from ten different countries read in multiple languages and in translation. at.pw.org/Abundance
“Imagine your editor or copy editor or art director saying ‘I’d love to publish them again!’ Doesn’t that sound nice?” Sarah Seltzer, executive editor of Lilith Magazine, suggests a smart and simple way to stand out to publishers: Be easy to work with. at.pw.org/AERSeltzer
at.pw.org
January 14, 2026 at 6:01 PM
“Imagine your editor or copy editor or art director saying ‘I’d love to publish them again!’ Doesn’t that sound nice?” Sarah Seltzer, executive editor of Lilith Magazine, suggests a smart and simple way to stand out to publishers: Be easy to work with. at.pw.org/AERSeltzer
“I didn’t know any other writers, or at least people who were as invested as I am in writing. So joining Poets & Writers Groups has truly been a game changer.” Join our team tomorrow night, January 15, at 7 PM EST for an introduction to Poets & Writers Groups. RSVP: at.pw.org/groupsintro
January 14, 2026 at 3:38 PM
“I didn’t know any other writers, or at least people who were as invested as I am in writing. So joining Poets & Writers Groups has truly been a game changer.” Join our team tomorrow night, January 15, at 7 PM EST for an introduction to Poets & Writers Groups. RSVP: at.pw.org/groupsintro
“There [is] an urgency to storytelling about the world of the body—be it the experience of illness and healing or being a patient or caregiver,” writes Michelle Wildgen. Learn about Bellevue Literary Review’s platform for writing that deals with health and the body: at.pw.org/LitOfIllnessAndHealing
January 13, 2026 at 8:33 PM
“There [is] an urgency to storytelling about the world of the body—be it the experience of illness and healing or being a patient or caregiver,” writes Michelle Wildgen. Learn about Bellevue Literary Review’s platform for writing that deals with health and the body: at.pw.org/LitOfIllnessAndHealing
Reposted by Poets & Writers
A question students (oft “minority” ones) ask me often: How do writers pay their bills? It’s like, without knowing this, they won’t give themselves the permission to pursue writing as a consistent *practice. It’s too far-fetched otherwise, writing being the stuff rich kids do. So a course @pw.org 👇🏾🙏🏽
January 12, 2026 at 11:14 PM
A question students (oft “minority” ones) ask me often: How do writers pay their bills? It’s like, without knowing this, they won’t give themselves the permission to pursue writing as a consistent *practice. It’s too far-fetched otherwise, writing being the stuff rich kids do. So a course @pw.org 👇🏾🙏🏽
Reposted by Poets & Writers
I’m so excited to be offering this course @pw.org. Writers: let’s talk Taboo! 🤎👇🏾
Unlike many professions, literary art doesn’t operate within a strictly capitalist framework of effort versus reward. So, how do writers pay their bills while doing what they love? This workshop with @namratapoddar.bsky.social can help writers build a plan for sustainability: at.pw.org/taboo
Talking Taboo: Financial Literacy and Sustainability for Writers | Led by Namrata Poddar — Poets & Writers
Unlike many professions, literary art doesn’t operate within a strictly capitalist framework of effort versus reward. A writer’s labor may not produce monetary compensation for years. Craft is key,…
at.pw.org
January 12, 2026 at 11:15 PM
I’m so excited to be offering this course @pw.org. Writers: let’s talk Taboo! 🤎👇🏾
“Advice for poets should be poems.” In today's #TenQuestions, @biancatherosestone.bsky.social offers writing advice and provides an inside look at the publishing process for her new collection, The Near and Distant World, out today from @tinhouse.bsky.social. Read more: at.pw.org/10qstone
January 13, 2026 at 3:56 PM
“Advice for poets should be poems.” In today's #TenQuestions, @biancatherosestone.bsky.social offers writing advice and provides an inside look at the publishing process for her new collection, The Near and Distant World, out today from @tinhouse.bsky.social. Read more: at.pw.org/10qstone
We're thrilled to announce that Tina Chang, Khaled Hosseini, Eugene B. Redmond, and Jordan Pavlin (@aaknopf.bsky.social) will be honored by Poets & Writers at our 2026 Gala on March 23. Congratulations to these exemplary literary citizens! Learn more about our honorees: at.pw.org/Gala26PR
January 13, 2026 at 1:00 PM
We're thrilled to announce that Tina Chang, Khaled Hosseini, Eugene B. Redmond, and Jordan Pavlin (@aaknopf.bsky.social) will be honored by Poets & Writers at our 2026 Gala on March 23. Congratulations to these exemplary literary citizens! Learn more about our honorees: at.pw.org/Gala26PR
#ClipOfTheDay: For the 2025 lecture in the Bedri Distinguished Writers Series at the University of California in Berkeley, Joy Williams reads from her story collection, Concerning the Future of Souls: 99 Stories of Azrael, and speaks about the importance of fiction’s art. at.pw.org/JoyWilliams
January 13, 2026 at 1:00 AM
#ClipOfTheDay: For the 2025 lecture in the Bedri Distinguished Writers Series at the University of California in Berkeley, Joy Williams reads from her story collection, Concerning the Future of Souls: 99 Stories of Azrael, and speaks about the importance of fiction’s art. at.pw.org/JoyWilliams
Debut poet Chaun Ballard’s advice for other writers? “There is no rush. Develop. Grow with your register. Continue working, yes, but be patient.” Learn about his creative process and literary journey, including how a recommendation from his wife helped him get published: at.pw.org/ChaunBallard
January 12, 2026 at 8:33 PM
Debut poet Chaun Ballard’s advice for other writers? “There is no rush. Develop. Grow with your register. Continue working, yes, but be patient.” Learn about his creative process and literary journey, including how a recommendation from his wife helped him get published: at.pw.org/ChaunBallard
“Poetry has become both a site of reverence and a kind of cultural linguistic archive.” In this week’s #CraftCapsule, brittny ray crowell considers how memory can be mined for particular phrases and pronunciations to guide poetry. at.pw.org/crowellCC1
January 12, 2026 at 3:15 PM
“Poetry has become both a site of reverence and a kind of cultural linguistic archive.” In this week’s #CraftCapsule, brittny ray crowell considers how memory can be mined for particular phrases and pronunciations to guide poetry. at.pw.org/crowellCC1
“But people are fucking messy. And messy can be interesting. I’m encouraging mess as form of experimentation and constant reinvention.” Writer Benjamin Percy cautions against growing too rigid in our writing practice, suggesting fluidity and writing as a multi-tool. at.pw.org/DareToDefamiliarize
January 11, 2026 at 4:15 PM
“But people are fucking messy. And messy can be interesting. I’m encouraging mess as form of experimentation and constant reinvention.” Writer Benjamin Percy cautions against growing too rigid in our writing practice, suggesting fluidity and writing as a multi-tool. at.pw.org/DareToDefamiliarize
#ICYMI: Our new issue includes steps to take a three-day writing detox; articles on how to revise your manuscript for symmetry and writing as a multi-tool; and reports on the People’s Recorder podcast as well as Bellevue Literary Review’s literature of illness and healing. More: at.pw.org/JanFeb2026
January 10, 2026 at 5:03 PM
#ICYMI: Our new issue includes steps to take a three-day writing detox; articles on how to revise your manuscript for symmetry and writing as a multi-tool; and reports on the People’s Recorder podcast as well as Bellevue Literary Review’s literature of illness and healing. More: at.pw.org/JanFeb2026
#PWFictionPrompt: If you are staring at a blank page or screen unsure of where to begin, soothe yourself by fast-forwarding to the final page of the story. #FromTheArchive: at.pw.org/ForgoneConclusion
January 10, 2026 at 2:01 PM
#PWFictionPrompt: If you are staring at a blank page or screen unsure of where to begin, soothe yourself by fast-forwarding to the final page of the story. #FromTheArchive: at.pw.org/ForgoneConclusion
#ClipOfTheDay: The Chronology of Water is a film adaptation of Lidia Yuknavitch’s award-winning memoir of the same name tracing the author’s life from her memories as a promising swimmer, through fractured relationships and addiction, to her career as a writer. at.pw.org/ChronologyWaterTrailer
January 10, 2026 at 1:00 AM
#ClipOfTheDay: The Chronology of Water is a film adaptation of Lidia Yuknavitch’s award-winning memoir of the same name tracing the author’s life from her memories as a promising swimmer, through fractured relationships and addiction, to her career as a writer. at.pw.org/ChronologyWaterTrailer