Poets & Writers

“When I sit down to write, the first thing I do is open my spreadsheet. It holds fourteen years’ worth of collected inspiration: 9,131 passages from 382 books…” Read more about Marian Schembari's spreadsheet of favorite quotes and how it helped her write a book: at.pw.org/9131Sentences

#ClipOfTheDay: In this Poets House event, Garrett Hongo reads from his new collection, Ocean of Clouds, and Edward Hirsch reads from his new memoir, My Childhood in Pieces, followed by a conversation between the authors about their friendship and humor. at.pw.org/HongoAndHirsch

For our latest #TheWrittenImage installment, novelist and graphic designer Peter Mendelsund describes embracing imperfection through the creative practice of painting. “There is no fear of failure, and there are no expectations to satisfy.” at.pw.org/PaintingThroughDepression

“How many things could I touch in three minutes,” asks @stevekuusisto.bsky.social, author of Close Escapes (@coppercanyonpress.bsky.social). “I still play old records and take stock of what’s around me.” at.pw.org/WRKuusisto

#ClipOfTheDay: “She was a short story that kind of got too big and started rolling away from me,” says Katie Yee about her debut novel, Maggie; or a Man and a Woman Walk Into a Bar (Summit Books), in this episode of Poured Over: The Barnes & Noble Podcast hosted by Miwa Messer. at.pw.org/KatieYee

“I’m constantly trying to figure out how to talk about bodies in a way that doesn’t rely upon clichés or the grotesque,” says Sarah Yahm (Unfinished Acts of Wild Creation), regarding her exploration of writing into the unspoken ways we understand our physical experiences. at.pw.org/SarahYahm

Calling all writers in New York State! 📣 The application period for New York Readings & Workshops grants is now open! We offer a variety of grants for writers hosting individual readings, group workshops, events at festivals, and more. Learn more and apply by August 31: at.pw.org/rwfunds

“But fear can be galvanizing; perhaps the novel would not have been written without it.” In today’s Ten Questions, Xenobe Purvis discusses her writing process for The Hounding, out now from Henry Holt. at.pw.org/10Q4Purvis

#ClipOfTheDay: In this Creative Writing Series event at the University of Notre Dame, Kristen Arnett reads from her latest novel, Stop Me If You’ve Heard This One (Riverhead Books), and talks about her process to ensure that jokes land. at.pw.org/ArnettStopMe

During this time when AI has irrevocably changed the paradigm of publishing, journalist and editor Katie Arnold-Ratliff speaks to agents about their thoughts on AI, raising questions about contracts, rights, and the nature of art. at.pw.org/AgentsOnAI

“It turns out there’s a downside to knowledge.” In this week’s #CraftCapsule, Tamar Shapiro recommends writers refine their research and examine which details actually serve their characters and plots. at.pw.org/ShapiroCC3

#PWPoetryPrompt: Find a seemingly lyric-less document and consider the words that lure you in. Then try creating an erasure poem. #FromTheArchive: at.pw.org/PryingLyric

#ClipOfTheDay: Directed by Ebs Burnough, this documentary explores the influence that Jack Kerouac’s 1957 novel, On the Road, has had on writers, actors, and artists, and follows the lives of Americans who set off on their own journeys in the footsteps of the famous author. at.pw.org/KerouacRoad

The Time Is Now to spark your writing! This week we recommend a classic book of essays by Jorge Luis Borges, and #PWWritingPrompts on quiet moments, portraits, and a revisit. Read more: at.pw.org/TTIN

“If people didn’t like something, either it wasn’t consistent enough, or perhaps it was too predictable,” writes former GQ editor Kevin Nguyen. Read more of his actionable advice on both satisfying and subverting audience assumptions when writing a novel: at.pw.org/ConstancyAndSurprise

#ClipOfTheDay: Marissa Davis reads from her debut poetry collection, End of Empire (Penguin Books), in this Books Are Magic event with poets Sasha Burshteyn and A. D. Lauren-Abunassar. at.pw.org/MarissaDavis

“The South’s history for me is complicated, not solely defined by its horrors. I felt that a story collection was the ideal form for capturing the region’s complexity.” Read more of Carrie R. Moore’s #FirstFiction interview, led by Megan Kamalei Kakimoto: at.pw.org/CarrieRMoore

#ClipOfTheDay: In this video from the keynote of A Writing Room’s 2022 retreat, best-selling author Anne Lamott speaks about the discipline needed to write and reflects on writing as a spiritual and moral practice grounded in truth telling. at.pw.org/Lamott

“I needed to be sure I had found a home again, because it is only in the shadow of a homeplace that I create worlds and write stories.” Professor and fiction writer Olufunke Ogundimu describes her literary life in Starkville, Mississippi. Read on: at.pw.org/ShadowOfAHomeplace

”Do what’s right for your book, not what worked for another writer.” Agent Kate McKean of Howard Morhaim Literary Agency reminds writers that comparison is the thief of joy in this week‘s Agents & Editors Recommend: at.pw.org/AERMcKean

#ICYMI: Watch this virtual reading and conversation with the five debut authors featured in our “First Fiction 2025” feature: Sarah Yahm, Jon Hickey, Carrie R. Moore, Aaron John Curtis, and Jemimah Wei. #ClipOfTheDay: at.pw.org/FirstFiction2025Reading

“I sought out literary magazines whose editors, I believed, would not interfere in the summoned release.” In our new issue, Camille U. Adams, author of How to Be Unmothered: A Trinidadian Memoir, spotlights the magazines and journals that authentically welcomed her work. at.pw.org/CamilleUAdams

“I just remember the miraculous appearance of story seeds, bursts of inspiration, and cloudless composition.” In today’s Ten Questions, Ed Park discusses his writing process for An Oral History of Atlantis, out now from Random House. at.pw.org/10Q4EdPark

#ClipOfTheDay: In this Daily Show interview, author Rob Franklin speaks about the themes of race, class, and privilege in his debut novel, Great Black Hope (Summit Books), with host Josh Johnson. at.pw.org/RobFranklin

“Once you’re at the point where you are beginning to have conversations with potential agents, of any identity, who might represent you, here are a few questions that might be helpful to ask…” Read one senior agent’s tips for writers of color looking for representation: at.pw.org/OnRepresentation

“First, throw my characters into a scene from my own life. Then, see what they do and learn from it.” In this week’s #CraftCapsule, Tamar Shapiro recommends writers use their own memories as a testing ground for their characters. at.pw.org/ShapiroCC2

#FromTheArchive: Choose a city you have a deep connection with and write an essay that contends with its history, both personal and global, through a mythical or surreal lens. #PWNonfictionPrompt: at.pw.org/PaeanToPlace

#ClipOfTheDay: In this PBS NewsHour video, Ann Patchett, author and owner of Parnassus Books in Nashville, and Maureen Corrigan, professor and book critic for NPR’s Fresh Air, offer their recommendations for summer reading. at.pw.org/SummerReads

The Time Is Now to spark your writing! This week we recommend a craft book on experimentation by Matthew Clark Davison and Alice LaPlante, and #PWWritingPrompts on gratitude, letters, and lasting impressions. Read more: at.pw.org/TTIN

“In the early drafts I felt like his voice was withholding things, hiding some true feelings out of insecurity. I felt like my job was to put him in increasingly stressful situations where withholding was no longer an option.” Jon Hickey on the craft of writing a main character. at.pw.org/JonHickey