Gwen Kirby and Robert Kolker
Dear Writers,
Happy Pride 🏳️🌈, Happy Summer 🌴, Happy Juneteenth 🙏🏾 and Happy Father’s Day 🧔.
As we write this, the sun is shining and yet there are so many wildly unnerving events happening in the world that it is hard to close our news screens and appreciate the clear sky and blooming flowers, difficult to allow ourselves to take pleasure in writing and reading. And yet even (especially!) in the face of darkness, writers must double down and do their work and shine their light upon the world.
This month, we are deep into Gwen E. Kirby’s fabulous debut short story collection, Shit Cassandra Saw. Kirby’s stories are full of humor, rage,, romance. science fiction, motherhood, infidelity, cockroaches, ghosts, love, history, and alternate realities She will make you laugh and cringe and give you hope. Read our Q&A with Kirby in our Writers at Work column.
We just finished Robert Kolker’s Hidden Valley Road: Inside the Mind of an American Family, a beautifully written story about a family of twelve children, many of whom developed schizophrenia. And we listened to Dov Fox’s podcast, Donor 9623, a fascinating dive into the world of schizophrenia and sperm banks.
On the lighter side, we’ve been listening to Elizabeth Gilbert’s Big Magic: Living Beyond Fear. Gilbert’s voice is soothing, logical and funny. She’ll get you back to writing if you’ve stopped.
If you missed your opportunity to book your spot in the Morocco Writers Retreat with us, not to worry—we have great news! We’re offering a One Day Intensive Fall Writing Retreat in NYC with Dr. Judith Rabinor on November 5. See below for details.
Client news:
Kate Levin’s essay, My Favorite Place, was published in The Library Love Letter: Presents.
Randi Mazzella, The Six Benefits of Lemons That May Surprise You; About Face: Five Products Your Skin Needs Now; Ten Podcasts Women Should Tune Into Now; Should You Worry If You Have an Old Fashioned Marriage?; Do You Need an Air Fryer? (The Girlfriend).
Submit your work:
Creative Nonfiction Sunday Short Reads Have a story of up to 1,000 words that would make a good Sunday Short Read? We’d love to read it! Deadline August 1st.
Flora Fiction Flash Fiction / 1,000 words. Poetry & Prose / Limit: 3 poems. Submissions open from June 1st, 2022 until June 30th, 2022.
Solstice Annual Literary Contest Each entry: Fiction or Nonfiction: 25-page maximum, double-spaced; free-standing excerpts from books also accepted. Poetry: 3-poem maximum. Deadline June 6.
Writerly Magazine All pieces must be under 3, 000 words and must not have been previously published in any form.
