Every day Poets & Writers Magazine scans the headlines—from publishing reports to academic announcements to literary dispatches—for all the news that creative writers need to know. Here are today’s stories:
The American Dialect Society has voted “because” the word of the year after the conjunction “exploded with new possibilities” in 2013. (Guardian)
“I think about my novels for a long time before I start to write them—a year or more, sometimes many years.” Author and poet Jim Harrison explains the importance of patience in writing and why effective poetry must contain an element of mystery. (Atlantic)
The Rumpus offers a humorous compilation of illustrated literary puns poking fun at notable contemporary authors such as Jonathan Franzen and Junot Díaz.
"William Wordsworth reportedly preferred writing his poems in bed in the complete darkness, and would start over whenever he lost a sheet of paper because looking for it was too much trouble.” The Huffington Post examines seven famous writers who wrote while lying down.
BuzzFeed provides a glimpse into the literary world of New York City during the 1920s.
“Chang-rae asked me not to tell anyone in the class that I had a book deal, and I would submit stuff that was already going to be published, and the critiques were hilarious.” Authors Gary Shteyngart and Chang-Rae Lee discuss immigrant literature, wine, and the pressures of being raised by demanding parents. (Vulture)
Flavorwire features a piece on literary bookmarks that honor influential female writers such as Anne Carson and Gertrude Stein.
