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:

“I think writing, or any form of art-making, is a way to prepare for not being here. Not that we can. No amount of preparing can really ready us, in a meaningful way, for the great void that awaits us all.” Laura van den Berg meditates on why we write [2]. (Atlantic)

“On the eve of publication, what Ms. Brennan-Jobs wants readers to know is this: Steve Jobs rejected his daughter for years, but that daughter has absolved him.” The New York Times profiles Lisa Brennan-Jobs, whose memoir, Small Fry [3], comes out in early September.

Polish writer Olga Tokarczuk [4] shares what book changed her life, what book she couldn’t finish, and what she’s reading now. (Guardian)

Walmart is getting into the e-book business [5]: This Wednesday the retailer, in partnership with Rakuten Kobo, debuted its e-books store and monthly audiobook subscription service. (Forbes)

A new book recommendation app, Inky [6], seeks to offer an alternative to GoodReads. (TechCrunch)

J. C. Gabel has started an indie art press, Hat & Beard [7], with a “retro-rebel sensibility.” (Los Angeles Times)

Chronicle Books has partnered with Trustbridge Global Media to launch a new imprint of Chinese-language children’s books [8] that will be distributed in China. (Publishers Weekly)

“[Poirot’s] obsessive search for the truth, in story after story, feels at once timeless and profoundly relevant to this moment in our history.” Sophie Hannah considers the many recent portrayals of Hercule Poirot [9], Agatha Christie’s famous detective character. (Washington Post)