Ten Questions for Marie-Helene Bertino

“Intuition is enough.” —Marie-Helene Bertino, author of Exit Zero
Jump to navigation Skip to content
Articles from Poet & Writers Magazine include material from the print edition plus exclusive online-only material.
“Intuition is enough.” —Marie-Helene Bertino, author of Exit Zero
Jehanne Dubrow encourages writers to provide varied points of entry into books on trauma to give readers breathing room and keep them engaged.
When your work is being judged with all identifying information removed, an artist statement enables you to share who you are as a writer, your motivation, and your influences—creating a map from your now to a dreamed-of future.
Curating and sequencing your poems with intention can positively affect the outcome of your submission. Contest organizers and judges offer four guiding points as you assemble your poetry packet.
Writing contests that accept excerpts as short-form prose can help you keep up the momentum during the long journey to book publication. Contest winners and other experts share what it takes to create an attention-grabbing excerpt.
This summer’s notable opportunities celebrate new talent, amplify marginalized voices, and push boundaries. Our editors take you behind the scenes to see how these contests are run, who they serve, and why they do what they do.
This series of interviews with over forty book editors, publishers, and agents offers a unique look at the past, present, and future of the book industry and what writers can do to thrive in today’s publishing world.
In The Book of Records, Madeleine Thien takes on political, historical, and philosophical issues in the wake of catastrophe while offering a portrait of a life that holds hope amid seemingly hopeless circumstances.
Superstar literary agent Nicole Aragi talks about what stands out to her in a query, the importance of finding the right agent, and the art of following your nose.
In his fifth novel, Run for the Hills, Kevin Wilson returns to a theme that flows through much of his work: the threads that connect us to other people, even if we’ve never met them before.
In the poetry collection I Imagine I Been Science Fiction Always, Douglas Kearney shatters traditional expectations by transforming images and texts into dynamic conversations about Black identity, personhood, and art.
In the hostile climate of the current U.S. administration, queer authors persevere through writing and community building, continuing a culture of resistance and defiance that is radically, emphatically, grounded in joy and love.
An immigrant novelist reflects on the opportunities extended to her by the American publishing industry—and challenges the notion that she should be grateful to be given any kind of welcome.
A novelist describes her exposure to a multitude of scientific disciplines as the writer-in-residence at the Wisconsin Institute for Discovery and shares how exploring something completely new has lent fresh energy to her work.
The first lines of a dozen noteworthy books, including Hardly Creatures by Rob Macaisa Colgate and Chronicle of Drifting by Yuki Tanaka.
Write a poem that uses the language of flowers to share a secret, a scene where a young person expresses their thoughts about a parental figure, or an essay based on the logic of your own dreams.
As the Common celebrates its fifteenth anniversary, founder and editor in chief Jennifer Acker delves into the thinking behind creating a literary organization and magazine devoted to place.
Inspired by the possibility of providing complete strangers an opportunity for creativity and catharsis, the Unsent Letter Mailbox started as an interactive urban art project and has now grown into a salon reading series.
The author of Late to the Search Party highlights magazines that have offered his lithe, intimate poems a home, including Waxwing and Split Lip Magazine.
Publishing two poetry books a year, Conduit Books shares the quirky aesthetic of its journal counterpart, Conduit. The press seeks work that is innovative, honest, and sincere, bringing people to poetry and rumination.
An introduction to three new anthologies, including What My Father and I Don’t Talk About: Sixteen Writers Break the Silence and Sing the Truth: The Kweli Journal Short Story Collection.
In response to the unauthorized use of books to train large language models, the developers of Created by Humans propose a solution: negotiation between authors and AI companies to help writers control how their work is used.
In the past decade, the Undocupoets advocacy organization has greatly increased undocumented poets’ visibility as meaningful voices in American poetry. The group plans to push forward in community against the difficulties to come.
The publishing industry is unique in letting retailers return unsold stock—a practice with enormous costs for indie presses. The editor of Orison Books breaks down the logistics of fulfillment and suggests ways to reimagine book returns.
“The short story form offers me a way to indulge my obsessions and experiment with various genres and narrative modes.” —Julia Elliott, author of Hellions