Fifty and Forward

“One of the remarkable things Poets & Writers does is provide a sense of warmth and support that we know is there. It’s helpful just by existing. It permits a degree of cohesion that would not otherwise exist. It reminds you that there is a community. I believe thoroughly and absolutely in what Poets & Writers does.”

“I vividly recall the way I pored over every page of Poets & Writers Magazine when I was in my twenties and first apprenticing myself to the craft of writing. How to write dialogue. How to structure a narrative. How to submit a manuscript to literary journals. These are questions Poets & Writers helped me figure out. Every page was an education, a preparation, a vital piece of information that I could find no where else. Perhaps best of all was the section that listed all of grants, residencies, and awards one could apply for. I scoured each listing and took every opportunity. So many of the writing residencies and awards I won in my first decade of writing came to my attention because I saw them in Poets & Writers. It has remained a vital resource for writers seeking advice, inspiration, and community. It’s essential to those of us in the literary world.”

“The strangest question I ever received about my first novel, The Secret Life of Bees, came from a woman who attended one of my readings. ‘Did you write the book yourself?’ she asked. I had no idea what she meant, but it flashed through my mind that she’d taken one look at me and thought: this woman couldn’t possibly write a novel. I imagine this occurred to me because I’d spent a good bit of time thinking the same thing. I began writing at 30, focusing on nonfiction. It was a surprise when the desire to write fiction surfaced. As I worked on The Secret Life of Bees, it was hard to say which was greater—my desire or my trepidation. Honestly? I’m not sure the novel would have happened without Poets & Writers. Being selected for its Writers Exchange offered me opportunities I could only dream about. Few things are more necessary to writers than opportunities and resources, advocacy and community, hope and bravery. Poets & Writers offers writers all of these, helping to make the possible, possible.”