Write into the Week: May 18, 2025

Elle LaMarca  |  May 17, 2025  | 

“Art is the lie that enables us to realize the truth.”

–Pablo Picasso 

Dear Writer,

I hope you’re having a good start to your week. In this newsletter:

  • A writing prompt to inspire your creativity.
  • Reading and listening recommendations in fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.
  • Publishing, residency, and retreat opportunities available now.
  • Join our free Friday write-in, and meet our community of writers.

Happy writing this week!

—Elle, Curriculum Specialist & Community Manager

Writing Prompt

Consider the implications of fully owning your narrative and experiences. (Maybe journal or freewrite about the following.) Does embracing full ownership of your story free you creatively? Have you encountered resistance, either from yourself or others, when you’ve decided to fully claim your truth and tell your stories? With this in mind, write a poem, essay or scene that highlights an element of your personal truth. 

Reading Recommendations:

Fiction:

  • “And of the Clay We Created” by Isabel Allende. Displaying her mastery of craft and language, Allende opens this short story with a compelling, yet gruesome, first line. Inspired by the 1985 volcanic eruption in Colombia that killed thousands, this story blends cultural detail with intimate emotional depth.

Nonfiction:

  • “Visiting McDonald’s With My Grandmother” by Christine Ro. “You don’t need a fancy grave site to honor a relative, after all. A chain restaurant that triggers a flood of memories can be enough.” In this personal essay, Ro explores the unique ways we honor and remember those we grieve. 

Poetry:

  • “This Place is the Place” by Jim Whiteside for Mixtape. An exploration in form as the poem shifts between verse and prose to mirror the fluidity of movement and memory. It invites you to consider how place—and the people we meet there—shape who we become.

Listening Recommendations:

  • From the First Draft: A Dialogue on Writing Podcast: “Bob Johnson“. This episode features an in-depth interview with award-winning short story writer and Iowa Writers’ Workshop graduate Bob Johnson. His short story “The Continental Divide” was named Short Story of the Year by The Hudson Review. 
  • Margaret Atwood’s Top 5 Writing Tips on YouTube. Interview and writing tips from the marvelously talented Margaret Atwood, author of The Handmaid’s Tale. 

Publishing Opportunities:

  • The Mixtape Review – Submission Window: Open. Open to poetry and prose submissions. The Mixtape Review is an experimental literary magazine that combines writing and music. Accepting all types of poetry. Prose submissions may be fiction or CNF, less than 2,000 words. 
  • Ploughshares at Emerson College Emerging Writer’s Contest– Submission Deadline: May 22, 2025. Submit your fiction, nonfiction or poetry for a chance to win $2,000, publication in Ploughshares, and a conversation with a literary agency. They consider authors “emerging” if they haven’t published or self-published a book in any genre. 

Monday and Friday: Free Group Writing Sessions

Come write with us! Community write-ins are a great way to meet other writers, and carve out space in your calendar for your writing.

Monday: Write Into the Week with Elle

Join me (Elle) for an hour of goal setting, community, and dedicated time to write! We’ll meet on Monday at 11 AM Eastern time, at this Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83999379617

Friday: Open Write-In

Join the Writers.com staff for a 90-minute writing session each Friday from 11 AM to 12:30 PM Eastern time. We will write together for the first hour. In the last, optional half hour, we’ll share our writing with one another and connect.

To add yourself, join our newsletter using the join box above, and add yourself to the “Friday Write-Ins” list at the bottom of any email. We’ll send you a Zoom link the morning of the call.

Join us on Instagram for more writing inspiration!

We’re sharing writing tips, creative prompts, and a steady stream of encouragement—follow us @writersdotcom. Click below to check out one of our latest posts on writing about love.

 

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Elle LaMarca

Elle is a writer and novelist originally from southwestern New York, now residing on the central coast in California. She does not miss the snow even a little bit. As an avid traveler, Elle can frequently be found wandering the globe, having lived in and explored over thirty countries, all while gaining inspiration for her writing and new perspectives on life. Elle is a former educator and Teach for America alumna, having taught in Los Angeles, Baltimore and Boston. She holds a B.A. in English Literature and Creative Writing from George Mason University and a M.A. in Education and Curriculum Design from Johns Hopkins University. She is passionate about well-crafted sentences and memorable metaphors. Elle is currently at work on a novel and a collection of personal essays.

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