We hope you’ll join us for the sixth annual LitFest, hosted in conjunction with Amherst College. This year’s festival features 2020 National Book Award for Fiction winner Charles Yu and finalist Megha Majumdar, National Book Award for Poetry finalists Natalie Diaz and Tommye Blount, and Pulitzer Prize winner Anne Applebaum, among others. This year, to celebrate Amherst College’s Bicentennial, we’ll have a very special set of readings by The Common‘s very own Literary Publishing Interns at 4:30 pm on Saturday. Join us for this packed weekend! All events require registration; register at this link by choosing the events you’d like to attend!
A Conversation with 2020 National Book Award Winner Charles Yu and Nominee Megha Majumdar with a Welcome from President Biddy Martin A Conversation with 2020 National Book Award for Poetry Finalists Tommye Blount and Natalie Diaz
Alumni Authors Cocktail Hour Reading A Conversation with Pulitzer Prize Winner Anne Applebaum
|
Emily Everett
FAQ: Weekly Writes Accountable You
Accountable You Questions
Q: What makes this program different than past Weekly Writes volumes?
A: Weekly Writes Accountable You includes an additional focus on committing to a regular writing practice. You’ll see this reflected in editor Q&As and advice, but the largest difference is that you’ll be asked to upload one page a week to show that you’ve worked on a prompt. This is not a submission to the magazine, and these assignments will not be read or receive any feedback. To recognize your hard work and commitment, you will receive a short note of encouragement after uploading your piece!
Q: Do I send in my weekly writing for you to read? Will I get editorial feedback on my weekly writing?
A: You will be asked to upload one page a week to show that you’ve worked on at least one prompt. This is not a submission to the magazine, and these assignments will not be read or receive any feedback.
General Program Questions
Q: I didn’t participate in Weekly Writes Vol. 1, 2, 3, or 4. Can I still sign up for Vol. 5?
A: Absolutely! Our program doesn’t build upon or rely on experience with earlier volumes of the program. Prompts are designed for both beginner and advanced writers.
Q: I already did Weekly Writes Vol. 1, 2, 3, or 4. Is this the same thing?
A: Vol. 5 includes all brand new prompts and editor advice.
Q: What if I’m busy and can’t work on the week’s prompts? Will they expire?
A: No. While we hope that writing every week is part of your program experience, we understand that life gets in the way. The prompts are yours to download and keep, so you can start writing whenever you have time.
Weekly Writes Vol. 5: Accountable You
The sign-up period for Weekly Writes Vol. 5 is now closed. If you’re interested in hearing about our next Weekly Writes program when it opens, please register your interest here.
Weekly Writes is a ten-week program designed to help you create original place-based writing, beginning January 25.
We’re offering both poetry AND prose, in two separate programs. What do you want to prioritize in 2021? Pick the program, sharpen your pencils, and get ready for a weekly dose of writing inspiration (and accountability) in your inbox!
Podcast: Omer Friedlander on “Operation Tamar”
Writer Omer Friedlander speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his story “Operation Tamar,” which appears in Issue 19 of The Common magazine. “Operation Tamar” is set in Israel, where Friedlander grew up. In this conversation, Friedlander talks about the setting and inspiration for this story and others, and the editing and revision that went into “Operation Tamar” before publication. He also discusses his current projects, a novel and a short story collection recently sold to Random House for publication.
Podcast: Tara Skurtu on “Offering”
Tara Skurtu is an American poet and writer, writing coach, and public speaker. She speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about “Offering,” her poem from Issue 19 of The Common magazine. “Offering,” and many more of Skurtu’s poems, are set in Bucharest, Romania, where the poet has lived for several years. Skurtu discusses the inspiration and process behind the poem, her thoughts on teaching creative writing, and her time studying with poet Louise Glück. This conversation also includes the story behind the International Poetry Circle, an online poetry-reading initiative Skurtu started on Twitter in the early days of the pandemic.
Podcast: David Moloney on “Counsel”
Writer David Moloney speaks to managing editor Emily Everett about his story “Counsel,” which appears in Issue 19 of The Common. “Counsel” is an excerpt from Moloney’s novel-in-stories, Barker House, set in a correctional facility in New Hampshire. The book follows nine correctional officers over the course of one year on the job. Moloney discusses his own experiences as a correctional officer in a New Hampshire facility, and the work of turning those complex experiences into stories for the novel. Barker House was published by Bloomsbury in April 2020, so this conversation also includes discussion of what it’s like to publish during a pandemic.
All the Ways to Experience Issue 20
Issue 20 is here at last! 
Click here to purchase your print or digital copy, starting at just $7.
Click here to browse the Table of Contents, including online exclusives.
Love Issue 20’s portfolio of writing from the Lusosphere? Donate to support The Common’s mission to feature new and underrepresented voices from around the world.
Interested in teaching Issue 20 in your class? Click here to explore your options and resources.
AŚĀNTI/DISQUIET
Issue 20, Fall 2020: 10 Years of The Common
Issue 20 of The Common will be here this fall. Subscribe by September 30 to find this hot pink celebration in your mailbox! In addition to the global, place-based stories, essays, and poems you’re used to reading in The Common, this issue also includes a portfolio of writing from and about the Lusosphere: Portugal’s colonial and linguistic diaspora. You’ll find works in English and in translation, and explore Lisbon, Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Mozambique, and even Luso-American families and communities here in the States. 1 year subscriptions start at $12.
Subscribe now, so you can have your cake and eat it too!