Write into the Week: March 23, 2025

Elle LaMarca | March 23, 2025 |

“You own everything that happened to you. Tell your stories. If people wanted you to write warmly about them, they should have behaved better.”

–Anne Lamott

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 costs of telling the truth. Write about a moment when telling your truth—or a character’s truth—came at a cost. What was gained in the process? What was lost?

Reading Recommendations:

Fiction:

“The City Born Great” by N.K. Jemisin. In this enthralling short story, New York City is on the brink of transformation. Like all great cities, there comes a time when it must be born—but birth is messy, and ancient forces will do whatever it takes to stop it. The city’s survival rests with a reluctant midwife, drawn into a battle he never asked for, tasked with ushering in a future only he can begin to imagine—if he can learn to listen to the city’s song and sing it into being.

Nonfiction/Craft:

“Permission: The New Memoirist and the Courage to Create” by Elissa Altman. Part inspiration, part craft guide, Permission is a rallying cry for memoirists to tell the stories they’ve been taught to silence. Through personal insight and practical advice, this bold new book empowers writers to claim their truth, confront fear, and create without apology.

Poetry:

“SONNET (silenced)” by Olena Kalytiak Davis. This poem is a haunting meditation on beauty, voice, and the ghostly power of language.

Listening Recommendations:

From the Poor Man’s Feast Substack by Elissa Altman: “you own everything that happened to you*”. Altman interviews Anne Lamott about writing the stories and experiences you think you’re not allowed to tell. For non-subscribers, Altman includes 18 minutes of the interview for free.
From The Shit No One Tells You About Writing Podcast: “It’s a Vibe: Plot Points & Emotional Vibes in Storytelling” Featuring specialist guest, literary agent, Lauren Spieller, to discuss query letters in romance and fantasy genres. Lauren provides insightful critiques on a submitted query letter and its opening pages. The hosts also discuss the intricacies of character development, focusing on the protagonist’s depth and emotional projection.

Publishing Opportunities:

Pink Apple Press – Submission Deadline: Open/Rolling. Pink Apple Press is new literary magazine seeking submissions of the “juiciest” poetry and flash fiction you can write. From their website, “Whether we find seeds to a new pink apple tree or half of a worm, we want to be surprised after the first bite. We want something so delicious we can’t resist a second bite.”
Inch: A Micro-chapbook Journal – Submissions Deadline: April 15, 2025. Inch is a quarterly journal focused on the miracles of compression. Each “issue” is a micro-chapbook featuring the work of a single author. We feature small collections of poetry, short fiction, or short creative nonfiction, with each chapbook focusing on a separate genre. Be sure to double check their unique (and fun!) submission guidelines for each 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.

Posted in: Write into the Week

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.