Plus, celebrate the launch of two new publications
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Each week, a word becomes a world.
November 9-15
The Meaning of a Color:
Featured Media
Pink
By Lauren Hacke
Why is pink a “girly” color? Does pink limit us or empower us? What is the future of pink?
Channel Opinions into Art & Action
Who decided that pink is “girly,” and what does it cost the girls who love it, or refuse it? Defining “girliness,” investigating gender expression, using language to articulate the tightrope walk of femininity—this work is sorely needed in a society that so often either demonizes or strictly regulates femininity. At Girls Write Now, girls and gender-expansive young people aren’t just free to ask these questions—they get the tools to make people listen. Through cutting-edge curriculum, personalized mentorship, and community connections for life, the next generation of gender activists learns to forge opinions into art.
Expanding Culture:
Notes from Our Community
PUBLICATION ANNOUNCEMENT
Cultural Fragments
A Tale of Two Journeys
Cultural Fragments is a collaborative publication created over the course of two cycles. First, in Spring 2026, mentors and mentees in the Journey Poetry Rising: Voices from Latin America wrote poems inspired by Latinx poets throughout history, exploring love, identity, and social change. Then they handed those poems to the pairs in the Journey Zine Makers: Crafting a Peer Poetry Zine. Over the Summer Cycle, those mentors and mentees studied the themes and imagery of each poem as they designed the pages, and named the finished zine “Cultural Fragments.”
Girls Write Now Community Studio Leaders Oliver Zou & Deb Unter
Queer Poetry in a Time(line) of Pride starts tonight at 9 PM ET.
PROMPT OF THE WEEK
Investigating Queerness
Searching Our Psyches for Queer Histories
Write down the images that come to mind when you hear three words: culture, queerness, and communication. Where do they overlap? Pick one image that lives in all three and write it into a poem.
This week’s prompt comes from Oliver Zou and Deb Unter, who lead the Girls Write Now Community Studio Queer Poetry in a Time(line) of Pride. In this generative workshop, poets research a queer ancestor, or invent one: who this person was, what they believed, who they loved, and what parts of them live on in you.
COMMUNITY HIGHLIGHT
Fall Community Studios
Explore, Learn & Create with Kindred Spirits
Community Studios are hour-long virtual events led by mentors and mentees in the Teach GWN Journey. This season’s topics include queer poetry, the psychology of happiness for melancholic writers, and Appalachian identity in literature. Experience the writing community you’ve always wanted.
Happening Write Now:
Mark Your Calendar
CAREER CHAT
Becoming Changemakers: A Politics & Organizing Career Chat
Tuesday, November 10, 4:45-6 PM ET, Virtual
One week after Election Day, meet the people who keep the work going. Organizers, advocates, and political professionals will tell you how they built careers around the causes they believe in. Then ask them what you want to know.
Open to all mentees, mentors, members & the public.
PUBLICATION LAUNCH
In the Midst & Cultural Fragments
Monday, November 16, 6:30-8 PM ET, Virtual
Over the past year, two brand-new publications have grown out of the Collaboratory: In the Midst, a digital literary magazine, and Cultural Fragments, a printed zine. Hear each publication’s story and selections from their pages.
Open to all mentees, mentors, members & the public.
COLLEGE CHAT
College to Career: Real Stories & Real Paths with SMBC
Tuesday, November 17, 4:45-6 PM ET, Virtual
What is college really like, and how did it lead to the job you have now? Join Girls Write Now and professionals from Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) for a College Chat about the road from campus to career.
Open to all mentees, mentors, members & the public.
Get the Gig:
Curated Opportunities Just for You
Need help applying for these opportunities—and more?
Meet with a Mentor on Demand!
PUBLICATION OPPORTUNITY
Writing for Life: Chasing Spirits Story & Essay Contest
Two $1,500 Prizes, Publication & Performance
At fourteen, Maya Logan Eileraas wrote a novel while in foster care and mental healthcare facilities. Writing was their lifeline. Honor that free, rebellious spirit with a story or essay of 750 words or fewer about a moment when you or a character defied an expected narrative to stay alive, claim your voice, or imagine a different future. One winner ages 13-15 and one ages 16-19 will each win $1,500, publication on Girls Write Now Media, and a reading at a Friday Night Salon honoring Maya in January. Open to writers in the US who identify as girls, gender expansive, and/or LGBTQIA+.
Deadline: November 15, 2026
Create a portal account to apply.
INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITY
MacArthur Foundation & Chicago Community Trust
Traineeship 2027
The MacArthur Foundation’s Journalism and Media program funds nonprofit reporting, nonfiction multimedia storytelling, and participatory civic media. This traineeship, run with the Chicago Community Trust, is based in Chicago, Illinois.
Deadline: November 30, 2026
Create a portal account to apply.
INTERNSHIP OPPORTUNITY
The New York Times
Editorial Design Intern, Wirecutter
Wirecutter, the New York Times product-review site, is hiring an editorial design intern to join its creative team and work across its editorial departments. Apply with a resume and a portfolio of illustration or graphic design projects.
Deadline: November 20, 2026
Create a portal account to apply.
If you don’t already have a Girls Write Now account, create one now.
