Friday Finds for Writers

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Most Fridays the Practicing Writing blog shares writing and publishing resources, news, and reflections to peruse over the weekend. But it’s been an excruciating week for so many of us. And frankly, I’ve paid next-to-no attention to garden-variety news from the writing and publishing spheres.

On Wednesday, however, I received an email from Facing History and Ourselves, a Boston-based global nonprofit organization that I’ve admired for many years. The email introduced a “mini-lesson” titled “Processing Attacks in Israel and the Outbreak of War in the Region.”

The resource isn’t perfect. (What resource is?) But one of its segments impressed me as something that, though intended for educators and students, could be clarifying for writers as well, in our work and in the rest of our lives. It’s a section titled “Avoiding Antisemitic and Islamophobic Tropes in Discussing Israeli-Palestinian Conflict.”

Screenshot of text published beneath "Avoiding Antisemitic and Islamophobic Tropes in Discussing Israeli-Palestinian Conflict." Text taken from the website linked within the post.
  • Adam Morgan asked, “Could everyone please share your favorite thing you wrote in 2019?” And writers responded.
  • A question of my own (inspired by my status this semester as a writer-who-teaches and a writer-with-a-new-book): Which inspires greater anxiety—reviews of your new book, or end-of-semester teaching evaluations?
  • I always look forward to Kenyon Review‘s holiday reading recommendations from its staff/editors. (And maybe I’m even happier to encounter them this year because, as I mentioned in the latest Practicing Writer, for the first time in quite a while I’ve failed to assemble my own year-end book-rec feature.) And on KR’s 2019 list, I’m especially happy to see Patrice Gopo’s essay collection mentioned.
  • Still more wisdom from Allison K. Williams (this time, focusing on some “best practices” for productive [non-irritating] promotion).
  • And you’ll find a hearty helping of Jewish-lit links over on the My Machberet blog.

Have a great weekend!

2 thoughts on “Friday Finds for Writers

  1. Patrice Gopo says:

    Thank you, Erika, for the mention! I truly appreciate.

    1. Erika Dreifus says:

      Wishing you a wonderful holiday season, Patrice!

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