Erika Dreifus

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.”

• I want to co-sign Tommy Dean’s recent tweet: “Writing friends, please consider adding a website! Sometimes I need to know more about a writer and there’s no information!” A related and timely find: “The Whys and Whens of Having a Writer’s Website,” via Cincinnati Review. (Now I feel compelled to point you toward a resource I frequently recommend: Jane Friedman’s “How to Build an Author Website: Getting Started Guide.”)
• In which Anne Trubek sagely addresses “Common Misperceptions About Publishing.”
• Poets & Writers is offering an exceedingly intriguing new program: “Get the Word Out is a publicity incubator for debut authors. This unique professional development program will provide expert advice and peer support to authors who might not otherwise have access to these resources. We will select a cohort of debut fiction writers in fall 2022 and a cohort of debut poets in early 2023. In each cycle, authors planning for the publication of their debut book will develop and execute a strategic publicity plan under the mentorship of an accomplished book publicist.” There are no fees to apply or participate. The application deadline for the first (fiction) cohort is October 21.
• Once upon a time, I was a huge Annie Ernaux fan. But as I said on Twitter yesterday, news of her Nobel win filled me with mixed feelings. I can’t detail here/now. But I must acknowledge.
• This week’s “Jewish Lit Links” post on My Machberet features multiple opportunities for Jewish writers/writing, plus news on an important upcoming kidlit event (free! online! open to the public!) to be hosted by the Association of Jewish Libraries.

Wishing everyone a good weekend.