Erika Dreifus

• Earlier this week, I tuned in for “Beyond Bagels and Lox: Writing about Jewish Lives in the 21st Century with Allegra Goodman and Amy E. Schwartz—in celebration of the Moment-Karma Short Fiction Contest.” (If the session title sounds familiar, perhaps you are thinking of this?) A recording of the event, which also included brief interviews with the winners of the contest that Goodman judged this year, is now available on Moment‘s site, along with access to the winning stories.
• New publication Jewish Disability Inclusion News is “interested in publishing diverse and dynamic voices about the intersection of Jewish life and disability inclusion. We encourage first person essays as well as reported articles. If you’ve created educational resources for synagogues, schools, Jewish organizations or home use, we’d love to publish them, too. We are also able to share video essays and stories.” Note that they “are not yet able to pay contributors.” (Reminder: Since the pool for Jewish writing calls and competitions is so much smaller than the pool for such opportunities broadly speaking, I am open to including here on My Machberet non-paying or fee-charging items that won’t typically make it into The Practicing Writer 2.0 or the Practicing Writing blog.)
• Applications for the 2023 New Jewish Culture Fellowship are now open (and will remain so until August 7). “Each fellow will receive a $1,000 stipend to support creative work and the opportunity to propose supported/paid events, workshops, or classes (virtual or in-person). The cohort of 6–8 fellows will develop their projects and build meaningful creative relationships through supportive and productive work-sharing, learning, and time spent in discussion. Fellows also get personalized connections to our network of exceptional alumni and mentors, who are leading editors, curators, publishers, critics, theatre professionals, artists, etc. NJCF alumni can also apply for additional project funding. NJCF has existing (and is developing new) partnerships with major cultural institutions, and we’re excited to make connections that are appropriate for you and your work.” Note: “There is no specific age range or degree requirement, but fellows have mostly been between ages 25 and 45, and often have MFAs or equivalent professional experience.” Note also: “There will be an $18 application fee when you apply….If this fee represents an undue burden for you, please write…to request an application without a fee requirement.”
• It happened this week: “Awards were presented at the 42nd Annual Simon Rockower Awards Banquet held in conjunction with the American Jewish Press Association’s 2023 Annual Conference, July 11, 2023, in New Orleans, LA.” A hearty Mazal Tov to everyone whose work has been honored this year. I’m looking forward to spending some quality time with the full list of awardees and reading (or rereading) their work. Helpful hint: If you’re looking to acquaint yourself with the landscape of Jewish journalism, this list—which includes plenty of links—offers an excellent opportunity to learn (more) about publications and the type of work they feature.
• And speaking of Jewish journalism: I became acquainted with the work of Gary Rosenblatt when he edited New York’s Jewish Week; he has since retired from that position. But I keep up with his writing through his Substack publication Between the Lines, which this week spotlights Joseph Berger’s new biography of Elie Wiesel—and includes a fabulous Wiesel-related anecdote from an earlier time in Rosenblatt’s career.

Shabbat shalom.