ANTHOLOGIES
Rise Speak Change: The 2017 Girls Write Now Anthology
At the QWERTY Digital Media Exhibition, our mentees showcased projects that are changing the way we tell narratives. A video overlaid with powerful poetry, thoughtful podcasts, and interactive games created with Twine — our mentees used the skills they learned in our digital workshops to create these multi-platform masterpieces.

Our mentees are defining the digital age by bringing the craft of writing into the 21st century. In our Digital Media Mentoring Program, we boost girls’ tech savvy and creative potential through digital media. In bringing our curriculum and writing approach into the digital age, we prepare the girls we serve to truly be the next generation of writers—on whatever platform they choose. Students are paired one-to-one with a digital media professional and together they transform their writing into digital art. All workshops are facilitated by graduate students at Parsons The New School for Design. Our workshops feature writing and digital skill-building exercises, prompts, and share-outs to diversify participants’ modes of self-expression. At the end of a program year, girls are equipped to tell a story in GIFs, a poem in HTML, and take their words to the next level.Together we embark on a journey of creative workshops, public readings and showcases, opportunities for publication, and more, all to give girls the tools to advance their writing through different mediums.
Introduction by
Foreword by
Moderated by
Read What's Inside
Browse our collection of stories from inside the book. Complete with notes from the author and anecdotes from our mentees and mentors.
Stories from Inside "Rise Speak Change" Coming Soon!
Stories from Inside "Rise Speak Change" Coming Soon!
The Sun I Love
We all feel the need to capture the beauty of nature and preserve it somehow. And videos show the beauty in a moment where it shines best. This video is not one, but many pieces of nature and peace coming together to represent one moment in time.
A Text
A Text By Isabel Golightly My project is a poem that comments on the current administration in a complex and
How Is A Diamond Made?
Diamonds are shiny and pretty but they weren’t “born” like that.
Love Through My Eyes
Feeling bummed out because all of your friends have a Valentine? Still waiting for your Peter Kavinsky or John Ambrose? Then you're not alone—check out my video to see how I coped with being single and why it might not be the end of the world for either of us.
An Ode to Wanderlust
Have you ever traveled the world through words alone? Exploring each place not as someone who wants great pictures or a story to show off, but someone who truly wants to feel the core of what it represents? I have—I've traveled and written about the emotions and the memories I haven't really made. Using Google Maps, I wrote poems about select countries I've never been to, and used it as a way to travel the globe. Though difficult, using elements of each country, I've managed to paint a picture of how I view them and their importance to me.
anxiety
At one time or another, we've all experienced loneliness and/or anxiety. Now more than ever, teenagers are constantly being mentally attacked and feel like there is no way out. I want to show that although times get rough and people leave, you will always be permanent in your own life and battles against anxiety, loneliness, and any other mental disease. The only way out is through. Fight for your happiness because you deserve it.
You NEED to Listen
Last spring, the New York Times was flooded with articles about abortion and how some states were trying to undermine Roe v. Wade. After reading these headlines, I became scared for myself, the girls around me, and any person who has a uterus. However, I have learned that if you are scared, you must stand up and fight for change. I am fighting back with my words.
Sex Is Her Identity
This graphic design accompanies a poetic performance about sexual identity and traditional expectations of young women.
Sex in the City 2.0
Who wouldn't want to see a modern version of Sex in the City in just a few slides? This collage is a visual representation of the things I have done as a young woman of color living in New York City. You can see not only the things I have achieved, the places I've traveled, and the clothes I wear while walking the streets of this cosmopolitan city, but you can also see the importance of my family and friends to me.
Simple Separate Person
My project is a blackout poetry piece using Walt Whitman's poem “One’s Self I Sing.” I am a poetry aficionado, so this piece is the perfect marriage between my existing love of writing and my newfound interest in the digital sphere.
Praise for Rise Speak Change
From the Literary Community
Intersectional Voices in Editorial Print Committee
Every year, the Intersectional Voices in Editorial (IV Edit) Print Committee brings their talents to the task of editing, producing, and promoting this fresh collection of writing from today’s emerging voices. The committee is made up of mentors, mentees, and other volunteers who are passionate about diversifying the publishing landscape.