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.
Rise Speak Change: The Girls Write Now Anthology 2017
Stories from Inside "Rise Speak Change" Coming Soon!
Stories from Inside "Rise Speak Change" Coming Soon!
Lineage
Climate change effects our whole planet. On the news we see the melting of the ice caps or the fires in Australia, but the impacts of global warming can be seen even throughout a city.
They think I can be a dang SUPERHERO?… Hollie Harper’s Life@GWN
Charlie Chaplin said “A day without laughter is a day wasted.” Hollie Harper’s days are never wasted. For the last
“My daughter makes me think I am a superhero–that I can do anything”… Nneka & Christine Obiamalu’s Life@ GWN
Girls Write Now Community Manager Christine Obiamalu, our newest staff member, may be the “baby” of the Girls Write Now
“I would hope that I make people feel like they could go for their dreams…” Jocelynn Landon’s Life@GWN
A Profile by Fayonna Jean-Philippe | Spring 2026 GWN Cycle In the 2026 Spring Cycle of the Girls Write Now
The Journey into a Self-Proclaimed Funny Person’s First Time Writing Comedy
A darkly funny take on identity, ambition, and modern life. A mentee at Girls Write Now navigates cultural confusion, people-pleasing instincts, and the dream of running a country with empathy, practicality, and a little tyranny.
friendship
A poem on the constellations in our lives.
“My dad taught me how to be curious…” Bruce Morrow & Tenzin Gund-Morrow’s Life@GWN
Fathers are some of our first teachers, and the best students learn by asking questions. For GWN board member Bruce Morrow's son, Tenzin Gund-Morrow, his dad gave every early curiosity somewhere to go—from ballet classes at the age of three to isolating strawberry DNA at science camp, Bruce encouraged his son's interests, and delighted in where they led.
If you are transgender, you have to live
The title comes from a tweet that reads: "if u r transgender u have to live. if u accomplish something else then good. if u accomplish nothing else then good. but u have to live"
golden girls
Gold can be shaped and formed, so can love.
contingent truth
The same words arranged in identical lines can tell conflicting stories if listed in a different order. And a contingent truth is, by definition, true, but could just as easily have been false.
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.