ANTHOLOGIES
Girls Write Now Unmuted: The 2021 Anthology
Girls Write Now is thrilled to be in partnership again this year with Dutton, who produced this anthology. A special thanks to the team at Dutton—Christine Ball,Maya Ziv, and Lexy Cassola, and to Feminist Press and Jamia Wilson, who produced the ebook. Thank you as well to Amazon Literary Partnership for their continued support, which directly funds the production of our anthologies.
In the 2021 Girls Write Now Anthology, our mentees give voice to fear and silence, demand justice, and hold nothing back. To be unmuted right now requires a new brand of bravery, and these writers show how it’s done. Using stories, poems, essays, fiction, drama, interviews and more, they report on a global pandemic, a climate crisis and the movement for racial equality. They also invite us on their personal journeys through the labyrinth of young adulthood: feeling the rich soil of a neighborhood garden beneath their fingers; traveling through time in search of their parents; inhaling the charged air where young love is brewing. In a world pushed to the precipice of change, in a society that values the tried and true over the dynamic and new, the Girls Write Now class of 2021 is breaking the chains and showing what it means to speak loud, clear and true—to be unmuted.
Foreword by
Introduction 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.
Girls Write Now Unmuted Print Anthology
Stories from Inside "Unmuted" Coming Soon!
Stories from Inside "Unmuted" Coming Soon!
The Unwilling Jailer
Holder of euphoria and life I enshroud the senses
City Symphony
Sounds—we hear them all the time in the city, but we don't necessarily register how much of an important role they play in our understanding of our surroundings. This piece is about sounds you hear in New York City, how those sounds translate into snapshots of other people's lives, and how they affect your own.
Moments Committed to Memory
Junior year was full of me running around to so many different places all over NYC. I was always on the subway, always tired, and always wanting to go home. This year has taught me how to balance my personal life with work, but especially when it comes to family and friends. So this is for them because, without their support, Lord knows I would've collapsed by now!
Friends
My multimedia piece, “Friends,” is my way to give back and showcase the amazing values that all of my friends and family have.
To All the Friends I’ve Loved Before
There’s no me without all of you.
Hold On
Hold On is a song that can mean different things to different people. I am someone who tends to carry her emotional baggage around with her. It sits heavy on my back and pulls me away from being the person that I am capable of being. I wrote this song to remind myself that true happiness cannot be found in the perfection of the imperfect world we live in.
The Pink Hijab with Sparkles…I wore Only Once
During the last days of summer vacation, I was watching the television show Teen Wolf when my mother said to me…
In School Brown Boys Wear Green
"I don't want to go to college. I want to go to war."
For Mami Y Papi
his project I have is a project close to me as it goes through the journey of self reflection and of healing generational trauma. I try to find my mom’s father as well as finding out my dad’s family who, to my knowledge, have either passed or changed their name. This is my best project because it is a reflection of a common wound that kids like me have. Identity issues are prevalent in people of color and this helps me gain some sort of closure with my family as well as help my mom heal.
Prosody
Prosody has been almost 18 years in the making, the antithesis of the saying, “Write what you know.” I don't know much about the developmental disorder that both my sister and dad have, but I've grown up understanding that the topic of disabilities have been painted in black-and-white for years. The multilayered stigmas that surround it have impacted two of the most important people in my life. Going into this podcast, I wanted to help myself (and others) relate to the experiences of those on the autism spectrum, as well as give voice to those with disabilities and stories that should be heard.
Praise for Here & Now
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.