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 Editor
When an anonymous editor begins leaving comments on Percy’s document, all he wants is to be rid of them. Except before he knows it, he’s finally making progress on his story again.
Shadows of Innocence
This piece speaks to the shadow side of experiencing the first signs of becoming older and losing your inner child. This could be about many things that may take our innocence.
The Cracked Plate
Inspired by I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter, this piece explores the quiet tension of growing up under high expectations. The plate is a metaphor—for memory, identity, and the cracks we carry.
Push
She never said a word, but she told us everything we needed to hear that night.
Broken Things
A former journalist begrudgingly gives an interview of her own in a story about the transformative power of a well-asked question.
Onism
Onism: The grief of being caught in your own body.
Momentum
Nearly all of us have experienced the magic and intensity of a live performance. This piece focuses on the joys, sorrows, and beautifully overwhelming experience of music.
For CeeCee Fresh
As I step into a new chapter, I reflect on the love and sacrifices that carried me here—told through the story of CeeCee Fresh, a car passed down by generations of women in my family.
Artificial Assistance Toward Mental Wellness
So often, discussions about artificial intelligence center its potential as a replacement for humans.
to you after li-young lee
A reminder that you don’t need permission to feel, to want, to write — you already have the right.
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.