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!
13 Ways of Looking at 13
What was the worst year of your life? The right answer is 13. Here’s why.
Six Miles Apart
In the socially distanced era of six feet apart, two Brooklyn-based writers celebrate the beauty and history of their everyday worlds in this visual diary.
A Taste of Life: Musings by Kailee and Shyanne
On culinary connections to our cultures.
Sloth
My parents did not talk American politics but when I entered high school, I discovered everyone around me does.
until us / These Lost Days
We wrote these two poems to showcase connection during an isolated time. Although we were geographically far apart, these poems knit us together as we wrote on a shared document.
Your(s), friend
In this fictionalized letter to a lost friend, the author reflects on what happened to one middle school friendship. By exploring her memories, she realizes that not all relationships are forever.
The Monsters in Our Midst
Since 2020, Asian Americans have faced two, intertwining monsters: the COVID-19 pandemic and racism.
On the Beach in January
I grew up loving the beach in the British Virgin Islands, but I couldn't go swimming in January because the ocean was too cold. I wrote this poem to personify the cold of the sea.
Flavor
This piece is about the details in food, specifically cake, and all it has to offer—because each one is a reflection of one’s inner self.
What the Mirror Told Me or My Conversation With A Mirror
This poem is a reminder to love ourselves and our bodies no matter what the mirror tells us.
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.