ANTHOLOGIES
Taking Our Place in History: The Girls Write Now 2020 Anthology
Girls Write Now is thrilled to be in partnership with Dutton, who produced this year’s anthology. A special thanks to the team at Dutton—Christine Ball,Maya Ziv,Marya Pasciuto and Hannah Feeney, and to Feminist Press and Jamia Wilson, who produced the e-book. Thank you as well to Amazon Literary Partnership for their continued support and for recognizing Girls Write Now as a 2020 grant recipient, which directly funds the production of our anthologies.

The Girls Write Now 2020 class of mentees are using their voices for change in one of the most uncertain periods of modern history. This book invites you into their homes and families, their schools and neighborhoods, their hearts, hopes, and fears. Enter a world where clay creatures take on aluminum oppressors. Get thrown against an elevator wall in the midst of a horror story. Go backstage with a rock band, say goodbye to relatives as you start a new life, stand with an engineer solving a coding problem. Stare out from a coffin—or up at whales in the sky—and fall in love with the color of your skin. Experience tragedy in a mosque, feel the wounds of slavery, know the terror of glass shattering in a World War II village, and see how this next generation of leaders look to the past and write their present to create a better future.
Introduction by
With a Poem 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 "Taking Our Place in History" Coming Soon!
Stories from Inside "Taking Our Place in History" Coming Soon!
The Little Girl and The Fox (Excerpt)
A little girl goes on a journey through a floating kingdom to seek out a magical fox in order to satiate her endless desire for companionship.
A Suitcase of Lost Things
Two women, quarantining apart for a year, exchange disposable cameras and the stories of lost-and-found parts of their worlds, eight miles apart. These are the stories they uncovered.
Seepage
Spilling thoughts on paper; the unrefined, unfiltered, unmuted musings of Lavera Yul.
La Niña y La Del Barrio
The privilege to read someone's story is great, but what counts the most is the experience you leave with after you reach the last page.
On the Intersection Between Teenage Sexuality and the Objectivity of Women Across Races
This piece analyzes a girl's friendship with a boy at school, one that shows her that taking ownership of her sexual desires should be done without shame.
Your hand is light in mine.
A dreamlike meditation on loss and love.
Now I See You
Going blind at the age of ten was his worst nightmare come true, until he began to see in color.
Love Letters to the Seasons From a Statue and a Student
As the title says, “Love Letters to the Seasons From a Statue and a Student” is an ode to the elements from two very different pairs of eyes.
Unknown Identity
Teenagers oftentimes don't know themselves and are not well aware of their identity. This is a poem where I am exploring the different sides of my identity.
Finding Home
I started this piece after I went to the doctor’s office for the first time during COVID. I realized this would be the last time I would be in this small office because I’m turning 18 and next year I may be far from home because of college. It reminded me that I might not always have my mom by my side in places where you have to make important decisions or hear sensitive information. The possibility of being away from home for the first time made me wonder how my connection to myself and my family would change. This piece is about the worries of growing up, the changing bonds of family, and finding home when everything seems to be moving under your feet.
Taking Our Places in History
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.