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 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.
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.