Straw Dog names 3 writers for its 2022 Emerging Writer Fellowship shortlist

The 2022 Emerging Writer Fellowship Shortlist (L to R): Syki Barbee, Regine Jackson, & Vida James.

The selection panel for the Straw Dog Writers Guild Emerging Writer Fellowship has announced the 2022-23 shortlist of three writers. They are Vida James, Regine Jackson, and Syki Barbee (L to R in the photo above).  One writer will be named the 2022-23 Fellow in March.  The Fellow will receive a $3000 grant from Straw … Read more

The New England Poetry Club is looking for a President

New England Poetry Club - Literary MA Header

The New England Poetry Club (NEPC) is looking for its next President. This person will help chart the course of the club and work with other board members to build a vibrant and welcoming community. The application deadline is March 31, 2022. QUALITIES THAT MAKE YOU A GOOD FIT FOR THIS ROLE Love of poetry and belief in its … Read more

Call for applications: Fine Arts Work Center Writing Fellowship 2022-23

Fine Arts Work Center, Provincetown MA - FungaiFoto

Application Deadline: December 15, 2021 Applications are open for the 2022-23 Fine Arts Work Center Writing Fellowship, the only residency program in the United States of America offering writers and artists seven months of uninterrupted time and space to focus on their work. Fellowships include lodging in Provincetown, Massachusetts and a modest monthly stipend, as well as … Read more

Call for submissions: 22nd Massachusetts Book Awards

Mass Book Awards winners and honorees 2021

Massachusetts Center for the Book is calling for submissions for the 22nd Annual Massachusetts Book Awards. The awards recognize significant works of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and children’s/young adult literature published by current Commonwealth residents. This 22nd edition is open for books published in 2021. Submissions will be accepted until January 15, 2022.  We invite you to … Read more

21st Massachusetts Book Awards winners announced

Andrew Krivak - 21st Mass Book Awards Fiction Winner

Massachusetts Center for the Book today released the list of award winners and honorees for the 21st Annual Massachusetts Book Awards. The Awards recognize achievement in five categories of literature written by current residents of the Commonwealth and published in 2020. “The Massachusetts Book Awards is a perennial reminder of the enviable talent of the … Read more

Littleton opens new $14,5m Reuben Hoar Library

Inside part of the new Reuben Hoar Library, Littleton MA

On November 5, 2021, the new Reuben Hoar Library in Littleton MA opened its doors to the public and celebrated with a ribbon cutting ceremony. The $14.5 million project was supported by a $5.8 million grant from the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) Massachusetts Public Library Construction Program (MPLCP). “A library is a living … Read more

Now you can borrow the Internet from your library

Now you can take the Internet home...

A new statewide program from the Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC), now makes it possible for residents to “borrow the Internet” from their local library by checking out a hotspot.   Thousands of Massachusetts residents rely on libraries for internet access. There were an average of 15,000 internet sessions every day in public libraries … Read more

Call for Applications: Straw Dog Writers Guild Emerging Writer Fellowship 2022-2023

Amina Jordan-Mendez

Straw Dog Writers Guild, in Western Massachusetts, has opened up its call for applications for the 2022-23 cycle of the Emerging Writer Fellowship Program which it started in 2020.  Applications are open to women and gender-expansive writers of color based in the Western MA counties of Frankin, Hampshire, and Hampden. Applicants must be in the … Read more

Scholarships available for ‘The Muse & The Marketplace’ 2022

The Muse and the Marketplace 2021 featured speakers

The Muse & the Marketplace, the annual writers’ conference organized by Grub Street, the well-known creative writing center in Boston, was in 2017 named the top writing conference in North America. Yesterday, it released a call for applications for interested writers who want to apply for scholarships to the 2022 edition of the conference, which … Read more

Massachusetts libraries receive pandemic recovery support

Worcester Public Library, Worcester MA

The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) has announced that it is using funds from the American Rescue Plan to help libraries in communities deemed “hard hit by COVID” by Governor Charlie Baker’s office. The board is providing programs and services that will help their communities recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. The Massachusetts Department of … Read more

Grub Street responds to New York Times ‘Bad Art Friend’ article

"Who is the bad art friend?" Screenshot from the New York Times

On Tuesday, October 12, Grub Street responded to the New York Times article that created the sort of social media excitement and angst usually reserved for Hollywood scandals. There have been over a thousand comments on the article and it has created heated discussions on social media. Here is the email Grub Street sent out … Read more

Library board approves $500,000 grants for eContent

Woman reading on iPad

The Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners (MBLC) has approved $500,000 in grants to library networks in Massachusetts to purchase eContent for the Library eBook and Audiobook (LEA) program. LEA gives Massachusetts residents access to eBooks, audiobooks, and more from 377 participating libraries from across the Commonwealth. This statewide system allows eContent to be shared in a similar … Read more