Writing Co-Lab

We often refer to the act of sending our work to literary magazines as "submissions." But with attention to the connotations of this word (yielding, complying, deferring), we might think critically about the power dynamic it suggests. We'll work to collaboratively develop a more fruitful approach--one which acknowledges both the vulnerability and enriching opportunity of "sharing work" with literary magazine editors, sometimes some of our very first readers. In this interactive session, you'll tap into your true motivation for sharing work with literary magazines, gain practical strategies for finding magazines that will be a good fit for you, set concrete goals for sharing work, and get access to templates to track your progress. This class is open to writers of all levels of experience and publication. You're more than welcome if you have never published in a literary magazine!

You do not need to bring anything for this session, but it may be helpful to have in mind a piece that you think may be close to being ready to share with literary magazines. This is not a session in which we'll do generative writing or editing of specific pieces. We will start by reflecting on what you want out of publishing in a literary magazine, and what you admire in the literary magazines you read. (And if you feel you don't read as many literary magazines as you'd like to, you'll definitely walk away with ideas of magazines to check out.) You'll work on building a list of lit mags that are a good fit for your work based on its themes, your identity, and your level of experience writing and publishing. You'll develop SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound). goals for sending your work to these magazines, so that when you leave this session, you have a plan.

About the Instructor

Alexandra Watson is a fiction writer and poet from New York. She is the co-founder and executive editor of Apogee Journal, which won the Whiting Literary Magazine Prize, and for which she received the PEN/Nora Magid Award for Literary Magazine editing. She teaches at Barnard College.

Student Testimonials

• I left this workshop feeling more confident and motivated about the process of sharing work. Alex gave a great mix of practical tips, behind-the-curtains insight, and larger picture prompts for learning how to integrate sharing work into the practice of writing in a healthy, sustainable way.(Alex) was incredibly kind and understanding. She also was honest and took an interest in her students' work. She is the only professor I have felt comfortable talking to openly and I am very grateful that she taught the course.
• So thoughtful, knowledgeable, KIND, and non-judgemental-- all incredibly important values to have in a writing professor.
• I valued most (Alex's) balance of compassion, experience, and intelligence. I felt like I could come to her with any concerns and feel supported and like I had a game plan for moving forward. I am so grateful to have been a member in her class.