I told him that as the writer, he didn’t “have” to do anything: he could write about whatever he wanted, however he wanted to. But, I cautioned, he needed to be aware of how his audience might read the poem, and the possibility that they might interpret it differently than he’d intended. Because the fact was, 9/11 had happened, and for many people it had tinted everything, so at least in that sense, it had affected him too. I didn’t say so, but I wondered if he–or anyone–could ever write a poem about a tall building collapsing again without referencing 9/11, intentionally or not.

This year, in honor of the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, Granta attempts to answer that question. Its next issue, “Ten Years Later,” attempts to “conjure the complexity and sorrow of life since 11 September 2001.”

As part of the issue’s launch, Granta is also holding readings and discussions across the United States starting September 6, asking questions like: Where are we as a country now? How have these events shaped our writing in the past ten years, and how will they continue to shape our writing–and our lives–in the future?

The full schedule is available on Granta’s website, but I wanted to make a special shout-out for the Ann Arbor event at Nicola’s Books, a panel with authors and former Granta contributors V.V. Ganeshananthan, Linda Gregerson, and Megan Levad, and moderated by FWR’s own Jeremiah Chamberlin. Check the event schedule to see if there’s one near you.

For the past six months, I’ve been working on an unusual and exciting collaboration with singer-songwriter Clare Burson: a literary-musical performance interweaving story, song, and projected images inspired by my novel, THE LITTLE BRIDE.

We call it A Little Suite for The Little Bride, and we’ll be performing it at the Tenement Museum on Wednesday, September 7 to celebrate the book’s birthday and kick off a great party.

The (free) performance will start at 6:30 PM at the Tenement Museum in NYC as part of the museum’s Tenement Talks reading series. There will also be an encore performance at the JCC Manhattan on Thursday, September 22.

• Learn more about Solomon and her novel at her author website.
• Watch the video for The Little Bride:

The Magathon: Saturday, June 11th, 4-6:30 PM
New York Public Library’s DeWitt Wallace Periodical Room, 5th Ave. at 42nd St.

In this “marathon” reading, editors of lit journals will present selections from their first issues.

The GIANT Lit Mag Fair at Housing Works: Sunday, June 12th, 11-4PM
Housing Works Used Book Café, 126 Crosby Street in Soho

Lucky you, New Yorkers—you can pick up tons of lit mags for only $2 a copy! Magazines from all over the country will be represented, and many of their editors will be there to meet and greet as well. Says the newsletter, “Proceeds go to Housing Works, a nonprofit organization serving homeless people living with AIDS, and to The Council of Literary Magazines and Presses, a nonprofit organization serving independent literary publishers.”

Both events are free and open to the public.

It’s exactly this enthusiasm that now allows us to expand the spotlight from books deserving your attention to literary journals deserving your attention. Starting this week, Fiction Writers Review will begin profiling publications we admire right here on the blog in a feature entitled “Journal of the Week.” In addition to inside access via micro-interviews with each journal’s editorial staff, readers will be eligible for free subscriptions, given away to Twitter followers at random.

We are honored to highlight One Story as our inaugural Journal of the Week. Since its founding in 2002 by Hannah Tinti and Maribeth Batcha, stories in the journal have been recognized by The Pushcart Award, Best American Short Stories, Best American Science Fiction Stories, Best American Fantasy, PEN/O. Henry Prize Stories… and the list goes on. And beyond these awards, One Story has been recognized by readers and writers worldwide for its dedication to championing the art of short fiction.

This dedication rose from the horrific events of 9/11. Recognizing life and time to be precious, Tinti and Batcha forged forward with One Story’s core concept: stand-alone stories. More than an issue of formatting—each story is delivered single-serve—or layout—you’ll find no book reviews or essays bookending works—this concept serves to promote the art form that is the short story. Readers recognize this immediately upon picking up One Story. Issues aren’t “compact” so much as they are “curated.”

Visitors to the One Story booth at AWP may have noticed collections of stories bound together by theme. At this year’s conference, I purchased the “Crime” collection, boasting stories from Alan DeNiro, Melissa Yancy, Dika Lam, Leigh Newman, and Tomas Dobozy. Though collected under one “Crime” heading, DeNiro and Dobozy’s stories could not be more different; whereas DeNiro’s “Child Assassin” drips in dark experimentation, allowing readers to get lost in what exactly entails concepts like “murder” and victims that might or might not be “babies,” Dobozy’s “The Restoration of the Villa Where Tibor Kálmán Once Lived” utilizes historical research to paint a brutally accurate landscape of the violence and fear that defined WWII-era communism.

The breadth in just these two stories, collected in a set of five, speaks volumes to the 146 stories that have gone to print at the time of this post. Ranging from the magic realism of Kelly Link’s “The Great Divorce” to Tom Grattan’s gripping “Foreign Girls” to works in translation like the recent “Surprise Party” by Etgar Keret, One Story’s stable of high-profile authors delivers something new and different to readers’ mailboxes every three weeks.

Over email, I spoke with Associate Editor Marie-Helene Bertino to better understand what drives One Story and how this drive may change as we move toward an increasingly digital future.

What is the role of One Story in today’s literary community, be it for readers or writers?

Our role in the literary community is twofold: 1. To present sound stories that honor a variety of voices. 2. To secure the future of short stories by supporting emerging writers in real ways, like throwing them debutante balls where we literally present them to the lit community. At the literary “party,” One Story’s role is of the older sister with questionable but effortless fashion sense, who doesn’t take herself too seriously, who observes the party from the doorway with a glass of whiskey in her hand before calling you over to whisper to you what the real deal is. She drives a muscle car. And was the president of Science Club in high school. And has serious opinions about music.

How do you see One Story’s mission and tastes evolving in the next two years? Will the rise of digital publishing impact the composition of One Story?

I hope our tastes continue to evolve; as new writers take short stories in new directions, we’d like to go with them. Additionally, on the subject of taste and, I might add, style, I’ve always thought the surest way to look outdated fast is to be a slave to trends. So as an editor I am much more interested in finding the voice that is doing its own thing. As for our mission, it will continue to be to publish one great story at a time, but we will have new fun tech tools to help us! I am thrilled that One Story is offered on Kindle and the iPad. We recently live-tweeted a staff reading, which was lots of fun. We will figure out how each tech advancement can be used for our particular aesthetic and use them as tools, mercilessly!

If you could put three items in a time capsule (or USB drive) to be opened in 1,000 years to provide a snapshot of One Story’s aesthetic today, what would they be?

Great question. One of Hannah’s wishing stones from Positano, Italy, which represents our whimsical, magical realistic side and our yearly workshop that takes place in that town. A Mason jar of disgusting water from the Gowanus Canal which represents our realistic and gritty side and dedication to Brooklyn. And a picture we took a few years ago at our holiday party at Sharlene’s of the One Story staff wrapped in twinkle lights, which represents the people and writers who are the reason we do what we do. This would also embarrass my staff, which pleases me.

What album is playing on the One Story stereo these days?

Fantastic question! A CD compilation of South by Southwest’s Artists to Watch, Led Zeppelin III, and Luscious Jackson’s Natural Ingredients. We also have a separate record player that continuously plays Biggie Smalls (our managing editor Tanya Rey = Biggie Super Fan).

Given their love for all things Biggie, our New York readers should be aware that One Story is bringing its considerable music prowess to the Brooklyn party scene on Friday, April 29th, for its Second Annual Literary Debutante Ball.

This year’s Debutante Ball not only celebrates the five One Story authors who published their first books this year, but recognizes Dani Shapiro for her mentorship of emerging writers. With a “debutante procession,” art auction, and signature cocktails, it’s not to be missed, so you’ll want to snag tickets soon.

Later this summer, One Story will re-offer slots in its Summer Workshop for Emerging Writers. Details are forthcoming on their website.

Subscription information, back issues, and much more can be found at the One Story website. For even more goodness, follow their Twitter feeds (both One Story and Hannah Tinti’s personal feed) or “like” them on Facebook.

As a special bonus to readers of Fiction Writers Review, we’ll be giving away three free subscriptions to One Story! If you’d like to be eligible for this week’s drawing (and all future ones), please visit our Twitter Page and “follow” us.

For those of you already in the FWR Twitter family, you know our presence there exists in part to inform followers of what’s happening here on the site, as well as to update the community on literary trends, worthwhile links, etc. We couldn’t be happier to see this role expand in a way that allows us to put journals we love in the hands of readers who will love them too.

Michelle Obama celebrates Read Across America Day (2010). Image credit: Official White House image

Today, March 2, is Read Across America Day, in honor of Dr. Seuss’s birthday. (Really—here’s the official presidential proclamation.) Funded by the NEA Foundation for the Improvement of Education, the event’s goal is simple: to motivate children to read. Says the event’s website:

The First Lady and NEA President Dennis Van Roekel welcome a star-studded lineup of readers and 400 local schoolchildren to the Library of Congress today for the national kickoff of NEA’s Read Across America. Who’s grabbed a hat to read with the Cat? Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, Jessica Alba, Superbowl champion Donald Driver, Top Chef host Padma Lakshmi and chefs Carla Hall and Mike Isabella, designer Camila Alves and actors Bridget Moynahan, Jeffrey Ray Valdez, and Mehcad Brooks, along with journalists Norah O’Donnell and Luke Russert.

In addition, Cat-a-Vans are visiting schools, providing books and encouraging reading. Want to participate? Visit the Read Across America website for ideas and resources, pledge to read in the upcoming year, or donate to the organization.

Reading this on March 3—or later? No worries; celebrate reading anyway by creating a reading event, sharing reading-related activities, or just… reading. After all, Read Across America hopes to “[provide] NEA members, parents, caregivers, and children the resources and activities they need to keep reading on the calendar 365 days a year.”

And now you can be a part of this program! Applications for the 2011 seminar, which will be held May 26-31, are still being accepted for a few more days. But don’t delay–the deadline is February 15th.

For guidelines and to submit your application, please visit the EKF website. There is no fee to apply. Also, each fellow selected to attend will receive a scholarship that includes tuition, room and board, in-country transportation, and 50% of international travel.

2011 faculty and guests include the following

For more on the Sozopol Fiction Seminars, here are two photo essays:

As the New York Times reported at the beginning of this month:

Some 18 writers will be on hand, including Susan Cheever, Jonathan Franzen, Richard Price and Mary Gaitskill, and many of them will be auctioning off their services. Amy Hempel will walk your dog, Ms. Maazel explained over the phone. Rick Moody will write a song for you. And Gary Shteyngart will “buy you a hot dog and flatter the pants off you.” John Wesley Harding, among others, will perform, and Ms. Maazel said there might be some booths where for, say, a dollar a minute one could obtain literary advice.

So if you’re in New York, come out to support this wonderful cause. Tickets go on sale today at most-literary-rent-party-ever.info. You can also make a donation to benefit the Bock family on the site.

Biblioball 2010 from Desk Set on Vimeo.

‘Tis the season, and that means New York’s annual Biblioball has arrived!

The event occurs on December 4th and those of you who have attended before know what to expect: not just a winter formal for the “well-read and well-attired,” but an incredible way to support Literacy for Incarcerated Teens.

Starting at Brooklyn’s The Bell House at 8 pm and going into the wee hours of the morning, attendees have plenty to look forward to:

In addition to these food and drink items, Happy Hour ticket holders can mingle with local literary stars, receive complimentary coat check, goody bags with literary swag, and a ticket to an exclusive pre-event raffle drawing.

Here are some of the authors who will be sipping, snacking and supporting LIT at Happy Hour:

Gilbert Ford – author of Flying Lessons & illustrator extraordinaire
Ian Christe – publisher of Bazillion Books and author of Sound of the Beast
Julia Holmes – author of Meeks
Jeffrey Rotter – author of The Unknown Knowns
Marcy Demansky – author of Bad Marie and Twins
Justin Taylor – author of Everything Here is the Best Thing Ever
Dave Tomkins – Author of How to Wreck a Nice Beach
Adrienne Vrettos – author of Skin, The Exile of Gigi Lane, and Sight
Emily St. John Mandel – author of Last Night in Montreal
Ayun Halliday – author of Zinester’s Gude to NYC and No Touch Monkey
Elizabeth Bird – Fuse #8 blogger, author of Children’s Litearature Gems, and public librarian
Saïd Sayrafiezadeh author of When Skateboards Will Be Free

With a massive raffle and sponsors by the likes of n+1 and A Public Space, this year’s Biblioball should be a fantastic night for a fantastic cause. If any of you are going, we’d love to hear about it!

Check out The Desk Set for more information. Tickets range from $20-$45 and can be purchased here.

Anthropologie will combine the story hours with a book drive to benefit the nonprofit Reader to Reader. The store writes:

This holiday season, online customers can donate select storybooks to Reader to Reader, a nonprofit organization dedicated to stocking the bookshelves of our nation’s neediest schools and public libraries.

So bring your story-hungry youngsters, and while you shop for a cardigan for Aunt Ida, help out children in your own community by donating a book.

We also want to hear about book drives and initiatives in your communities, so please let us know what’s going on in Toledo, Texarkana, or Tokyo.

A two-day conference for fiction, poetry, and creative-nonfiction writers learning how to maneuver in the marketplace. Meet writers, editors, agents, publicists and publishers from Publishers Weekly, Oxford University Press, Scribner, Hachette Book Group, Graywolf, the Poetry Society of America, Bloomsbury, Knopf, the Academy of American Poets and more.

The lineup of editors, publicists, bookstores and lit mags – not to mention writers – looks stellar. The dozen programs include a Working Lunch on Publishing in Lit Magazines; Opportunities for Writers: Grants, Awards, Book Contests and Colonies; and a panel discussion by publishers and agents on Rejection, Revision & Resubmission. You can find all the details, including registration, here.