Natasha Trethewey on the State of Poetry, New Jane Austen Fragment, and More

by
Evan Smith Rakoff
2.4.14

Every day Poets & Writers Magazine scans the headlines—from publishing reports to academic announcements to literary dispatches—for all the news that creative writers need to know. Here are today’s stories:

Philip Roth restated that he is finished writing novels. In a recent interview he stated, “You better believe me, because I haven’t written a word of fiction since 2009.” (Guardian)

A new fragment of Jane Austen’s handwriting has been found. Researchers at West Dean College in the United Kingdom are investigating its significance. (Flavorwire)

Meanwhile, Open Culture showcases two poems David Foster Wallace wrote in elementary school.

Wired reports that the cost to consumers of the Amazon Prime program will increase significantly.

San Francisco-based publisher MacAdam/Cage has filed for for bankruptcy. MacAdam/Cage, which was founded in 1998 by the late David Poindexter, is best known for publishing Audrey Niffenegger’s juggernaut 2003 debut, The Time Traveler’s Wife. (Publishers Weekly)

In an effort to make academic publishing more transparent, Palgrave Macmillan is posting nonfiction proposals for the public to read and compare to samples of the finished titles. (Los Angeles Times)

“I see now, in our contemporary moment, that it is more necessary than ever to receive the gifts that poetry offers.” In the latest Virginia Quarterly Review, U. S. poet laureate Natasha Trethewey discusses the state of American poetry.