Member Newsletter — July 2026

Photo by Jonny Gios on Unsplash

Hello Writers!

One of the many things I’ve come to love about Louisville is the vibrant and diverse writing community here.

When I moved to Louisville from the San Francisco Bay Area in August, 2020 – against the backdrop of The Pandemic, raging wildfires Out West, and my own personal “drop the mic” moment of leaving a private law practice – I really wasn’t sure what to expect.

What I knew of Louisville was based on periodic visits to see my husband’s family, usually at Derby or Christmas (never again in July, I once said, and the universe laughed). This typically entailed lunch at Mesh, shopping at Nordstrom Rack, and chardonnay on the rocks at 5:00.

Louisville was no longer my husband’s town (he’d left 25 years before), and it was not yet mine either. Under the circumstances, Louisville was our proverbial oyster.

Fast-forward to a year-and-change later, with both kids actually IN school and my new house sort of becoming a home, I decided to get back into writing. I googled “Louisville writing groups” and found Women Who Write. Lo and behold, the group was about to host a writing retreat at Creasy Mahan Nature Preserve. I mulled for a day and signed up. I got earnest about the pre-retreat writing prompt. I showed up with my laptop and noise-cancelling headphones in the middle of a storm, and I wrote about volunteering to coach my daughter’s soccer team. I met Kim Crum (WWW Director at the time) and a troupe of lovely women writers. I was hooked, and it was only the beginning.

The more I leaned into this little community of women writers, the more I learned about a Louisville that could be mine.

At a WWW meeting, I heard about the spring community writing workshop at Spalding Naslund-Mann Graduate School of Writing, so I applied and was fortunately accepted. I met more local writers and was exposed to extraordinary faculty (Lynnell Edwards! Kathleen Driscoll!).

From there, I learned about and listened to many talented writers at the Voice & Vision summer reading series presented by Spalding and 21c Museum Hotel. Now this was my kind of summer in Louisville!

I went to writing conferences (Bluegrass Writers Conference), author events (Ellen Burkitt Morris at Carmichael’s), and writing workshops (Postcards from Pine Mountain with Kathleen Driscoll) – and I saw familiar faces and names and friends at every one.

I became involved in WWW leadership, by invitation, and a vibrant weave of community unfolded before me. In collaboration with our enthusiastic leadership team, I’ve helped plan and engaged with a talented pool of workshop leaders like Angela Jackson-Brown, Lennie Hay, and Sarah Landenwich; I’ve learned how to have a successful writing retreat, as a host and a participant; I’ve watched our community grow and thrive through events like our Open Mic and Holiday Party and Book Exchange.

There’s more. There’s so much more. The lesson learned is that with every WWW meeting, writer’s workshop, or literary event, I’ve met someone new, I’ve heard about another local writing event or writer, or I’ve been inspired in some way that makes me feel like, ahh…. THIS COMMUNITY!

And so, here’s the pitch: We are looking for a few more good women to lead our lovely community together. If you’re looking to further enrich your writing experience, consider contributing to our community as part of our leadership team, and reach out to us at for more information.

Wishing you a Happy Summer, and Happy Writing, in Louisville!

~Megan Thompson

Spring Into Summer Writing Retreat – Photo by Stacey Ruth

UPCOMING WWW MEETINGS AND EVENTS

Our July 14th meeting will be from 6:00 PM to 7:30 at the St. Matthews Library at 3940 Grandview Ave 40207.

If you would like a peer critique, email us () before July 14 at noon and describe your piece. Please bring 15 printed copies of the manuscript you want us to read. No more than 1300 words (4 to 4.5 pages double-spaced) for prose (excerpts of longer pieces welcome), or two pages of poetry.

To give all members an opportunity to read, priority for peer critique will be given to those who email us ahead of time and who have not read at a recent meeting.

Our August 11th member meeting will also take place at the St. Matthews library, from 6:00 to 7:30pm. At this meeting, we are excited to welcome Louisville author Ellen Burkitt Morris to lead us in a discussion on Paths to Publication. See below for more details. Note there will be no peer critiques at this meeting.

Give for Good Louisville returns on September 10th this year, and Women Who Write will host our third annual open mic night on that date (in lieu of a September member meeting). Mark your calendars and keep an eye on your email and our Facebook page for more details!

WRITING PROMPT

Title your piece as a Jeopardy category. The final line of the piece should be the answer “What/who is [answer]?” Write about things you associate with that answer: feelings, people, memories, senses (try to use all five!), etc.

~ Erin Wedemeyer

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT

Big, hearty congratulations to member Jody Held, who won the 2026 Eunice Williams Nonfiction Prize, an annual literary prize given by HerStry. Her lovely piece, Beloved Ones, earned first place in the writing contest!

From Jody: My heart is overflowing with gratitude that my essay about Willa touched Mia Mercado and the other judges so deeply. Everything I create these days is a variation of a love letter to my daughter, and I am thrilled that my words convey those sentiments, so that her story can be shared with a larger audience than just the people who knew her. A special thanks to Kim Crum, who helped me select which essay to submit to the contest, and assisted me in revising it.

You can find Jody’s winning piece here. Congratulations, Jody!

WWW BLOG

Women Who Write has a blog on our website to showcase our community’s talent. We want to publish your writing or republish a recent publication of yours (where reprints are permitted). Please send us your short stories, poems, and essays! No more than 2,000 words.

Browse our web blog now! Publishing on our blog will expand your writing platform. For more information, email and pitch your story or poem—the one you’ve written or the one you want to write! We may provide suggested edits, for flow and clarity.

Photo by JOGphotos on Unsplash

SUBMISSION OPPORTUNITIES & LOCAL EVENTS

The next program in the Voice & Vision summer reading series is July 16th from 6:00 to 7:30pm at 21c Museum Hotel in downtown Louisville. The July program features writers duncan b. barlow, Amanda Driscoll, Michael Fitzer, Sarah Landenwich, and Emma McElvaney Talbott; it’s hosted by Amy Foos Kapoor; and Alice Gray Stites will give an art talk on the museum’s current exhibition Revival: Digging into Yesterday, Planting Tomorrow. This free, ticketless event is presented by the Spalding University’s Naslund-Mann Graduate School of Writing and 21c Museum Hotel.

The 20th annual Kentucky Women’s Book Festival will be held at the Louisville Book Festival on October 24th from 10:00am – 5:00pm at the Kentucky International Convention Center. This combined event will examine women’s influence on stories, books, and literary culture. Expect authors, panel discussions, literary workshops, and readings. There will also be a pitch event – information here. And author Roxane Gay will be the headline speaker!

The University of Louisville is accepting submissions of short stories or flash fiction for consideration for the 2026 Calvino Prize for Short Fiction. This year’s judge is Diane Cook, and the deadline for submissions is October 1, 2026. Details here.

Make Writing Your Job on Substack has a writing job board and a pitch list that are updated every day and available with a paid subscription. The pitch list compiles pitch opportunities across a variety of outlets, including literary journals, online magazines, contests, and more. A few current opportunities from the pitch list include: Grande Dame Literary, The First Line, and Off Assignment. If you’d like to try a free one-month subscription, Megan has 5 “gifts” to share. Reach out to her at .

Regular local events:

• ‘Zine Lunch with Sarabande Books, monthly on Fridays at noon
• Carmichael’s regularly hosts authors and poets in the evenings

Submission directories:

• Submittable
• Duotrope
• Poets and Writers’ list of literary magazines
• NewPages

Women’s publications seeking women writers:

• HerStry, literary essay/memoir blog
• Ashes, an online magazine of personal essays
• Brown Sugar, online magazine for women of color
• Bi Women Quarterly, bisexual+ women’s publication
• Literary Mama, journal dedicated to motherhood
• Persimmon Tree, online magazine for women older than 60
• So To Speak, an intersectional feminist journal

SUPPORT OUR WRITING COMMUNITY!

Become a member or renew your membership—As a community, WWW strives to nurture your writing life. We hope you choose to join or renew as a member and participate in our monthly meetings, author talks, retreats, and workshops. Our membership coordinator will notify anyone due to renew. Regular annual membership is $50. Student annual membership is $25. Scholarships are available. Membership entitles you to discounts on workshops and retreats.

Attend our monthly member meetings on the second Tuesday of each month for a brief program, peer critiques, and conversations about the writing life. Not currently a member? You can attend two meetings before deciding to join.

Visit our webpage WomenWhoWrite.com.

Visit our Facebook Page—@womenwhowriteky. Don’t forget to like us and follow us.

Thank you, WWW members, for joining our nonprofit group, for sharing your unique voices, and for supporting each other with open hearts and minds.

Your Leadership Team

Megan, Erin, Holly, Liz, Irene, and Nancy