SEATTLE–(BUSINESS WIRE)–May 27, 2020– (NASDAQ: AMZN)— For more than 10 years, the Amazon Literary Partnership has supported efforts that help writers tell their stories and find their readers. Following the emergency relief donation to Artist Relief and PEN America Writer’s Emergency Fund, both of which are providing grants directly to writers impacted by COVID-19, the Amazon Literary Partnership today announced an additional $1 million in grant funding to 66 organizations across the country. The funding will support groups that are working to empower writers, helping them to create, publish, learn, teach, experiment, and thrive.
The Amazon Literary Partnership strives to award grants to organizations that have a deep impact on writers’ lives and the broader literary and publishing community. In addition to the 66 grants gifted this year, the Amazon Literary Partnership has also awarded $120,000 grants to the Academy of American Poets and the Community of Literary Magazines and Presses to establish a Poetry Fund and Literary Magazine Fund.
Since 2009, the Amazon Literary Partnership has awarded more than 175 organizations, all of which amplify and uplift overlooked and underrepresented writers, and connect writers with their readers, with more than $13 million in grant funding. Grant recipients include nonprofit writing centers, residencies, fellowships, after-school classes, literary magazines, national organizations supporting storytelling and free speech, and internationally acclaimed publishers of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry.
“We’re extremely grateful for the opportunity to work with the Amazon Literary Partnership to support poetry organizations, especially as more and more people are turning to poetry for comfort and courage in this crisis,” said Jennifer Benka, Executive Director, the Academy of American Poets. “We appreciate that the Amazon Literary Partnership program was quick to respond in this time of great need.”
“Since its inception, CLMP has been dedicated to sustaining the health and extending the reach of the nation’s literary magazines. Often the first places writers find their readers, these publications are essential to the publishing ecosystem, providing fertile ground for diverse voices to thrive,” said Mary Gannon, Executive Director, Community of Literary Magazines and Presses. “CLMP is honored to lend its expertise to the Amazon Literary Partnership’s ongoing financial support of these underserved and uniquely vulnerable publishers.”
“The Amazon Literary Partnership champions organizations that support writers, poets, translators, and diverse voices at every stage in their career. Given the impact COVID-19 has had on the literary community, we are proud to continue to fund these remarkable organizations sustaining the literary culture in our communities now and for the future,” said Alexandra Woodworth, Manager of the Amazon Literary Partnership.
This year’s grant recipients include a wide range of organizations from 24 states and Washington D.C. New grant recipients include Deep Vellum Publishing, City of Asylum Pittsburgh, The Center for Africa, LitNet as well as past grant recipients like the Asian American Writers Workshop, Lambda Literary, National Novel Writing Month, the National Book Foundation’s 5 Under 35, Words without Borders, and Poets & Writers.
“The pandemic’s impact on the LGBTQ literary community has been, and will continue to be, devastating. So many of us are struggling to get by, are grieving, have fallen ill, or have been lost,” said Sue Landers, Executive Director of Lambda Literary. “Generous support from the Amazon Literary Partnership will help ensure that Lambda Literary can continue to respond creatively and powerfully to LGBTQ writers’ needs as we move through this historic time.”
“As a small organization hosting the world’s largest writing event, NaNoWriMo has depended on Amazon Literary Partnership’s support for more than 10 years to help create a global neighborhood of writers focused on inclusivity, empowerment, and encouragement,” said Grant Faulkner, Executive Director of National Novel Writing Month. “We want everyone to embrace their creativity and make it a priority, and Amazon Literary Partnership has been instrumental in helping thousands of people believe in their story and give it voice.”
“In times of danger and upheaval, writers help us make sense of what is happening, expand our capacity for empathy, and imagine the future. So we are especially grateful to have the renewed support of Amazon Literary Partnership this year,” said Elliot Figman, Executive Director, Poets & Writers. “The grant will help us continue United States of Writing, an initiative to deepen our support for writers nationwide. In a field that is woefully under-capitalized, Amazon’s support for the literary community is critical.”
2020 Amazon Literary Partnership grants
826 Valencia
826NYC
Academy of American Poets
Archipelago Books
Artist Relief
Artist Trust
Asian American Writers’ Workshop
Aspen Words
Association of Writers & Writing Programs
Beverly Rogers, Carol C. Harter Black Mountain Institute
Brooklyn Book Festival.org
Center for the Art of Translation
Centrum
Chicago Humanities Festival
City of Asylum Pittsburgh
Clarion West
Coffee House Press
Community of Literary Magazines & Presses
Community-Word Project
Creative Writing Program, University of Washington
Deep Vellum Publishing
Feminist Press, Inc.
Girls Write Now
Graywolf Press
GrubStreet
Hedgebrook
House of SpeakEasy
Hub City Writers Project
Humanities Washington
Indiana Writers Center
Jack Jones Literary Arts
Kenyon Review
Kundiman
Lambda Literary
Lighthouse Writers Workshop
LitNet: The Literary Network
Loft, Inc. (The Loft Literary Center)
Milkweed Editions
Narrative 4, Inc.
National Book Critics Circle Board
National Book Foundation
National Novel Writing Month
Open Letter Books/Best Translated Book Award
PEN America
PEN America Writer’s Emergency Fund
Restless Books
Richard Hugo House
Seattle Arts & Lectures
Seattle City of Literature
Seattle Public Library
Small Press Distribution
The Center for Fiction
The Corporation of Yaddo
The Inner Loop
The MacDowell Colony
The Moth
The Africa Center
The Telling Room
The Writer’s Block: Writing Downtown Residency
Town Hall Seattle
Transit Books
Ucross Foundation
Washington Center for the Book
Words Without Borders
WriteGirl
Writers in the Schools
Young Writers Project
Zora Neale Hurston/ Richard Wright Foundation
To learn more about the Amazon Literary Partnership and Amazon in the Community visit https://www.aboutamazon.com/our-communities.
About Amazon
Amazon is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Customer reviews, 1-Click shopping, personalized recommendations, Prime, Fulfillment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle Direct Publishing, Kindle, Fire tablets, Fire TV, Amazon Echo, and Alexa are some of the products and services pioneered by Amazon. For more information, visit amazon.com/about and follow @AmazonNews.
