John Yunker 
A week ago I traveled to Seattle to participate at the AWP Conference and Bookfair — the world’s largest gathering of writers and writing programs. Ashland Creek Press hosted a booth, and a number of our authors attended for panels and book signings. We also met editors at the environmental journals Newfound, Flyway, Catamaran, and Terrain. …
Orion opens its submission window only for brief periods of time. And this is one of those times. If you’re working on an environmental story, essay, poem — get it wrapped up by March 15th, as this is when the window closes. Link
The environmental literary journal Flyway has launched a short fiction contest: The Sweet Corn Short fiction contests celebrates fiction about the environment. We interpret “the environment” broadly here and encourage work that surprises us with your interpretation of the word. We’re looking for fiction that focuses on place, environmental issues, the urban environment, or perhaps …
This looks like a wonderful place to spend a month writing: Secluded in the foothills of the French Pyrenees, at the end of an ancient stone track, Bordeneuve is a rustic, woodland retreat for artists, musicians and writers. We are delighted to announce that we will be granting a one-month residency in 2014 to a …
It is difficult to separate Moby-Dick, the book, from Moby-Dick, the whale. Both are epic in scale, and both have been met with wildly different perceptions and interpretations. You only need to browse Amazon reviews to get a taste. I’ve now read this book twice, and I can’t say that the second time around was any …
Anthropologist Tara Waters Lumpkin is founder and executive director of a nonprofit project and e-zine called Voices for Biodiversity. Our goal is to provide a multimedia platform where citizen eco-reporters can share their stories about biodiversity and their relationships to other species and the ecosystems that support us all. We hope to awaken humanity to the …
How Animals Grieve is an important book about the inner lives of animals. In April, author Barbara King was kind enough to answer of a few of my questions about the book and what inspired her to write it and how people have reacted to it so far. If you haven’t had a chance to …
It’s September 1st, which means that Flyway, the journal of writing and the environment, is now accepting poetry, story, and essay submission. You can learn more here.
Whenever I speak to people about the eco-fiction, this book is the most commonly mentioned. And it should be. It’s the first book to put a name and face to the movement to protect the planet — or at least “throw a monkey wrench” in developments. Published in 1975, many aspects of the book are …
So what is this book doing on EcoLit Books? Bear with me. Let me first back up about five years. I was researching my novel The Tourist Trail, wondering to what extent law enforcement agencies had tried to infiltrate animal rights groups. I had heard firsthand of an attempt of the FBI to infiltrate The Sea …
Let me preface this review by saying that I am a longtime fan of co-author Dee Boersma’s work. Years ago, I was part of a volunteer project at Punta Tombo, assisting Dee and her team with a penguin census. It was a week that changed the direction of my life in ways I couldn’t possibly …
In mainstream fiction today, “normal” characters tend to be carnivores, or at least omnivores, and “fringe” characters tend to be vegetarian or vegan. Naturally, I disagree with this distinction. But I also understand that most writers are simply following convention, simply writing about the world as they see it today. But the world is changing. …
The EarthLines Review has announced the 2014 EarthLines Essay Prize. The EarthLines Essay Prize is awarded annually for a piece of creative prose writing that explores the relationship between people and the natural world. It is open to writers of any nationality, over the age of 18. Entries will be accepted between July and December of this …
Let me begin by saying I recommend this book to anyone who doubts that animals grieve. The evidence presented is overwhelming. Dolphins who try to keep their dead calves afloat. Elephants who seek out the remains of their dead years after their passing. A cat who wails inconsolably after losing a sibling. A turtle who …
The Lapham’s Quarterly has devoted its Spring 2013 issue to Animals. It’s a marvelous collection of historical essays and stories. Many of the stories included are in the public domain, such as this excerpt from Moby-Dick. What jumped out at me was this excerpt from the essay The Silent Majority by John Berger. The cultural …
