Platforms That Support Black Women Writers, Authors, and Poets

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1. Spoken Black Girl

A literary and wellness platform supporting Black women writers, authors, and poets

Spoken Black Girl is a literary platform that supports Black women writers, authors, and poets through storytelling, publishing, and creative wellness. The platform centers Black women’s lived experiences and offers space for both emerging and established voices.

Spoken Black Girl supports Black women writers by:

  • Publishing essays, poetry, and creative nonfiction

  • Offering healing-centered writing workshops and community events

  • Amplifying Black women authors through editorial features and interviews

  • Creating culturally rooted spaces where writing and wellness intersect

Spoken Black Girl is especially known for its focus on writing as healing, creative expression, and narrative reclamation.

2. Torch Literary Arts

Supporting Black women writers through literary programs and cultural advocacy

Torch Literary Arts is a nonprofit organization dedicated to elevating Black women writers across genres. Through retreats, reading series, and literary programming, Torch creates opportunities for Black women authors to develop their craft and gain visibility.

Notable initiatives include:

  • Torch Retreat for Black Women Writers

  • Wildfire Reading Series

  • Torch Magazine

Torch Literary Arts is a cornerstone institution in the Black literary ecosystem.

3. midnight & indigo

A global platform for Black women writers and storytellers

midnight & indigo publishes original fiction and creative nonfiction by Black women writers worldwide. In addition to its digital magazine, the platform offers writing programs, editorial services, and creative workshops.

midnight & indigo supports Black women writers by:

  • Publishing literary work across genres

  • Providing editorial guidance and writing education

  • Building an international community of Black women storytellers

4. BOMBS Publishing

An independent press amplifying radical Black women writers

BOMBS Publishing is an independent press dedicated to supporting radical Black women writers and advancing Black liberation through literature. Their work often centers political imagination, cultural critique, and transformative storytelling.

The press is known for publishing bold, experimental, and socially engaged works by Black women authors.

5. Black Women Writers Project

Preserving and uplifting Black women’s literary contributions

The Black Women Writers Project focuses on increasing the visibility of Black women writers by preserving archival materials and making literary history accessible. Their work bridges scholarship, community, and cultural memory.

This platform is especially valuable for writers interested in legacy, literary history, and archival research.

6. For Love Of Writing (FLOW)

A community supporting African American women writers

For Love Of Writing (FLOW) is a collective that provides resources, opportunities, and support for African American women writers. FLOW emphasizes craft development, visibility, and community-building across genres.

7. No More Margins

No More Margins is a creative community and literary platform that supports Black women writers through workshops, storytelling initiatives, and spaces centered on creative expression, visibility, and belonging.

8. Zora’s Den: A Sisterhood of Writers

Zora’s Den is a writing community and creative collective dedicated to supporting Black women writers through workshops, mentorship, and sisterhood-based literary programming.

Additional Community-Based Platforms Supporting Black Women Writers and Poets

In addition to larger literary organizations, many smaller and community-rooted platforms play a vital role in supporting Black women writers and poets. These spaces often prioritize intimacy, care, and sustained creative practice.

The Watering Hole

A poetry-centered community for Black writers

The Watering Hole is a community-based organization dedicated to supporting Black poets through workshops, retreats, readings, and collective learning spaces. With a strong emphasis on craft and community, The Watering Hole creates opportunities for Black women poets to develop their voices while building meaningful creative relationships.

This platform is especially valuable for poets seeking both artistic growth and communal support.

Sister Writers

A collective supporting Black women writers through community and accountability

Sister Writers is a grassroots collective focused on supporting Black women writers through workshops, writing accountability, and creative encouragement. The organization emphasizes connection, consistency, and care, offering writers a space to develop their work alongside peers who understand their lived experiences.

Sister Writers is a strong example of community-centered literary support.

Root Work Journal

A Black woman–led literary journal centered on reflection and cultural memory

Root Work Journal is a literary journal that publishes essays and creative work rooted in Black cultural reflection, identity, and lived experience. The journal provides a platform for Black women writers to explore storytelling that is introspective, intentional, and grounded in cultural memory.

Root Work Journal supports Black women writers by offering thoughtful editorial space for creative expression.

Additional Community & Literary Spaces

The Free Black Women’s Library

A community literary hub featuring books by Black women and interactive public programming.
https://www.thefreeblackwomenslibrary.com/ The Free Black Women's Library

Voices of Our Nation Arts Foundation (VONA)

A workshop and mentoring space for writers of color (covering poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and creative writing).
https://www.vona.org

Hurston/Wright Foundation (literary nonprofit for Black writers)
https://hurstonwright.org/ Wikipedia

Cave Canem Foundation (poetry fellowship community)
https://cavecanempoets.org/

Well-Read Black Girl (global literary community & book club)
https://www.wellreadblackgirl.org/

Wintergreen Women Writers Collective (collective for Black women writers)
https://wintergreenwomenwriterscollective.com/

WriteGirl (mentorship nonprofit for women writers)
https://www.writegirl.org/

Mbaasem Foundation (supports African women writers)
https://mbaasem.wordpress.com/

Why Platforms Supporting Black Women Writers Matter

Platforms that support Black women writers and poets play a critical role in:

  • Expanding representation in publishing

  • Providing culturally affirming creative spaces

  • Supporting literary wellness and sustainability

  • Ensuring Black women’s stories are preserved and amplified

If you’re a Black woman writer, author, or poet looking for platforms that understand your voice and lived experience, the organizations above represent meaningful places to submit work, build community, and grow your practice. As the literary landscape continues to evolve, platforms centered on Black women writers remain essential, not only for representation, but for the future of Black women and girls.

Rowana Abbensetts-Dobson

Rowana Abbensetts-Dobson is a Guyanese-American writer, author of Departure Story, and founder of Spoken Black Girl, a publishing & media company that promotes mental health and wellness among Black women & women of color by amplifying emerging voices. Rowana has had fiction and poetry published in Moko Magazine, Obsidian: Literature & Arts in the African Diaspora, Culture Push, When We Exhale: Anthology of Black Women Rooted in Ancestral Medicine, and Free Verse Magazine and The Fire Inside Volume lll Anthology. As a freelance health and wellness writer, Rowana has written for Insider, GoodRx, Well +Good, Bold Culture by Streamline Media, The Tempest, Insider, and Electric Lit. Rowana is currently completing her MFA in Fiction Writing at Arcadia University so she can bring more amazing stories into the world!

Social Media

Instagram: @Rowana_a

@Spokenblackgirlmag

Twitter: @Rowana_a

@Spokenblackgirl

Facebook: @Spokenblackgirl

Website: Spokenblackgirl.com

https://Rowanaabbensettsauthor.com
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