I’m often asked for a list of the best blogs and websites focused on literary fiction and culture. This list was first curated in 2011; after five years, I continue to update it as sites fold or launch.
If I’ve missed any sites that deserve consideration, please let me know your favorites in the comments. Note: I have deliberately excluded well-known traditional media or social media, e.g., Publishers Weekly, New York Times, Goodreads, etc.
LitHub
The newest arrival to the literary blogging scene—and one of the most successful on this list—LitHub was launched in 2015 as a collaboration among Grove Atlantic, Electric Literature, and other literary publishers and magazines. You’ll find diverse voices and conversations about both contemporary and classic literature, with a HuffPo marketing twist. Twitter: @lithub
BookRiot
The perfect place for writers and readers of both literary and commercial literature. In other words, it’s more friendly and enjoys pop culture. It claims to be the biggest independent book editorial site in the US. Twitter: @bookriot
Electric Literature
Kind of a cousin to LitHub, since they share founders. You’ll find many facets to Electric Lit, but the most consistent thing they publish and are known for is Recommended Reading, a weekly fiction magazine. They also do a range of articles about literary culture and the publishing industry. Twitter: @ElectricLit
The Rumpus
An online literary magazine about culture, rather than pop culture. Mission: “To introduce readers to things they might not have heard of yet.” It was founded and continues to be run by author Stephen Elliott (since 2008), and has a sizable editorial staff. This is where Cheryl Strayed wrote “Dear Sugar.” Twitter: @The_Rumpus
The Millions
An online magazine that’s been published since 2003, offering coverage on books, arts, and culture. They run a very popular end-of-year series, A Year in Reading. Twitter: @The_Millions
The Paris Review blog
Most people know The Paris Review and it needs no introduction. The print edition releases only quarterly, and their blog offers a place for more informal posting and literary culture discussion. It’s probably the most followed literary blog by a print literary journal. (The others on this list are online-only publications.) Twitter: @parisreview
3 a.m. Magazine
An online, international literary magazine that’s been around for more than 15 years. (That is a tremendous accomplishment for an online mag!) They accept essays, fiction, and poetry. I think of them fondly, as I published my first online piece here in 2003. Twitter: @3ammagazine
The Nervous Breakdown
Not as prolific as most sites on this list, but worth a look; it’s run by Brad Listi, who produces the well-respected literary interview podcast, Otherppl. Twitter: @TNBtweets
Catapult
A relative newcomer to the online literary magazine scene. It’s an extension of a book publisher and its aspirations are to nurture a community of writers. Twitter: @CatapultStory
Vol. 1 Brooklyn
Founded in 2009; despite the name, it offers wide-ranging coverage of literary culture. Twitter: @vol1brooklyn
Bonuses
- My longtime favorite aggregation site for broad arts & culture news: Arts & Letters Daily
- If you love literary culture AND mass media: The Awl
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58 Comments on "The Best Literary Fiction Blogs & Websites"
Thanks for this very useful list!
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Hi Jane,
Have a look at this blog site http://middlestage.blogspot.com/
Chandrahas is the author of the novel Arzee the Dwarf and this blog is rich in its collection of essays and book reviews of Indian and International literary fiction.
Hi Jane,
Have a look at this blog site http://middlestage.blogspot.co…
Chandrahas is the author of the novel Arzee the Dwarf and this blog is rich in its collection of essays and book reviews of Indian and International literary fiction.
Electric Literature’s The Outlet is a great blog…
You missed Reluctant Habits (www.edrants.com); in the same league with Maud Newton and Bookslut, plus a long-running series of podcasts with major contemporary writers.
I’m a big fan of biblioklept (http://biblioklept.org/) and Conversational Reading (http://conversationalreading.com/)
Black Girl Lost in a Book is a blog worth viewing: http://naysue.wordpress.com/ 🙂
I really enjoy Jennifer Dawson @ http://literallife.wordpress.com/
Twitter:@twitter-81817496:disqus @@BookishJoJo:disqus
She is a great reviewer, has long had her finger on the pulse of who and what is new, especially in Canada.
She is also founder/moderator of the hippest group on Goodreads – Bookish http://www.goodreads.com/group/show/31981.Bookish
I’ll second the vote for Biblioklept (http://www.biblioklept.org), with great taste and a big brain. My staple remains Wood s Lot (http://web.ncf.ca/ek867/wood_s_lot.html), as this guy’s brain is of truly enviable size.
I just learned of Let’s Get Critical, “a hand-picked site of cultural criticism, essays and reviews,” which looks like it will be a good one to follow.
http://www.eyeshot.net
Thank you for this list, Jane. I get the complete list of lit. journals and small press from Poets&Writers, but they have yet to list the lit. blogs. Great resource to have for any writer 🙂
[…] Who Are About to Die was named one of the best literary blogs on, like, the entire planet by author and professor Jane Friedman. We Who Are About to Die. A […]
Emerging Writers Network. Features, namely, new short stories, but also covers new novels as well. Excellent community.
Huge thanks to everyone who took the time to comment with a suggestion. I’ll be revisiting and reposting the list in the future!
Good list. To self-promote, here’s ours. Check it out sometime:
creosotejournal.com
[…] Jane Friedman’s take on the best literary blogs and websites. […]
You missed the Los Angeles Review of Books, of course. But otherwise and besides…nice list.
Great list! Also suggest TheMorningNews.com and McSweeney’s Internet Tendency. http://www.mcsweeneys.net/tendency
Fabulous list. How about Late Night Library? This site is devoted to new voices in fiction and poetry. http://www.latenightlibrary.org
The Nervous Breakdown is a great site.
But no Beatdom? 🙁
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You might like to read this…
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/pamela-kripke/a-family-mystery-unraveled_b_1133768.html
NewBlog on Fiction: http://www.seriouslyfictive.wordpress.com
Thank you for posting this list. I am now following We Who Are About to Die. It’s always good to read what other people are doing in the literary world.
http://wordsbeforesentences.blogspot.com/
Great list. Also checkout http://www.downrightfiction.com/ it’s a relatively new site but it focus on new literary voices.
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Very useful list — I’ll suggest Best New Fiction as well (http://bestnewfiction.wordpress.com) It’s a site set up by Queens MFA grads to celebrate the some of the most exciting current fiction.
[…] journal-like or epistolary entries, but reportage, investigative journalism, serious essays, even stretches of fiction or poetry. None of these (except possibly haiku) are accomplished in 140 […]
You can never say there isn’t enough good fiction out there – the list is long and for the most part excellent reading. With so many blogs doing reviews you also know what to look for! I enjoy the millions in depth reviews: http://www.themillions.com/books-reviews
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[…] A list of the best blogs and websites focused on literary fiction and culture […]
Thanks so much, Jane, for posting this updated list. I asked in a tweet about it and you responded. Your 2011 post continued to come up during several Google Searches, which reflects its popularity. I hope this updated post gets you some great traffic, as well. If you’re interested in keeping a list of literary fiction blogs up to date, please let me know if/how I can help keep it current. Regards, Jay Lemming
Hi Jay! I have you to thank for nudging me to bring this list up to date. Don’t hesitate to get in touch any time (via Twitter or elsewhere) if you have recommendations.
A great list indeed, Jane. I actually found your blog site from a list I can’t remember exactly where. I’m trying to find some good materials to read in a daily basis and this is a good start for me.
Hi Jane,
Thanks for this list. Have a look at this site, too: http://pop-verse.com/
Frequent reviews of books, films and comics. Also deals in topics such as feminism and publishing etc.
Thanks for the tip!
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https://www.onestopforwriters.com.
I discovered this by accident. It’s awesome. I keep retweeting things I read so that I can reference them later.
Thanks for this list, Jane! I usually read reviews from the Women’s Review of Books http://www.wcwonline.org/Women-s-Review-of-Books/womens-review-of-books and the London Review of Books http://www.lrb.co.uk/ & look forward to checking out some of these blogs.
Blatant self-promotion: On my Monday Morning Books blog, I usually review books from a writer’s point of view: what works/doesn’t work & why. http://www.bmorrison.com/blog/
Thank you!
Lovely list, I looked at them all and followed most.
Excellent! 🙂
Thank you for this great list. Can you show me where you mention New York Book Editors? On their Website, they mention you as supporting them, “AS SEEN IN….” http://nybookeditors.com/about/ It’s really interesting to watch the language change before my eyes. Like on their page, it says More Books, and Less Books. I figure, if it’s OK for an editor… Thank you again. I love your newsletter too.
Sure – they’re mentioned on my resources page here: https://janefriedman.com/resources
I believe I’ve recommended them in other pieces, too – they’re a group I frequently mention since I trust their services.