When asked if she had any advice to parents who are also writers, Milda De Voe said, “Yeah, don’t start a nonprofit!”
Milda De Voe did not know anything about running a nonprofit when she started Pen Parentis, an organization dedicated to cultivating “a nurturing community for writer-parents to connect, inspire each other, and craft exceptional literary pieces.” After hearing countless people tell her that she couldn’t be a mom and a writer at the same time, she started to see that there was a need to validate the experience of parent writers. What started as a reading series of work by parents quickly morphed into an organization on a mission to provide resources and support to parents of all backgrounds and genders.
“80% of our membership are mothers, but that doesn’t mean we are just for mothers… anyone who needs us, we are there. And even among people of the same gender, the issues are going to be different.”
In this episode of Lunch with LitNYS, Milda De Voe shows that creative life doesn’t end when you become a parent, and that organizations can be doing more to support writers who are also caregivers.
Looking to get involved? Head to penparentis.org.
If you’re going to AWP this year in L.A., look for the Pen Parentis table and join them on Thursday March 27 from 5-7pm at their first-ever glowstick party!
Recommendations from the Episode
Check out Milda’s books:
Book & Baby, The Complete Guide to Managing Chaos & Becoming A Wildly Successful Writer-Parent is an inspiring writing craft book that showcases the experiences of more than 300 authors including such powerhouses as Patty Dann, Daphne Uviller, Mira Jacob, and Min Jin Lee, to address the various stages of parenthood and how a writing career could be affected at every stage from infancy to grown-and-flown.
A Flash of Darkness is Milda De Voe’s debut fiction collection, out now!
Milda recommends Submission Grinder for helping you submit your writing.
In the episode, Milda tells us that 8 out of the 10 most recent Nobel Laureates in Literature are parents. See for yourself!
Music Credit: Cold Brew by RA
Share this post