Many Jewish writers cite rising antisemitism within the literary community — including boycotts of Israeli authors and silencing of Jewish narratives — as a source of frustration. Ritualwell, the leading online resource of thousands of prayers, poems, ceremonies and songs, with long-standing relationships with Jewish creatives, has emerged as a premiere haven for Jewish authors.
Ritualwell publishes 400 original pieces a year, working with 800 writers. More recently, more than 100 writers have met weekly to support one another, growing their writing practice in Ritualwell’s online creative community called ADVOT. This coming year, 25 writers of all backgrounds and levels of experience will meet online to create original work, some of which will be published on Rituawell and in a yearly anthology of Jewish poetry, prayer and song.
“There is so much competing for our attention, but for me, I am still feeling supported and uplifted by ADVOT,” said Cathleen Cohen, a former poet Laureate of Montgomery County, PA. “What pulls me to continue to be part of it is the community and the relationships I have formed. And Ritualwell has done such a wonderful job of addressing issues and concerns in the world that affect us and influence us. ADVOT has strengthened my confidence as a specifically Jewish writer.”
To maximize this kind of impact and respond to the strains Jewish writers are experiencing, Ritualwell is launching a new initiative, Jewish Writers’ Circle. Starting this fall in multiple cities across North America and Europe, as many as twenty Jewish Writers’ Circles will meet monthly, with Ritualwell providing session guides and coaching support. These circles will nurture Jewish literary community, strengthen participants’ writing, and enrich their lives with Jewish wisdom.
The Jewish Writers’ Circles is a passion project for Cyd Weissman, Reconstructing Judaism’s vice president for innovation and impact, who serves as lead curriculum designer. “I believe in this project because it will be a generative safe space for Jewish creatives. Today, more than ever, Jewish writers need each other to grow their craft and their souls,” said Weissman. “As I approach retirement, I see Jewish Writers’ Circles as the innovative- impactful exclamation point to my career spent nurturing Jewish community.”
The initial idea for Jewish Writers’ Circle came from Adva Chattler, managing director for engagement and innovation for Reconstructing Judaism. In Chattler’s close work with writers enrolled in ADVOT, she repeatedly heard of writers’ growing desire for in-person
connection in post-pandemic times. Fulfilling Ritualwell’s commitment to meet emerging needs in the Jewish community, the idea grew and has found an enthusiastic audience.
The curriculum for the monthly Jewish Circles gatherings draws inspiration from Jewish wisdom and literary techniques. For example, a session built around Tefilat HaDerekh (the traveler’s prayer) invites discussion of why the prayer is written in the first-person plural—and how point of view shapes narrative voice.
Participants in Jewish Writers’ Circles will receive discounts on Ritualwell’s online learning programs, known as Immersions, as well as free admission to a December virtual event featuring acclaimed Israeli author Etgar Keret. Writers will also be encouraged to submit their work for publication on Ritualwell. At the close of the first year, Ritualwell plans to publish an anthology showcasing the best work created in the circles.
“ADVOT and the Jewish Writers’ Circles spur personal spiritual growth,” said Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer, Ritualwell’s Director of virtual programs and the author of several books. “Participants will come away with new perspectives, maybe a new appreciation for the richness of Torah study. From a writer’s perspective, there is so much we can learn from Jewish tradition.”
Partial funding for the Jewish Writers’ Circles comes from Lippman Kanfer Foundation for Living Torah, which awarded a grant through its Small Groups Technology Lab program, supporting transformative micro-communities for Jews and fellow travelers.
Ayalon Eliach, Chief Ideas Officer of Lippman Kanfer Foundation for Living Torah, said that his organization sees that lay-led, regularly meeting small groups like Jewish Writers’ Circles have historically been loci for Jewish community, and helped people improve their own lives and the larger world in significant ways. Eliach believes that, today, small groups are an underprioritized component of the Jewish ecosystem and something the foundation is committed to supporting.
“Jewish Writers’ Circles are bringing Jewish wisdom into the room in ways that feel deeply integrated into the actual writing process,” said Eliach.
“When someone is engaging with Jewish wisdom in these writers’ circles,” he added, “it’s giving them the chance to be in profound, creative conversation with it in a way that enriches their innermost selves and, hopefully, helps them thrive as people off the page.”
As a project of Reconstructing Judaism, Ritualwell is honored to receive funding from Lippman Kanfer Foundation for Living Torah to craft these new spaces for Jewish gathering and learning. As Weissman said, “Jewish Writers’ Circles are sure to be an oasis for the aching souls of writers yearning to freely express themselves—just the antidote the doctor ordered for these times.”
Those interested in joining, leading, or starting a Jewish Writers’ Circle can contact Gabrielle Kaplan-Mayer at gkaplan-mayer@reconstructingjudaism.org.
