how to expand the market for literature (and literary criticism)

I’m emerging from a period of internet introversion to announce that, about 2 weeks ago, the National Book Critics Circle announced that I’m one of their Emerging Critics Fellows for 2025–2026. There are many reasons I’m excited about this—the mentorship! the peers I’ll be learning with and from! But the fellowship also feels meaningful because it’s an obvious, externally legible reflection of the role that literature has played in my life. I’ve always liked books and liked reading. But about 4 or 5 years ago, I realized that there was a way to extend the excitement I would get from a great book—a way to relive the aesthetic experience, and even deepen it: I could read literary criticism. Which is to say: I started reading a lot of book reviews. Reviews are typically understood to involve a little bit of description (what is this book about? what genre is it in? who’s the audience), and a little bit of judgment (is it good? bad? mixed?), but these utilitarian aspects seem, to me, both

I’m emerging from a period of internet introversion to announce that, about 2 weeks ago, the National Book Critics Circle announced that I’m one of their Emerging Critics Fellows for 2025–2026. There are many reasons I’m excited about this—the mentorship! the peers I’ll be learning with and from! But the fellowship also feels meaningful because it’s an obvious, externally legible reflection of the role that literature has played in my life. I’ve always liked books and liked reading. But about 4 or 5 years ago, I realized that there was a way to extend the excitement I would get from a great bo