Here, in the greater Washington, DC region, August is humid and hot; this year more so than in previous years within the meteorological annals. For many people, such oppressive, even stifling weather justifies an annual tradition—a flight away from desks and labors for a few days of respite and recuperation in more moderate, less sweltering climes. We’re acutely aware that with September soon upon us, and then autumn’s associated increase in our respective workloads, an August vacation can be precious.

Before grabbing those appealing summer books to immerse yourself in while down at the beach or up in the mountains, I’m writing with a special request. AWP needs to hear from you! It won’t take long at all, but your input will make a big difference to our efforts to serve you better.

For the first time that anyone here on the staff can recall, we are reaching out to you—the readership of our flagship publication, The Writer’s Chronicle—to solicit your perspective in a survey of how well AWP’s quarterly journal meets your needs and expectations. Perhaps the old formula for each edition of 5 articles and 2 interviews from or about leading writers and creative writing academics suits you just fine, but perhaps not. Is change needed, or is The Writer’s Chronicle a publication we tinker with at our peril? Are you happy to read The Writer’s Chronicle online or via our app, or do your fingers itch to leaf through the traditional paper version? We’d like to know.

AWP is not the only membership association that is taking a critical look at their publications. With printing and postage costs escalating rapidly, such publications are a challenge to sustain without passing along such costs to our membership, which we’re loathe to do. At the very least, we want to know that we are investing our resources well and providing you with a journal whose contents you enjoy and learn from, and hopefully find enlightening, provocative, and on occasion even inspirational.

My plea to you is this: if you’ve not done so already, please complete our short survey about The Writer’s Chronicle. The survey is only up and active for another week. Before you succumb to the dog days of summer—that time of year perhaps first described in Homer’s The Iliad when the Dog Star, Sirius, rises in the night sky—please complete the survey!

Then enjoy your time away!

Chloe Schwenke, PhD
Executive Director, AWP

Please Note: Invitations to complete the survey were emailed to members and subscribers with the subject line “AWP Publications Readership Survey.” If you would like the invitation to be resent, please email Lisa Lin-Freeman at surveys@trebuchetresearch.com.