Since 2011, Vela has taken steps to help close the byline gender gap by publishing exceptional nonfiction writing by women, and by drawing attention to outstanding work by women writers at other online publications, print magazines, and publishing houses.
We are not a “women’s magazine” and our writers aren’t writing exclusively for a female audience on “female” subjects (a notion we hope to tacitly challenge). The fact that all of Vela’s writers are women is almost, almost incidental: it would be completely incidental if the publishing world did not create a situation in which women’s voices represent only a fraction of the conversation. Our aim is to ensure that women writers are as recognized and read as their male counterparts.
Our stories have been recognized as notable in The Best American Essays, The Best American Travel Writing, and The Best American Sports Writing; selected for inclusion in The Best Women’s Travel Writing Volumes 8, 9 and 10; and highlighted on NPR, Outside, The New York Times’ Opinion Page, The New Yorker’s Page Turner, and Longform, Longreads, and The Browser.
We have seen that there is a great demand not only for high-quality, longform nonfiction online, but in particular for spaces that highlight the work of women. We’re thrilled to be addressing that demand; putting the work of exceptional women writers before the eyes of editors, readers, and anthologists; and changing the publishing landscape one story at a time.
We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and our funding comes from our generous, devoted readers and supporters.
If you’ve read and enjoyed a Vela story and believe in our mission, please consider making a donation today. We thank you ever so much.
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