Writer's Digest
Writer's Digest is a 100+ year media and education brand serving fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and screenwriters globally through a bimonthly magazine, annual competitions, conferences, retreats, and online workshops.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1920
- HeadquartersOhio, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
Writer's Digest firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Writer's Digest
- Legal name
- Active Interest Media (Writer's Digest)
- Website
- https://writersdigest.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1920
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Writer's Digest is a 100+ year media and education brand serving fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and screenwriters globally through a bimonthly magazine, annual competitions, conferences, retreats, and online workshops.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Writer's Digest industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Consumer Writing & Publishing Media
- NAICS
- Periodical Publishers (513120), Book Publishers (51313)
- SIC
- Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721), Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Writing Retreats & Intensive Bootcamps (EDAMAMAK)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Publishing & Submission Prep Workshops (Query Letters, Agents, Journals) (EDAMAMAI), Genre Writing Workshops (Sci‑Fi, Fantasy, Romance, Mystery, Horror) (EDAMAMAG), Writing Skills & Composition Enrichment (EDAMAJAC)
Keywords
Where Writer's Digest is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Ohio
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Writer's Digest business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Magazine Subscriptions: Print and digital magazine subscriptions providing bimonthly issues plus exclusive member content, archive access, and VIP membership benefits.
- Writing Competitions: Entry fees for annual writing competitions including Self-Published Book Awards, Poetry Awards, Personal Essay Awards, Short Short Story Competition, and Annual Writing Competition.
- Events and Conferences: Revenue from in-person annual conferences, virtual conferences, and writing retreats (including international retreats in Tuscany, Italy) with varying ticket prices for sessions and consultations.
- E-commerce / Shop: Sales of books, back issues, digital editions, tutorials, webinars, 2nd Draft Critiques, and writing resources through the Writer's Digest Shop.
- Online Education: Revenue from WD University online writing workshops and virtual conference sessions taught by award-winning and bestselling authors.
- Affiliate Revenue: Commission revenue from affiliate links to books and writing resources recommended in articles (e.g., Bookshop, Amazon links).
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | VIP Membership with print + digital subscription |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels5 records
Writer's Digest product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Writer's Digest is a publishing and education media brand that produces a bimonthly print and digital magazine for writers, alongside a content-rich website, writing competitions, online workshops, virtual conferences, in-person writing conferences and retreats, and a VIP membership with archive and tutorial access. Its products are designed to help aspiring and published writers improve craft across fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and screenwriting and to navigate the publishing industry, including finding literary agents and getting published.
Product overview
Writer's Digest operates as a multi-platform writing resource company offering a magazine (print and digital), a content-rich website with free articles and resources, writing competitions, conferences (both in-person annual events and virtual conferences), writing retreats, online education workshops through WD University, and a VIP membership program. The portfolio includes both free content (website articles, writing prompts) and paid offerings (magazine subscriptions, conferences, workshops, critiques). The products serve writers across all genres and experience levels, from beginners to published authors seeking to improve their craft and get published.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Writer's Digest Shop: E-commerce platform for Writer's Digest merchandise, subscriptions, and writing resources
- Writer's Digest University
- Writer's Digest Conference
Products and services
- Writer's Digest Magazine Bimonthly print and digital magazine providing writing advice, craft tips, interviews, prompts, and resources for writers across fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and screenwriting at all experience levels.
- WD VIP Membership Premium annual membership bundling a print + digital magazine subscription with full magazine archive access, 400+ on-demand tutorial videos, and additional VIP-exclusive content.
- WD Competitions Recurring annual and ongoing writing competitions including the Self-Published Book Awards, Self-Published E-book Awards, Poetry Awards, Personal Essay Awards, Short Short Story Competition, and Annual Writing Competition, with entry fees and cash prizes/recognition.
- Writer's Digest Annual Conference In-person annual conference held in New Brunswick, New Jersey featuring author presenters, pre-conference workshops, genre-specific sessions, and one-on-one literary agent consultations.
- Writer's Digest Virtual Conferences Online virtual conferences including Novel Writing, Romance Writing, and Mystery & Thriller Writing conferences delivered via Kajabi, featuring sessions by award-winning and bestselling authors and query critique opportunities.
- Writer's Digest Writing Retreats Multi-day writing retreats hosted at international destinations such as Tuscany, Italy, combining guided instruction, dedicated writing time, exploration, and facilitation by WD hosts.
- Online Writing Workshops (WD University) Self-paced and instructor-led online writing courses and workshops covering fiction, nonfiction, poetry, publishing guidance, and craft taught by award-winning and bestselling authors.
Quantifiable outcome
- 28th Annual 101 Best Websites recognition for Writer's Digest
Companies that use Writer's Digest
Customer profileSegments5 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Writer's Digest technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Writer's Digest partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Writer's Digest competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Script Magazine: Writer's Digest's sibling brand under Active Interest Media, focused on screenwriting education and the screenwriter segment. Operates the same magazine + competitions + events model under one corporate parent, making it the closest internal comparable.
- Mediabistro: Media education and jobs platform offering courses, articles, and community for writers across publishing, content marketing, and screenwriting—overlapping with WD's freelance writer segment and craft education offerings.
- Publishers Weekly: Long-running trade publication covering the publishing industry with news, reviews, and educational content for authors and industry professionals. Overlaps with WD's 'Getting Published' editorial vertical and target audience of aspiring-traditionally published authors.
- Reedsy: Marketplace and education platform serving self-published authors with courses, editorial services, and a learning resource library—the most direct digital-native competitor to WD's self-publishing education arm (Self-Published Book Awards, E-book Awards, query prep).
- Poets & Writers: Nonprofit media organization publishing a print magazine, digital content, and literary events for poets and creative writers. Closely mirrors Writer's Digest's editorial magazine + literary community + database/services model across the same customer segments.
- Gotham Writers Workshop: Long-running NYC-based creative writing school offering multi-genre workshops in fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and publishing—directly comparable to WD University's workshop model and target segment (aspiring writers seeking structured craft education).
Emerging players
- Author Accelerator: Book coaching and certification company serving aspiring nonfiction and memoir authors with structured programs and certified book coaches—direct overlap with WD's nonfiction/memoir writer segment and intensive cohort model.
- The Kenyon Review: Literary journal associated with Kenyon College that publishes literary work, runs the Kenyon Review Young Writers workshop, and serves advanced writers and literary educators. Comparable to WD on literary fiction/poetry editorial and workshop programming, though at a smaller, more academic scale.
Broad incumbents
- MasterClass: Premium online education platform offering high-production writing classes taught by celebrity authors. Competes for the same aspiring writer's learning budget as WD University and virtual conferences, but with celebrity positioning rather than publishing-industry credibility.
- Skillshare: Mass-market subscription learning platform with a large creative writing course library taught by independent instructors. Competes with WD University on breadth and price, though without the literary-agent and publishing-industry access that differentiates WD.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Writer's Digest social profiles
Digital presenceWriter's Digest financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Writer's Digest leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Writer's Digest subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries4 records
Writer's Digest funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Writer's Digest M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Writer's Digest
What does Writer's Digest do?
Writer's Digest is a publishing and education media brand that produces a bimonthly print and digital magazine for writers, alongside a content-rich website, writing competitions, online workshops, virtual conferences, in-person writing conferences and retreats, and a VIP membership with archive and tutorial access. Its products are designed to help aspiring and published writers improve craft across fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and screenwriting and to navigate the publishing industry, including finding literary agents and getting published.
Is Writer's Digest a public or private company?
Writer's Digest is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Writer's Digest founded?
Writer's Digest was founded in 1920. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Writer's Digest based?
Writer's Digest is headquartered in Ohio, United States, in the North America region.
How does Writer's Digest make money?
Six revenue lines are on record. Magazine Subscriptions are the primary driver. The others are writing Competitions, events and Conferences, E-commerce / Shop, online Education and affiliate Revenue.
Who are Writer's Digest's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Script Magazine, Mediabistro, Publishers Weekly, Reedsy, Poets & Writers and Gotham Writers Workshop. Emerging players are Author Accelerator and The Kenyon Review. Broad incumbents are MasterClass and Skillshare.
Does Writer's Digest have an API?
No public API is recorded for Writer's Digest.
What industry is Writer's Digest in?
Writer's Digest's product category is Consumer Writing & Publishing Media. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAMAMAK, Writing Retreats & Intensive Bootcamps, with a secondary code of EDAMAMAI, Publishing & Submission Prep Workshops (Query Letters, Agents, Journals). Its NAICS code is 513120 and its SIC code is 2721.