The Quad Cities’ longest running reading series celebrates 20 years of The Young Emerging Writers Program (YEW) with a showcase of selected YEW 2025 interns and staff on Thursday, July 24 at Rozz-Tox (2108 3rd Ave. Rock Island, IL).  

The event will start at 6pm with a social hour, followed by the Young Emerging Writers showcase. First, ten of this year’s 23 interns, selected by their peers, will read at 7:00 p.m., previewing some of the work that will appear in The Atlas annual literary magazine published by YEW each year, which will be released on August 14 (pre-orders will be available). Then, YEW staff will be close out the reading at 8:00 p.m. Back issues of The Atlas will be available for $5/copy, as well as other MWC Press books.