The American Writers Museum - An Interactive Museum in Chicago, IL

Dive into a world of discovery! The American Writers Museum’s permanent exhibits take visitors on a journey through the American story, from the perspective of the writers. They introduce you to great writing in all genres, illustrating how writing influences our history and culture, and spotlighting the beauty and visceral impact of great writing.

The American Writers Museum is open 10 AM – 5 PM Thursday – Monday

find your words

Click a photo to see what our visitors are saying!

Upcoming Programs

See our full calendar here

01Mar

Trailblazing Women Writers Tour

American Writers Museum

11Apr

Get (Green) Lit: Mini Golf, Big Vibes

American Writers Museum

09May

Get Lit: Me, Myself, and I

American Writers Museum

16May

Nicole Chung: A Living Remedy (IN PERSON)

American Writers Museum

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Black Writers Matter. Black Voices Matter.

Black Lives Matter.

Watch a reading of Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave on YouTube

View on YouTube

Women Writers On Writing featured image with photos of Anne Rice, Edwidge Danticat, Joyce Carol Oates, Ellen Gilchrist, and Octavia Butler

Women Writers On Writing

A list of inspirational quotes and writing advice from women writers! March is Women’s History [...]

American Voices: Flannery O’Connor

The authors featured in our exhibit American Voices represent the evolution and flourishing of American [...]

Get Lit: Celebrating Women Writers!

Get (Chick) Lit: Women Writers Recap

A Night in Celebration of Women Writers In honor of Women’s History Month, we saluted [...]

Photo of Ruth Bader Ginsburg with text that reads, "Ruth Bader Ginsburg Quotes"

Ruth Bader Ginsburg Quotes

A list of iconic and powerful Ruth Bader Ginsburg quotes On March 15, 1933, Ruth [...]

AWM Staff Picks March 2023

AWM Staff Picks: March 2023

Reading Recommendations from the staff of the American Writers Museum. We can’t recommend these books [...]

Top 5 Reasons to Visit the AWM in March

Top 5 Reasons to Visit the American Writers Museum in March

We have plenty of events and exhibits that are some of the top things to [...]

Get Lit: Down with Love recap

Get Lit: Down with Love Recap

February 20, 2023

A Valentine’s Day party unlike any other At Get Lit: Down with Love, which took [...]

Black History Month Reading List

February 1, 2023

A list of book recommendations for Black History Month, along with podcasts and videos to [...]

A National Museum Celebrating American Writers