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The Writer’s Almanac for Friday, January 23, 2026

Posted on January 23, 2026 - Writer's Almanac

It’s the birthday of biochemist and pharmacologist Gertrude B. Elion, born in New York City (1918). After her grandfather died of cancer, she decided to become a cancer researcher. She entered Hunter College when she was just 15 years old, and graduated with a chemistry degree four years later. Elion wanted to work in a lab, but those jobs were for men only.

The Writer’s Almanac for Thursday, January 22, 2026

Posted on January 22, 2026 - Writer's Almanac

It’s the birthday of poet Lord Byron, born George Gordon Noel Byron in London (1788). At the age of 19, he published his first book of poetry, Hours of Idleness (1807). The Edinburgh Review printed a nasty review of the book. He was so hurt that he wrote a magnificent satire, English Bards and Scotch Reviewers (1809), all in heroic couplets.

The Writer’s Almanac for Wednesday, January 21, 2026

Posted on January 21, 2026 - Writer's Almanac

It’s the birthday of blues singer and songwriter Huddie “Lead Belly” Ledbetter (sometimes noted as January 20 or January 29), born in Mooringsport, Louisiana (1888). He’s best known for his songs “Goodnight Irene,” “Midnight Special,” and “Rock Island Line,” and for his skill in playing 12-string guitar.

The Writer’s Almanac for Tuesday, January 20, 2026

Posted on January 20, 2026 - Writer's Almanac

Franklin Delano Roosevelt became the first president to take the oath of office on January 20, back in 1937. Originally, the Presidential Inauguration Day had been March 4th to allow the new president time to get to Washington D.C. Due to the speed of modern transportation and communication, Congress decided there was no need to wait so long between the election and the oath of office, so they established the new date with the passage of the Twentieth Amendment.

The Writer’s Almanac for Monday, January 19, 2026

Posted on January 19, 2026 - Writer's Almanac

It’s the birthday of Edgar Allan Poe, born in Boston in 1809. When he was two, both his parents died from tuberculosis, and Edgar was taken in by a wealthy tobacco merchant named John Allan, and Edgar Poe became Edgar Allan Poe. He went to the University of Virginia, and for years he was in and out of the Army and West Point, publishing several books of poems, including Al Aaraaf, Tamerlane and Minor Poems (1829).

The Writer’s Almanac for Sunday, January 18, 2026

Posted on January 18, 2026 - Writer's Almanac

It’s the birthday of poet Rubén Darío, born in Metapa, Nicaragua (1867). He’s one of the greatest poets in the Spanish language. Scholars say that there is not a single writer in English that’s had as much effect on English literature as Rubén Darío has had on Spanish literature. He’s a household name all over Latin America, but Darío is barely known in the English-speaking world because his poems are hard to translate into English.

The Writer’s Almanac for Saturday, January 17, 2026

Posted on January 17, 2026 - Writer's Almanac

Captain James Cook and his crew on HMS Resolution were the first Europeans to sail below the Antarctic Circle on this date in 1773. Cook made three exploratory voyages to uncharted areas of the Pacific, making maps as he went. In 1772, he was commissioned by the Royal Society to go in search of the rumored Terra Australis, a hypothetical continent that was first suggested by Aristotle.

The Writer’s Almanac for Friday, January 16, 2026

Posted on January 16, 2026 - Writer's Almanac

Today is the birthday of novelist, essayist, and cultural critic Susan Sontag, born Susan Rosenblatt in New York City (1933). She grew up in Tucson and Los Angeles. She graduated from high school when she was 15, went to the University of California at Berkeley for a semester, and then transferred to the University of Chicago.

The Writer’s Almanac for Thursday, January 15, 2026

Posted on January 15, 2026 - Writer's Almanac

It’s the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr., born on this day in Atlanta (1929). He is best known for his work as a leader during the civil rights movement and his commitment to nonviolence. On April 4th, 1967, King delivered a speech called “Beyond Vietnam,” in which he strongly denounced America’s involvement in the Vietnam War.

The Writer’s Almanac for Wednesday, January 14, 2026

Posted on January 14, 2026 - Writer's Almanac

On this date in 1943, Franklin Roosevelt completed the first airplane journey by a sitting president. He needed to get to the Casablanca Conference in Morocco to discuss strategy with British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. German U-boats were making sea travel too perilous, so his advisors agreed — somewhat reluctantly — that air travel was the best option.

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