You can help create an Iowa City destination to celebrate storytelling – and inspire visitors to read.
New to Stories Project? Keep scrolling to learn what it’s all about.
Ready to take it further? Click one of the buttons below.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~“The particular pleasure of life in Iowa City rests not so much in the fact that the girl beside you on the bus or behind you in line might well be pondering a great and turbulent tradition of thought and belief, and finding new language to explore it. This could be true anywhere. It is that here the privilege of hearing or seeing her thoughts as fiction or poetry, even seeing them emerge and develop, is widely shared.” -- Marilynne Robinson
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~“The particular pleasure of life in Iowa City rests not so much in the fact that the girl beside you on the bus or behind you in line might well be pondering a great and turbulent tradition of thought and belief, and finding new language to explore it. This could be true anywhere. It is that here the privilege of hearing or seeing her thoughts as fiction or poetry, even seeing them emerge and develop, is widely shared.” -- Marilynne Robinson
The idea
Stories Project of Iowa City seeks to create an interactive museum to celebrate storytelling in all of its forms – not just fiction and poetry, but stories in film, television, games, song lyrics, podcasts, and more. Through engaging experiences we’ll do all we can to inspire Americans, young and old, to make time to read — thereby promoting literacy in America.
We’re thrilled to have great local support from Think Iowa City, the University of Iowa President, UNESCO City of Literature, the Downtown Arts Alliance, and many other individuals and organizations.
The dream of Stories Project can become a reality today – if our City Council chooses a proposal including Stories Project for the redevelopment of the lot at 21 South Linn Street.
We envision a roughly 30,000 square foot space, filled with cutting-edge interactive experiences to draw visitors further into the reading experience. We’ll provide resources to help visitors keep reading long after they visit.
A longstanding vision
For decades, residents and local organizations have envisioned a museum for writing and literature, here in Iowa City. It almost happened in 2008. Under the working title “Stories Project,” a coalition of local organizations made tremendous progress toward this goal, raising $20 million in state funding. But their work came to an untimely end with the floods of that same year.
There is no better setting for this project. A one-time home to Flannery O’Connor, Kurt Vonnegut, Tennessee Williams, John Irving, Louise Glück, James Alan McPherson, Marilynne Robinson, Joy Harjo – and so many more – Iowa City was the first community in the United States to be named a UNESCO City of Literature.
See the 2008 Vision Book.
In the heart of the heart of Iowa City
We’re looking for a home at 21 South Linn, one of the best locations in all of Iowa City.
Click the map to zoom in.
We’ll welcome visitors to Iowa City’s terrific arts community.
The secret will not be kept for long: we are the greatest small city for the arts in America.
Why it matters
The numbers don’t lie: we in America are failing when it comes to promoting literacy.
Last year, the National Center for Education Statistics found that 13 year-olds in the U.S. are scoring lower on reading tests than they have in decades – and the National Assessment of Education Progress found that only 43% of U.S. fourth-graders scored at or above a proficient level in reading.
Recent studies have found that 21% of adults in the U.S. qualify as illiterate, and 54% read at below a sixth-grade level.
The gravity of our national problem – and the need to take action – rings clear in this shocking statement from the National Literacy Institute: “To determine how many prison beds will be needed in future years, some states actually base part of their projection on how well current elementary students are performing on reading tests.”
Through our visitor experiences and educational outreach, Stories Project will take aim at these alarming trends.
But we’ll need your help.
The Iowa City City Council will choose a winning proposal for the 21 South Linn site in the early months of 2025. Make your voice heard.