The Word Works is a literary organization based in Washington, DC. The press was founded in 1974 and has published 79 titles including works by Grace Cavalieri, Fred Marchant, Donna Denizé, Christopher Bursk, Frannie Lindsay, Jay Rogoff, and Enid Shomer. The Word Works features contemporary poetry and literature, often written by emerging poets.
A non-profit organization completely ran by volunteers, Word Works was originally funded through frequent grants received from the National Endowment for the Arts. These grants were supplemented through private donations and revenue from book sales. Word Works has also received grants from the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, the Witter Bynner Foundation, the Maryland Council on the Arts, the Virginia Commission on the Arts, the Batir Foundation, Hechingers
Since 1981, the press has overseen a yearly literary competition awarding the $1,500 Washington Prize for a winning poetry manuscript. The organization has also hosted the longest running literary series in the Washington area through their Joaquin Miller Cabin series at the Joaquin Miller Cabin in Rock Creek Park. The Word Works has several book imprints, including the Washington Prize, the Hilary Tham Capital Collection, and International Editions.
From 1996 to 2003, the organization held arts retreats in Tuscany, Italy.
The organization's archives are housed at the Special Collections Research Center in the Estelle and Melvin Gelman Library at The George Washington University.