children's creative writing class

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Young authors collective, ywp anthology.

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Young Writers Program

Our Mission : The Young Writers Program at Lighthouse connects children and teens to literature, new friends, and a writing community. Our workshops, whether at Lighthouse or at one of our dozens of partnering sites, are taught by published and award-winning authors and are designed to foster creativity and self-expression and to empower youth to find their voices through creative writing.

At Lighthouse, we offer a variety of in-person and virtual creative writing workshops, in all genres, on weekends, after school, and during school-closure days, including the Young Authors Collective for teens, summer camps, and more.

These ever-expanding offerings include writing classes, workshops, and clubs in libraries and museums, medical and residential treatment centers, neighborhood youth centers, and a variety of school models.

Summer Camps

Half-day and full-day options are available for all age groups from June through August.

The Young Authors Collective, or YAC, is a group of talented, word-obsessed high school writers dedicated to experimenting with new creative forms, collaborating with other arts organizations, and writing a ton. Our two cohorts, YAC—Denver and YAC—Online meet once a week to generate new pieces, give friendly feedback, and work towards publication.

Tuition is $550 per semester; full and partial financial aid is available. Please apply first and request financial aid after you are accepted.

The Lighthouse Young Writers Program publishes an annual anthology of students' writing, And We Created Worlds , from participants in community engagement and in-house programs.

Check out digital copies of previous versions

Field Trips to Lighthouse

Interested in coming to Lighthouse with your students? We can customize workshops to fit individual classroom or program goals and needs. We provide hour-long presentations, one-day or week-long intensives, after-school programs, multi-week sessions, or more long-term workshops culminating in public readings or published anthologies (or both) depending on the needs of the school or program and its young writers.