Ages: Middle School (10-16 year olds welcome)
Duration: Mon June 30 - Thurs July 3, 9am-11:30am
Open to all young writers, readers, storytellers, daydreamers who would like to begin – or have already begun - writing their own story. Each young writer will have free choice over their story genre, and will learn about key elements of story craft. At the end of the week, we will close off with a LIVE ‘open mic’ performance at the Potter’s House where young writers will read extracts of their work. (Option for typed stories to be published in an ebook anthology).
Each daily session will consist of:
Teaching of story-craft elements (such as: dialogue, perspective and narrative voice, sentence structure, developing believable characters, world building, planning coherent plot)
Free writing time (including 1-1 feedback and support with the writing tutor)
Sharing and critiquing of each other’s work
Break times with snack
In addition to creating their very own original story, over the course of this week your young writer will learn to:
Empower their creative voice and gain artistic ownership
Expand imagination and empathy
Improve planning and structured thinking
Learn to critique and offer constructive criticism
Discover individual written style and voice
Sharpen writing skills to create tension and hold reader attention
Note, these sessions will not focus on the explicit teaching of English spelling and grammar. Instead, we focus on fostering creativity, nurturing imagination and prioritising storytelling.
COST: The cost of this workshop is $265, which includes:
Two and a half hours of creative programming for four days
Daily snack and beverage provided by The Potter’s House
Notebook and pencils (BYO personal laptops/tablets if preferred)
Course handout with notes on story craft
‘Open Mic’ reading performance
MEET THE TUTOR
Laura is a writer and teacher from the UK. She has over 10 years of experience of working with elementary and middle-school aged students, specialising in literacy/language development and creative writing teaching. Currently, Laura is working on a fantasy novel inspired by Scottish mythology with themes of colonialism and climate change.