Young Writers Studio

The Young Writers Studio runs from Monday through Friday on the following schedule:

10:00am to 12:00pm - Daily Writing Workshop

12:00pm to 1:00pm - Lunch

1:00pm to 2:00pm - Guest Author Talk

2:00pm to 4:00pm - Students will rotate between Electives, Conferences, or the Guest Author Master Class

4:00pm to 5:00pm - Writing Hour

The Writing Workshop

• The writing workshop is the anchor of Young Writers Studio. You’ll be in a small group of likeminded young writers to learn craft elements of one genre, with opportunities to share your work and receive feedback in a mini workshop setting. Generative writing prompts allow young writers to apply the craft elements they’re exploring in real time. The goal is to develop your craft in a dedicated genre, which in turn will help you reach your writing goals wherever they may take you.

• There will be three guest authors throughout the week, bringing contemporary writing and publishing experience into our classrooms. Guest authors will also lead a small master class for writers in their genre, so that each young person gets to attend one master class during the week.

• The Sarah Lawrence College conference model emphasizes one-on-one mentorship and learning, providing young people a chance to talk in depth about their projects and their questions. During Young Writers Studio, each young writer will have a 30-minute conference with one of their workshop leaders, presenting a chance to receive individualized attention on their manuscript and their development as a writer. Conferences work in tandem with the writing workshop to show young writers how a balance of peer-led feedback and mentor feedback can inform the choices we make as writers.

• Inspired by all that you’re learning and discussing during the week? Writing Hour provides quiet, dedicated time and space for young writers to write, thinking about their own writing practice and how they want to ritualize their writing. This experience is the backbone of a long writing life, as each writer needs to understand the conditions under which they write best, cultivating their writing practice as a valuable creative experience.

Young Writers Studio workshops are co-taught by dedicated teaching artists through the Sarah Lawrence College MFA Writing program. These teaching artists bring graduate-level craft lessons, readings, writing prompts, advice, and feedback directly to young writers. Guest Author Master Classes are led by contemporary authors in various genres. Past guest authors for precollege programs include Shira Erlichman, Claribel Ortega, TJ Klune, Bel Banta, Ebony LaDelle, Meg Day, Ben Purkert, Camryn Garrett, Victoria So, and others.

The writing workshop is an opportunity for students to hone their craft in a specific genre, and then apply those craft lessons through generative writing prompts. The workshop will also provide feedback on up to 4 poems or 8 pages of prose while discussing revision techniques. There is an emphasis on providing young writers the tools they need to develop their poetry or prose into a full-length manuscript, both in terms of writing process, revision, and finding community.

Each workshop has a minimum of 6 writers and a maximum of 12 writers, with up to 3 workshop groups per program. This small class allows for the personalized attention that is a hallmark of a Sarah Lawrence education.

Writers Week is a generative writing program, while Young Writers Studio is a workshop-based writing program. Both programs provide young writers an opportunity to hone their craft, but Writers Week includes instruction across many genres, while Young Writers Studio allows young writers to focus on one specific genre and workshop their work in progress. Writers Week encourages collaboration as an interdisciplinary writing and theatre program. Young Writers Studio focuses on creating a writing practice while also finding the community to support your writing endeavors.

Yes! Especially as Writers Week is generative and Young Writers Studio is workshop-based, they work well as companion programs.

Tuition is $2500 for the one-week program.

A deposit of $250 is required upon acceptance into the program to hold your spot. The balance is payable by May 20, 2027.

Yes. Upon successful completion, students receive an official transcript with one college credit. This credit can be used at Sarah Lawrence College or transferred to most other colleges and universities, at the discretion of the receiving institution.

Yes. All materials are included in the tuition price.

Rising high school freshmen, sophomores, juniors, and seniors or students who will graduate high school in 2027 who are passionate about creative writing and ready for an intensive, college-level workshop experience.

Young Writers Studio is designed for writers who have demonstrated interest in writing a specific genre (Poetry, Fiction or Speculative Fiction & Fantasy). We don’t expect writing samples to be perfect, but we do use them to gauge each writer’s voice and style in the genre of their choice.

At the time of application, each student will select their first and second choice genre. This helps us create workshop groups of like-minded writers. Because each workshop requires a minimum of 6 students to run, having a second choice genre allows us to place you in a workshop group if your primary genre is unavailable.

We seek motivated, curious, and engaged students. Admission is also limited by class size. We encourage any student who is interested in creative writing to apply, though having some experience in high school will help!

There are residential and commuter options available. You can choose to commute to our campus daily or you can choose to stay on campus and truly experience what college life is like. Students who stay on campus must be 16 years of age at the start of the program.

Yes, lunch is provided for all students in the on-campus dining hall, with vegetarian, vegan, and allergy-friendly options available.