Classes for Youth
Young writers have myriad opportunities to launch, explore, consume and create great writing at Hugo House. From our Hugo Classes for Kids after-school workshops to the Scribes summer creative writing camps to our
brand-new Saturday Classes for Teens, Hugo House offers conservatory-model instruction and an innovative creative writing space for all. Hugo Classes for Kids are after-school workshops for kids between the ages 8 and 14. Two professional writing instructors and volunteer writing mentors work with younger kids and older kids in separate groups, upstairs in Hugo House classrooms and downstairs in the Cabaret. Sessions run for 10 weeks on Tuesdays, ending with a published anthology and a community reading in the Hugo House Theater. Registration is now open for winter session: Heroes & Avatars.
Writers: grades 3-8
Date/time: Tuesdays, 3:30-5 p.m.
Tuition: $50 per session, pay-what-you-can
Hugo Classes for Teens are Saturday workshops for high school writers who want to delve into particular subject areas such as screenwriting, playwriting, the short story, the novel, free-form poetry, zines, spoken word, reviewing, flash fiction and creative nonfiction, to name just a few. Workshops are anywhere from two to six weeks in duration, depending on the course. Registration is now open for winter classes.
Writers: grades 9-12
Date/time: Saturdays 10 a.m.-12 p.m. or 1-3 p.m. depending on the class
Tuition: $50 per course, pay-what-you-can
Hugo House Mentoring is a program for serious writers between the ages of 15 and 18. With a specific project or idea in mind, students are paired with a professional and practicing writer who guides and advises their work. Students meet with their mentors at Hugo House one hour every week, at a time that is convenient for both, for a period of 10 weeks (or three months). Mentors and mentees also have the opportunity to read in the Hugo House Cabaret several times during the year. Ten students are accepted for each of two sessions, fall and winter. Download a mentoring application here.
Writers: grades 9-12
Date/time: determined by mentor & mentee
Tuition: free
Write Time is a free one-hour writing workshop led by a local professional writer. Write Time workshops cover a variety of genres, from poetry to prose to spoken word. Participants come and write, then stick around for Stage Fright and read what they came up with. Each month has a different theme and a different instructor. Check out the schedule.
Writers: grades 7-12
Date/time: the second Wednesday of every month, 6-7 p.m.
Tuition: free
Stage Fright is an open mic night for writers age 14 to 24. Since 1997 Stage Fright has been the place to speak out! Participants read poetry, fiction, journals (or whatever) on our Cabaret stage and enjoy the work and camaraderie of their peers. Each month features a reader chosen by the Hugo House youth writer-in-residence, Ari Bergman. If you're interested in being a featured reader at Stage Fright, e-mail Ari at aribergman@hugohouse.org
Writers: grades 7-12
Date/time: the second Wednesday of every month, 7:30-9 p.m. (Nov. 12, Dec. 10, Jan. 14, Feb. 11, March 11, April 8, May 13, June 10, July 8, Aug. 12)
Tuition: free
Scribes summer creative writing camp is an intensive two-week writing program for middle and high school students. Facilitated by professional writers, Scribes students acquire a tool kit of literary forms, pick-up exercises and techniques to develop their writer's voice, get serious and helpful feedback from their instructors and peers and tour the city to view new and familiar places with a writer's eye. The first session is for students completing 7th or 8th grade; the second session is for students completing 9th–12th grade. Applications are accepted in two cycles, January and April, and students are notified of their acceptance in those months.
Writers: grades 7-8 and 9-12
Date/time: July 20-31, 2009 (grades 7-8) and August 3-14, 2009 (grades 9-12)
Tuition: $650 with scholarships available
