Youth Writer-in-Residence

Hugo House Youth Writer-in-Residence

The youth writers-in-residence are one of the highlights of our residency programming. These residencies provide teens with opportunities to not only focus on the development of their own writing, but to develop leadership and skill competencies by facilitating youth outreach, integrating youth throughout Hugo House programs, mentoring peers and leading Stage Fright, an open-mic event attended by more than 700 youth, ages 14-24, per year. Our youth writer-in-residence is also located at Richard Hugo House. 

This residency is open to high-school students with a passion for writing and a talent for mentoring their peers. This residency runs from October through August and offers a monthly stipend. In return the youth writer-in-residence curates our monthly youth open-mic event, Stage Fright, recruits young writers for our teen writing programs, and helps plan and facilitate our yearly intensive summer writing camp for teens, Scribes. This year's youth writers-in-residence are  Matt Watts and Clare Lilliston.

 

About Matt Watts

Matt Watts spent three years with the Empty Suitcase Theatre Company, ("Bigotry Rides the Bus," "The Slough" and "Body Maps: Down The Rabbit Hole of Modern Medical Science"); one year with the Puget Sound Writers Project; and two years with Scribes at Hugo House. He creates fiction, poetry, cinema and music, drawing inspiration from (respectively) Stan Lee, Allen Ginsberg, Alfred Hitchcock and classic alternative rock bands such as REM. He is very knowledgeable about ASL and deaf culture, Marvel continuity comics and novels by Stephen King.

Matt is a writing mentor for the young writers in Hugo Classes for Kids. He states that he loves it and "will not stop any time soon." During his time as a resident he will concentrate on bridging the gap between the Eastside- and Seattle-based youth writers, and finding previously unthought-of ways to communicate with youth about what's going on for them at Richard Hugo House. He is very proud to join the ranks of youth writers-in-residence at Hugo House.


About Clare Lilliston

Clare Lilliston is a senior at Ingraham High School. She participated in Scribes at Hugo House last summer, as well as Scribes at Ingraham for the past three years. In her sophomore year, she was a part of the Young Playwrights Program, and, as a finalist, had her play staged at ACT Theatre. She is also a part of the 826 Seattle Youth Advisory Board, as well as an editor of the Ingraham Cascade newspaper.

As a writer-in-residence at Hugo House, Clare hopes to make writing more accessible to young people. As an ambassador for Hugo House she wants to demonstrate the universality of words and the fact that writing is a craft that anyone can learn and utilize.


To reach either Matt or Clare, email youthwriter@hugohouse.org.