We offer free evening and weekend workshops designed to foster creativity, strengthen writing skills, and provide students with a forum for executing projects they might not otherwise have the support to undertake. Workshops range from the playful to the practical, and all are taught by volunteer writers, artists, educators, and publishing professionals.
PLEASE NOTE: Due to increased demand, enrollment for workshops are now determined by lottery. Once you have signed up for a workshop, please look for an email from workshops@826nyc.org, verifying that we have received your request. If you have not heard from us after 48 hours, feel free to call.
Our workshops are limited enrollment and often generate wait lists. With this in mind, please only sign up if you can make every session of a workshop. Thank you!
Your Own Words
3 Tuesday sessions: May 15, 22, 29 (2012)
6-7:30pm
Taught by Alexa Wejko & Lauren Ward
For ages 9-12
Saluton! Are you tired of English class? Want to follow in the footsteps of great writers like James Joyce and William Faulkner? How about J.R.R. Tolkein?
Now's your chance. In this workshop, you will get to create a 5-7 entry dictionary of your very own language and use your new words to create a one-page story of your choosing. You will also draw one of your unique words to illustrate its meaning. Who knows who will be speaking your language in years to come... Bertho!
The Zebra Who Took the D Train
4 Wednesday sessions: May 9, 16, 23, 30 (2012)
6-7:30pm
Taught by 826NYC with Esther K. Smith
For ages 7-12
Everyone knows the story of the tortoise and the hare. You may have even heard of the scorpion and the frog. But do you know what happened to the zebra who took the D train? You will!
In this workshop, we will write our own unique fables about animals who get mixed up in some tricky situations and teach some great life lessons along the way.
Make 'Em Laugh Some More
2 Tuesday sessions: April 17, 24 (2012)
6-7:30pm
Taught by 826NYC
For ages 7-12
Calling all cutups and comics! April is joke-writing time. Join us for a two-session workshop that will result in a book of laughs to keep in your back pocket - for parties, recess, family dinners, and more!
From a Doomed Planet: A Superhero Is Born
4 Wednesday sessions: February 29, March 7, 14, 21 (2012)
6-7:30pm
Taught by 826NYC
For ages 7-11
How did your friendly neighborhood superhero become the mask-wearing crime fighter he or she is today? Maybe he was sent to Earth to save us from an evil genius. Perhaps she had a run-in with some power-granting extraterrestrials. Or what if it all started with a rabbit bite? Over four sessions, we will explore the origins of superheroes and write an extraordinary back story for a vigilante of our own.
Publish the Greatest Story Never Told, 2012
5 Sunday sessions: January 29, February 12, 26, March 11, 25 (2012)
12-2pm
Taught by 826NYC
For high school students
New Yorker. High School Student. Published Author? At this workshop, you can be all three. Working side-by-side with professional writers, you'll explore your voice in an original short fiction or non-fiction work.
In these sessions you'll share your unique perspective on the life of an NYC student, and then see your story printed in a book. A real book, with an ISBN! No two stories are alike, and our final product will reflect the diverse experiences of people across the city.
The workshop is free and will meet in five sessions (with additional meetings to prepare our publication!). Each student must attend all sessions and complete any additional work required.
2012: A Time Odyssey
3 Wednesday sessions: January 11, 18, 25 (2012)
6-7:30pm
Taught by Susan Meyer and Susan Voelker
For ages 8-12
2012 doesn't seem that strange to us today, but imagine if you were a time traveler transported here from hundreds or thousands of years in the past or future. If you were a caveman, would you wonder if all the mammoths had been run over by taxis? Or if you were a businessman from 2213 would you question why everyone is walking around when they be teleporting? Help us develop a collection of stories that are about the past, present, and future all at once!
