Tupelo Press Teen Writing Center

Jeffrey Levine, founder, Editor-in-Chief and Publisher of Tupelo Press, suggested that we look for a way to support young writers in the community

Local youth noted that there were not many locations that welcomed young teens

Raennah Lorne introduced the idea of a teen writing center, and connected us with Elizabeth Derby, and Jacquelyn Lazo. More young women writers jumped on board, and …

The Beginning

Who we are!

Elizabeth Derby

Kim BassingKirsten Miles

Jacquelyn Lazo

Kat Zantow

Raennah Lorne

In working with the Tupelo Press 30/30 project, month after month poets expressed the same thing, they felt validated after writing with their peers for a month…

We looked at the wonderful 826 Valencia Project and many other inspiring programs.

Ultimately we found that none satisfied the broad reach we sought.

We decided to ask our most important stakeholders what they wanted….

What is our model?

Our young writers!

Exposure to writers of all genresAn understanding of where they might take their

writing, and where their writing might take themMore writing workshops – to dig deep into what

they loveTo write with their peers, within a community –To know that this art they love has worth – is

worth supporting like any other art writing contests to aspire toAn understanding of publishingTo develop confidence in reading their work aloud

What do students want?

What we are doing!

What we want to do!

And this! Much more of this!

We want to meet Aline!National Student PoetFrom Virginia

 

Since 1923, teens like Truman Capote, Richard Avedon, and Myla Goldberg earned their first accolades from the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards. Who’s next?

They are celebrating 90 years of creativity!Do we want to be a Regional Affiliate, or start

our own, local contest?

We want a chance to BE Aline!

What we need in the short run: Funds to seed :

Our winter chapbook for member teens

Travel funds for the National Student Poet

Stipends for talented instructors for 2014

A spring anthology for all area teens

A local advisory board to help us identify : to guide and help us make good

decisions provide the best incubator for

young writers that we can To identify funds to keep program

quality high

$1,000 $400 Letterpress covers, perfect binding!

$500- $8,500 $9,600 $15,000 - We want to keep

printing local, and are working on discounts – we want there to be no barrier for a child to participate.

We foresee the anthology being a fundraiser which will partially pay for the next year’s anthology, and by the third year pay for itself and hopefully some programming

Crossroads – Our Winter Chapbook

A central location that young writers can call their own

High quality workshops youth can register for, modeled after The Lighthouse, that take our teens from generating new work through the publication process

A teen reading series that spreads across town and builds confidence.

A local senior portfolio contestAn annual anthology of teen writing

Our Vision:

To foster, discover, and develop emerging writers, and connect them as a part of the larger writing community, facilitate their ability to take advantage of our local literary resources, and develop resources where they are needed. To announce to and through support of our youth that writing is as important as sports fields, theaters, art galleries and centers, and skating rinks…

Mission Statement:

We have produced wonderful programming at low costs through volunteer efforts exclusively, for a very small, charter group of students

We want to reach all teens in all circumstances without barriers

In order to do that we need more than a volunteer effort to provide consistent and dependable, quality workshops

Every resource is valuable to us!

Help us identify people to guide our growing organization

Help us find Funds for programming and publishing

Spread the word to area families and teensHelp us eventually identify space as we work

with the Writerhouse to evaluate a best fit for a permanent location for our teens to make their own

You Can: Show them we value writing as an art!

To find out more about our program visit our website at: twc.tupelopressva.org

To contact us: twc@tupelopress.org

Kirsten Miles – Directorkmiles@tupelopress.org(434) 960-5193

Contact Us:

Grateful thanks for our supporters

The Virginia Foundation for the Humanities

The Writerhouse The Virginia Arts of the Book

Center The Piedmont Council for the Arts The Virginia Festival of the Book Ashlawn Highlands

Mona Lisa Pasta Gearhardts Albemarle Baking Company Breadworks The Twisted Branch Tea Bazaar Whole Foods Market Street Winery