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Miami Book Fair Sponsors Speak Up — a creative writing and performance program for teens
For the next few weeks, the Miami Book Fair International is sponsoring a series of free creative writing workshops led by published authors. The goal is to guide the teens through the writing process.
Ismery Pavon, program coordinator with the Miami Book Fair, says the virtual workshops are geared for kids aged 13-19. Each workshop is stand alone, so the teens can pick and choose which ones to attend, or they can participate in them all.
The current series began September 23 and will run each Saturday at 3 p.m. through November 4. If students miss this set, new sessions are programed several times a year.
“We usually offer different genres; poetry, non-fiction, and contemporary fiction for young adults,” Pavon says. “They get the additional writing skills, the niche writing, they cannot get in their (school) classes.”,
The sessions this fall include authors Aisha Saeed, Patricia Park and Ann Liang, and a couple to be announced. Past instructors include Stephen McCrained, Joan He, Jasminne Mendez, Mark Oshiro, Emily Wibberly and Austin Siegemund-Broka.
The sessions are interactive.
“They can interact through the chat, we are keeping it with the virtual and completely free,” Pavon says. “The goal has always been to elevate the students and their creative writing.
They get professional feedback. They get a chance to just write.”
Typically, approximately 15 students attend each session. The make-up of the attendees changes from week to week resulting in a mix of writing abilities.
“It’s open to all students,” Pavon says.
The majority of the students come from South Florida, but they can come from all over the country, and some have attended from outside the county.
There is also a mentorship program for those students who want to do more with their creative writing. One of the students in the mentorship program is Valentina Mena. She attended the six Summer Camp sessions and has completed four sessions with her mentor, Jennifer Maritza McCauley.
“Both of these experiences have been very transformative and useful,” Mena says. “I have learned useful tips when it comes to creating my stories and shaping my thoughts into the writing process. I learned how to edit my previous works through forms and techniques such as expanding or cutting; and I also learned how to challenge my imagination by producing poems from prompts in a short amount of time.”
Mena has maintained contact with two authors, Kip Wilson and McCauley. She says they have taught her the most.
She connects with her mentor to work on new poems.
“She gives me prompts and poems from other artists to give me inspiration every class, and I create my poems based on my themes and goals, Mena says. “I like how the mentorship offers a personalized experience for each session, which especially helps me to accomplish my goals as a writer.”
She finds the program is a good opportunity to expand her creativity and potential as a poet.
“I like that this program is dynamic and easy going; everything is online and very organized for the understanding of everyone. Every person involved is willing to help you to reach your goals.
I like to write free verse poems, mainly about my experiences because I can express my thoughts and emotions to others in a deeper way. I also have a strong relationship with journaling and my diary, where I began expressing myself before discovering the art of poetry.”
For information go to: https://www.miamibookfair.com/speakup/
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