The Workshop
An 8-Week Personal Essay Workshop for High Schoolers
What's included
Your Studio Board — your own section of the shared digital studio where fragments, lines, and images accumulate week over week until the thread becomes visible
Your Notebook — a private Google Doc, just you and your Studio Guide, where your writing lives across the eight weeks
The Practice — a weekly writing prompt, two short sessions on your own time, in your doc
The Voices — one personal essay per week (Weeks 2–4), read before Tuesday, one thing pinned to the board before Monday night
The Session — 60 minutes on Zoom, every Tuesday, full cohort
The Read — before every session, your Studio Guide reads your Notebook and your board and walks in knowing where you are. Her notes are waiting in your doc before you arrive.
The Week 8 Share — the full cohort reads finished work aloud to each other
September 15 – November 3, 2026 · Every Tuesday · 4:00–5:00 PM Eastern · Live on Zoom · Cohort capped at 12 · Admission by application
Tuition & Payment
Founding Cohort: $700 (standard tuition of $850 begins Spring 2027). The founding rate is offered in exchange for an honest review from student and parent at the close of Week 8 — about 10 minutes, and it means a great deal to a new program.
Tuition is collected in full upon acceptance. Your card is authorized on submission and charged only if you are accepted. Applications are reviewed within 2 business days.
Cancellation & Refunds
More than 30 days before start: 75% refunded. 14–30 days: 50% refunded. Fewer than 14 days: no refund.
To cancel, reply to your acceptance confirmation email.
Before you apply
You don't need a project idea, a writing sample, or prior experience — just someone who writes, even loosely, even privately, and wants to find out what they actually have to say.
Not the right fit if you already have a specific project ready to build, prefer your topic decided for you, or can't commit to weekly Tuesday sessions.
Open to grades 10–12. Motivated 9th graders welcome to apply.