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Spring Break Young Writers' Camps

Join us during spring break for a day camp for young writers, in-person at the Highlands United Church in Edmonton or online!

$140.00 CAD
$

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$140 Base Price
+ $NaN YouthWrite Camp Experience
+ $NaN If Online, please select how many workshops
+ $NaN If Online, please tell us which day or days.
+ $NaN After School Care (Live camp only)
+ $NaN Soul to Sole with Masani St. Rose
+ $NaN How to Poet with Shima Robinson
+ $NaN Add a donation (with our thanks)
+ $NaN Participant Legal Name
+ $NaN Birthdate (Day/Month/Year)
+ $NaN Age
+ $NaN Grade Completed as of June 2025
+ $NaN How did you hear about YouthWrite
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+ $0 Price Modifiers
$140 Subtotal
       

Registration is NOW OPEN!

ALL programs on this page can be paid for with SABYs: Spring Arts Bucks for Youth. Purchasing these programs with SABYs gives you a discount on these and all sorts of other arts programs in Edmonton. Check out the SABY program by clicking the image below.


If you are not paying with SABYs, please select e-transfer or cheque whenever prompted. WE ARE NOT ACCEPTING PAYPAL for these workshops and daycamps.


YouthWrite Spring Break Young Writers' Camps:

MARCH 24th - 25th: GRADES 4-6 
MARCH 26th - 27th: GRADES 6-9 

Highlands United Church, 11305 64 St NW, Edmonton, AB T5W 4H6
8:30am - 3:30pm
After-program care ($10) 3:30 pm - 5:30 pm for in-person only

- $140.00 for either two-day, in-person camp
($10.00 additional for after- program supervision)
OR PAY WITH 5 SABYs and SAVE $40.00!


ONLINE MARCH 24th-27th: Ages 10+

ONLINE via Zoom
10:00am-Noon(MST) for Ages 10+

- $80/workshop 
OR  PAY WITH 3 SABYs and SAVE $20/workshop!
Cost in SABYs is 3 SABYs/workshop (ie: 6 SABYs for 2 workshops etc)

Soul to Sole Dance

Masani Consulting Services
MARCH 24th & 25th: Ages 8-12
MARCH 26th & 27th: Ages 12-16

Highlands United Church, 11305 64 St NW, Edmonton, AB T5W 4H6
3:40pm - 4:40pm

- $50/workshop 
OR  PAY WITH 2 SABYs and SAVE $10/1-hour workshop!
Cost in SABYs is 2 SABYs/workshop (ie: 4 SABYs for 2 workshops etc)


How to Poet

Edmonton Poetry Festival
MARCH 24th-28th: Ages 15-19

Highlands United Church, 11305 64 St NW, Edmonton, AB T5W 4H6
1:30pm - 4:30pm

- $300
OR  PAY WITH 13 SABYs and SAVE $40!


  • If you'd like to pay with SABYs, please purchase SABYs first, then come back to register after you've received your special SABY email.
  • Registration closes Friday, March 21st at 7pm!

    Keep scrolling down for Instructor Bios and Class Descriptions!

Please note

All fees include a $40 non-refundable fee. No refunds will be made if registration is cancelled after March 21, 2025. YouthWrite Society Canada reserves the right to cancel courses and restrict enrollment. Courses, instructors and supervisors may be subject to change.





Meet your amazing instructors:

                                                                                                                     



 Lauren Seal  

YouthWrite Instructor - MARCH 24-25: Grades 4-6


Bio

Lauren Seal is a writer, book lover, and was St. Albert’s third Poet Laureate. She mentors the teen and young adult poets of SWYC, the Spoken Word Youth Choir, and performs in the adult incarnation of the group. Her debut novel-in-verse, Light Enough to Float, came out in October 2024 from Rocky Pond Books and won the Schneider Family Book Award for Best Young Adult Honor Book. As a former YouthWriter, Lauren is thrilled to now be teaching at YouthWrite!


Course

TBA...







Natasha Deen

YouthWrite Instructor - MARCH 27-28: Grades 6-9


Bio

Guyanese-Canadian Natasha Deen is a best-selling author and a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal. Natasha’s novels include In the Key of Nira Ghani (Amy Mather Teen Book Award), Spooky Sleuths: The Ghost Tree (School Library Journal Best Books of 2022). Her most recent YA title, The Signs and Wonders of Tuna Rashad was a Globe & Mail's Top 100 Books for 2022. When she’s not writing, she teaches Introduction to Children’s Writing with the University of Toronto’s SCS and spends an inordinate amount of time trying to convince her pets that she’s the boss of the house. Visit Natasha at www.natashadeen.com.


Course

TBA...



 

Marty Chan

YouthWrite Online Instructor - MARCH 24-27th, Ages 10+


Bio

Marty Chan writes theatre for adults, books for kids, and social media posts for fun. He wrote the bestselling thriller Haunted Hospital, the steampunk fantasy trilogy Ehrich Weisz Chronicles, the hilarious monster series, Barnabas Bigfoot, and many other novels for young readers. In 2024, the Writers’ Guild of Alberta awarded Marty the Golden Pen for his lifetime of contributions to Alberta’s literary scene. Marty continues to work and live in Edmonton with his wife Michelle and their two cats, Minnie and Hugo. Check out his work at martychan.com. 


Courses

March 24 - Heroes Assembled (with Cowboy Dan Schneider): Learn how to brainstorm your own superhero character, complete with powers and a secret identity they have to protect. Your story will fly after you apply the lessons in this workshop.
March 25 - Monster Mania (with Cowboy Dan Schneider): Whether you’re creating a were-beast or a zombie horde, this workshop can help you create magnificent monsters. Learn how to use settings to define your monsters and how to mutate the biological features of known animals into the traits of your creatures. Turn your nightmarish visions into the nightmares that will haunt your readers.
March 26 - Creepypasta Night (with Catherine Dubois): Love scary stories and urban legends? Learn how to write creepypastas. This workshop will share techniques to frighten readers and keep them on the edge of their seats from the first page to the last. 
March 27 - Fantastic Worlds (with Catherine Dubois): You, too, can build fantasy worlds that will delight readers. This workshop has tips on creating an imaginary world and making it seem as real as the house down the street. It will reveal techniques for shaping otherworldly settings and using characters to make your fantasy fiction come to life.





 Catherine Dubois

YouthWrite Online Instructor - MARCH 24-27th, Ages 10+


Bio

Catherine Dubois wanted to be a frog when she grew up, but settled for illustrator. She released her first graphic novel 'Fits None' in 2018 and has since been working as a comic artist and animator out of Edmonton, AB.


Courses

March 26th - Creepypasta Night (with Marty Chan): Love scary stories and urban legends? Learn how to write creepypastas. This workshop will share techniques to frighten readers and keep them on the edge of their seats from the first page to the last. 
March 27th - Fantastic Worlds (with Marty Chan): You, too, can build fantasy worlds that will delight readers. This workshop has tips on creating an imaginary world and making it seem as real as the house down the street. It will reveal techniques for shaping otherworldly settings and using characters to make your fantasy fiction come to life.



 Daniel J Schneider (He/Him)

YouthWrite Online Instructor - MARCH 24-27th, Ages 10+


Bio

Daniel J Schneider is a comic artist, illustrator and storyteller hailing from his family's cattle ranch near Edmonton. He holds the honour of being the first Comic shop Artist in Residence at Happy Harbour Comics and has been privileged to be teaching students about how to create comics for the past 10 years. You can find his work in comics such as Gamesworkshop’s “Reforged”, “The Saga of the Jack of Spades”, “Ape Court” and soon the webtoon Sire & Cub.


Courses

March 24th - Heroes Assembled (with Marty Chan): Learn how to brainstorm your own superhero character, complete with powers and a secret identity they have to protect. Your story will fly after you apply the lessons in this workshop.
March 25th - Monster Mania (with Marty Chan): Whether you’re creating a were-beast or a zombie horde, this workshop can help you create magnificent monsters. Learn how to use settings to define your monsters and how to mutate the biological features of known animals into the traits of your creatures. Turn your nightmarish visions into the nightmares that will haunt your readers.




 Masani St. Rose

Masani Consulting Services  - 3:40-4:40pm MARCH 24 & 25 Ages 8-12
                                                      - 3:40-4:40pm MARCH 26 & 27 Ages 12-16


Bio

Masani (she/her) is born and raised in Mohkinstis (Calgary, AB). She immersed into learning about her ancestral roots through dance at the tender age of three, specializing in West African and Carribean dance. Upon the introduction to dance, Masani found passion for the West African traditions, culture and style. Through training under Michèle Moss-Johnston at Decidedly Jazz Danceworks, she was able to build her foundation. Still working very closely with Michèle Moss-Johnston and various other artists from Guinea, West Africa, she finds every opportunity to take master classes from artists from various regions of Africa, including Congo, Uganda, Ghana, Mali, Guinea and Zimbabwe. Throughout the years, Masani has worked with various studios and professional groups across Canada. It is her mission to keep the art and culture alive from soul to sole!


Class

Soul to Sole - Explore the ancestral stories from Guinea, Conakry through movement. We will connect our words and movement from soul to sole. 





 Shima Robinson

Edmonton Poetry Festival Instructor - 1:30-4:30pm MARCH 24-28th, Ages 15-19



Bio

Shima Aisha Robinson (AKA Dwennimmen) is an amiskwaciy-wâskahikan (Edmonton) born student, community builder, poet and spoken word artist who embodies, with every literary effort, the ancient meaning of her chosen pen name. Dwennimmen is the name of an ancient African Adinkra symbol, which means strength, humility, learning and wisdom. She is the author of three books of poetry including HORN, and Denseverse, and Bellow. She has worked, advocated, and  represented our  community as Artistic Producer for the Edmonton Poetry Festival Society from 2022-23, was the founder and curator of the WORD*LAB spoken word series, the Learning and Outreach Manager for Fringe Theatre Adventures, and not least-of-all is the The City Of Edmonton’s Poet Laureate.


Course

 How to Poet -  This week-long series of workshops will cover a diverse range of topics related to the study of poetry ranging from the appreciation and understanding of poetry through to the exploration of your own artistic practice as a poet. Workshop activities will address development of style, publishing (both DIY and established publishers), producing poetry events, features, spoken word open-mics, Slam competitions, and more.




The Amazing Supers

Handpicked and multi-talented, YouthWrite Supers are the centre of our camps. As artists, teachers and mentors, they bring the X-Factor to YouthWrite.


MORE SUPERS TBA SOON!

SUPER Elise Leske 


Elise Leske is a past YouthWriter who now dabbles in comedy, camerawork, and crossword puzzles.  When she’s not on set or doing stand up, she likes painting and crushing her opponents in board games (she often loses).  She is also Gail’s favourite. 




SUPER Joey Lucius   


Joey Lucius is Rapid Fire Theatre’s Academy Director and resident cutie-pie. He has worked for all of your fav institutions: Edmonton Public Schools, the University of Alberta, and McDonalds. He’s a contributor to the online Beaverton, a Canadian Comedy Award winner, and an RFT stalwart for over 15 years. Joey is a sneaker head AND a birder (classic combo). He's also in love with YouthWrite and is Gail's favorite. 



SUPER Mason Repka


Mason is a YouthWrite Office Bee, working with Gail and Tania behind the scenes to make sure YouthWrite events go swimmingly. Mason loves to teach writing through Roleplay, whether it be Live Action or Table Top. He also owns and operates Dark Ascension LARP, and is, of course, Gail's favorite. 



Communications Manager Tania Gigliotti  


Tania is a powerhouse administrator, amazing client services manager, excel wizard, and an adorable little hobbit. She spends her spare time researching youth engagement in living history museums for the Young People are the Future project, as well as reading a lot of good books and eating a lot of good food. She's also Gail's favorite. 



Meet Your Coordinator


YouthWrite Director-Coordinator

Gail Sidonie Sobat 


is a multi-award-winning teacher and author, with twelve books for children, teens and adults, and a number of educational and academic articles. A Global News Woman of Vision and an Arts and Culture Citation Award recipient, she is the YouthWrite creator/coordinator, an international presenter, an instructor in the professional writing program at MacEwan University and in the Faculty of Education at U of A. Gail was The Writers’ Union of Canada Regional Representative for Alberta, NWT and Nunavut, and writer in residence with the Metro Edmonton Federation of Libraries

She has moved forty times in her life from Badlands to Siksika Nation Reserve to hideous suburbs to Istanbul to the Sunshine Coast to her writer’s garret in a century-old temperamental house. She adores all of her Supers & Coordinators equally, and loves YouthWrite like a Madwoman!