October 2006-May 2007 
Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho

Get Lit!'s Young Writers Program is part of the Northwest's best literary festival and is produced by Eastern Washington University Press.

GET LIT! YOUNG WRITERS PROGRAM

Young Writers Program
Get Lit!'s Young Writers Program’s mission is to fuel the dreams of our region’s youngest writers, taking particular care to extend our programming to low-income and rural schools. Sending writers into schools exposes young people to the power of language, expands the strength and potential of their own writing, and gives them a writing experience that is meaningful and positive. The Young Writers Program shines a fresh and joyful light on regional literature, and through writing exercises helps students to develop their own voices and value their own perceptions of life.

Three levels of programming are offered: Writers in the Schools Day, Authors Tour of Schools, and Writers in Residence. While differing in delivery and duration, these programs generate enormous excitement about reading, writing and books. Participating authors bring to life the same lessons that English teachers work to deliver from September to June. Our authors and writers represent a variety of genres, including literary fiction and nonfiction, science fiction, poetry, children's books, young adult novels, journalism, and drama.

Writers in the Schools Day: a one-day, volunteer effort that has blossomed into a fine hands-on celebration of literature in Spokane. (Open to all schools)

Authors Tour of Schools sends local authors across northeastern Washington and northern Idaho into schools where geographic remoteness and/or tight funding normally preclude such appearances. (Open to rural and low-income schools)

Writers-in-Residence Project provides students with strong writing skills, the joy of self-discovery, and a meaningful experience with the writing process. This eight-month program immerses students in the thinking, dreaming and generation of ideas that make up the roots of all powerful writing. (Open to low-income and rural schools.)

Each fall, the Young Writers Program produces Get Lit!’s Teachers/Writers Dialogue, a forum for the exchange of perspectives and practical ideas for teaching writing. “It’s inspiring just to hear writers talk, and it behooves me as a creative writing teacher to learn more about an arena in which some of my students aspire to work,” said one attendee.

The Get Lit! Literary Festival offers those in the Northwest a grand opportunity to celebrate writing and story telling. It includes a literary kids' concert and poetry slams for youth and teens in its offerings that include author presentations and readings, writing workshops and panels, and other lively events.

For more information about the program, sponsoring or becoming a friend of the program, please eMail Marny Lombard, Get Lit!'s Young Writers Coordinator, at getlitkids@mail.ewu.edu

Attention High School Students :
Check out Get Lit!  writing workshops and panels on Saturday, April 22^nd from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Attending the panels is free, and high school students qualify for the student discount for workshop registrations.