WriteGirl News

Songwriters Bring Teen Writing to Life at Annual WriteGirl Songwriting Workshop
On March 11, 2023, teens became songwriters for the day! Nearly 100 WriteGirl teens and alums, many of whom previously would not have considered themselves songwriters at all, heard their words in a new light with the help of 11 accomplished guest songwriters and nearly 100 WriteGirl volunteers at WriteGirl’s 22nd Annual Songwriting Workshop and Showcase of Songs.

WriteGirl Hosts Writing Day at Natural History Museum
WriteGirl partnered with the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County to host a writing day on Saturday, March 18th, 2023.

WriteGirl Presents Professional Development Workshops for Teachers
WriteGirl Teaching Artists led two professional development workshops for teachers in February 2023, one at the Whittier Public Library and another as part of the LACOE (Los Angeles County Office of Education) Literacy Lifts Conference in Alhambra.

WriteGirl Inspires Teens in Uganda
As part of the international expansion WriteGirl has undertaken over the past two years, WriteGirl has begun facilitating creative writing workshops with a group of girls at a school in Kampala, Uganda. We held our second online workshop with them on Sunday, January 29, 2023.

We Write the Songs: WriteGirl Songwriting Workshop and Showcase of Songs
“Songs happen when words alone are not enough,” WriteGirl Executive Director and songwriter Keren Taylor said during the opening remarks of WriteGirl’s 21st Annual Songwriting Workshop and Showcase of Songs on March 19, 2022. “When the feelings are enormous and powerful, it is music that is needed to lift those words off the page and soar them into our heart because of the super power of words and music, together, to move us.”

Their Voice in Verse: WriteGirl Songwriting Workshop & Showcase of Songs
“Write about something you absolutely must tell the world,” WriteGirl Executive Director and songwriter Keren Taylor told the 134teens at the start of WriteGirl’s 20th Annual Songwriting Workshop on Feb. 20, 2021.

WriteGirl Goes Digital: The First-Ever Online WriteGirl Workshop
On Saturday, March 28th, WriteGirl mentees, volunteers and staff gathered in their living rooms, bedrooms and anywhere with good natural light for WriteGirl's first online workshop! We had 241 participants, our largest WriteGirl workshop EVER! This fully digital Journalism workshop spotlighted the importance of truth in media during this uncertain time, and featured fun writing activities like preparing an interview for a big story on sheepherding. Soapbox, a WriteGirl tradition, proved to be the highlight of the afternoon as girls took center-screen to rant and rave about their new stay-at-home normal. Stay-tuned as WriteGirl continues to provide more digital content to keep inspiring teens from a distance.

Words of Art: WriteGirl Poetry Workshop at Otis College
“This is not a poetry workshop,” WriteGirl Executive Director Keren Taylor told the room comprised of nearly 100 mentors and 100 teen girls, with notebooks and pens perched on their laps.
“This is a workshop about power,” Taylor continued. “With poetry, you can do anything you want.”
WriteGirl held its 19th Annual Poetry Workshop on Dec. 7th at Otis College of Art & Design in Westchester.

Finding their superpowers: WriteGirl Graphic Novel Workshop at DC Comics
A statue of Batman was looming in the shadows as the elevator doors opened to a dimly lit hallway. Just around the corner was what resembled a spaceship, but what was actually the DC Comics headquarters at the Warner Brothers Studio in Burbank. The large room was swarming with WriteGirl mentees, alums and interns along with DC Comics’ female writers, artists and editors. Colored lights radiated from the ceiling, lighting up the faces of WriteGirl participants, as the first ever WriteGirl Graphic Novel Workshop at DC Comics commenced.

WriteGirl Empowers Ramona Opportunity High School Students to Find Their Creative Voices
You could hear a pen drop as the girls filled the school library. It was the first day of the Season 18 WriteGirl workshop at Ramona Opportunity High School, December 12, 2018. Although it was the third year WriteGirl has hosted its workshop at the school, many of the girls were new to WriteGirl and unsure of what to expect.

WriteGirls Aren't Afraid of Making a Scene
There was an alien, asking a heartbroken guy about the meaning of love. A girl, confronting her mother in a department store changing room. A group of AV Club nerds, nervously welcoming a new girl into the fold. A psychopath, reaching out for one last chance. We learned about these characters’ wants, needs and foibles. We laughed. We were moved. And yes, maybe a few of us shed a tear.

Writing to a Rhythm: WriteGirl Songwriting Workshop
“Songs happen when words alone are not enough,” WriteGirl Executive Director Keren Taylor told an audience of nearly 200 girls and women writers at the 18th Annual WriteGirl Songwriting Workshop.
Held at The Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens on Feb. 23, 2019, WriteGirl teens and their mentors began the day by walking through the vibrant gardens and using the sights, smells and sounds to spark their creativity.

A Day of Poetry Play
Who says poetry has to be stuffy? That’s what Workshop Director Kirsten Giles asked a roomful of WriteGirl mentees and mentors at the Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens on Jan. 26, 2019. She was kicking off WriteGirl’s annual Poetry Workshop, a day that proved to be inspiring, educational and fun… and the opposite of stuffy!

Inspiration at the Autry: WriteGirl Fiction Workshop
On December 2nd, a blue-skied and bracingly chilly Sunday, WriteGirl mentors and mentees traveled from all over LA to participate in the 2018 Fiction Writing Workshop at the Autry Museum of the American West.

18 acclaimed singer-songwriters come together to help girls
Guided by WriteGirl mentors and acclaimed women singer-songwriters, WriteGirl teens learned the tenets of songwriting and gained inspiration for their lyrics in the gardens and art galleries of The Huntington on March 3, 2018.

WriteGirl partners with ad agency for Advertising, Advocacy & Blogging Workshop
We had a spectacular Advertising, Advocacy & Blogging Workshop on March 11th at the LA offices of ad agency 72andSunny! Thank you to the women writers at 72andSunny who volunteered their time to teach our girls about advocacy messaging! Thanks to all of our WriteGirl mentees for boldly sharing your voices! And thanks to Rubio's for a fantastic lunch! We hope you love these photos as much as we do!

WriteGirl holds first Poetry Mini-Workshop and Reading in Larchmont
Poetry was our jam this spring as WriteGirl mentees produced verse after vibrant verse for our annual Poetry Drive, culminating in a mini-workshop and reading at Chevalier’s Books on Larchmont Blvd. on May 14.

CLICK: WriteGirl holding summer photography/writing workshops at The Huntington
Calling all teen girls! Join WriteGirl this summer for FIVE writing and photography workshops at The Huntington Library & Botanical Gardens. You will learn some great photo techniques and we will guide you through some fun writing activities inspired by the gardens and artwork. The series will wrap up with an exhibition of YOUR photography and writing on August 13th.

Building character: The WriteGirl Character & Dialogue Workshop
Building characters and constructing dialogue was the focus for 82 enthusiastic WriteGirl mentees and 70 dedicated mentors who attended the Character & Dialogue workshop at the Linwood Dunn Theater on Apr. 16. Professional screenwriters helped the girls craft their stories, honing their screenwriting skills before professional actors brought those words to life on stage.

You’ve Got the Music In You: 15th Annual Songwriting Workshop
Guided by 19 expert guest artists and singer-songwriters, our girls were encouraged to find the song within at the 15th annual WriteGirl Songwriting Workshop.