12:40 to 1:20 (Optional) Teens’ Essay Session “How to Write a Personal Essay” for magazines or college application. Brainstorm. Turn your challenges, triumphs, and discoveries into great reading!

WRITING INSTRUCTOR

Kat Dougherty is a regular at PCCWW, the adults’ writing workshop that partly overlaps with TeenSpeak. “Teens always bring important insights and energy to our intergenerational discussions,” Kat says. “I’m thrilled that my daughter will be attending this year.”

Kat will share two of her most successful, fun course topics with you. One is “Exploring Conflict in Fiction: Why We Hate It, Love It, and Must Have It.” Another of Kat’s sessions you can’t live without: “Find Your Voice: The Words You Choose and Why They Matter.”

Kat has completed two YA novels. In 2013, she landed a contract with our workshop agent for her fantasy, The Reluctant Stone Seeker. At our 2015 workshop, she’s submitting a new novel, Mutant. She summarizes the plot this way: “When sixteen-year-old Miranda is bitten by a mutant, her DNA is altered so that she is no longer human. But when she’s given the chance to repair her DNA, she faces a choice—save her own humanity, or save the mutant boy she has come to love.”

“This year’s TeenSpeak enrollees will get to read it and teach me!” Kat says. You’ll be able to read either sample pages or the whole novel. You'll also be challenged to encapsulate your own fiction in two sentences, as Kat has done. Try it now!

When Kat’s not writing, she’s riding her horse, gardening, or working on art projects. If you’re an early riser (haha), you’ll find her at the workshop magically making our breakfast appear!

Power writing with peers

Making unusual ice cream!