About The Writing & Publishing Program
at Walnut Hill School for the Arts

Writing & Publishing offers talented high school students
intensive, craft-based, studio instruction in writing alongside
real-world training in literary editing and publishing.
Each side of the program provides a healthy context for the other.
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[W&P Faculty] ……… [Program Details] ….>… [Contact]

Writing
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Expert instruction and mentorship in
Verse, Fiction, and Playwriting by writers who publish and win awards in their respective genre.
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Small studio courses (6 – 10 writers on average) focused on “Sustainable Practices” that aim for long-run artistic and intellectual development.
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Emphasis on generic cross-fertilization: writers don’t “major” in a single genre; they complete studio courses in all three, and learn to appreciate and exploit the differences among them.
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Close reading and emulation of high-quality writing leads to construction of a distinct writerly “lineage.” Students do not write like their peers—
nor like their teachers.
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If there is no wind, row:
Programmatic emphasis on active pursuit of the next vision and/or revision.
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Training in vocal performance of texts to help develop the ear of both the writer and the reader in each student.
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Senior Tutorials: one-on-one courses in areas of special interest for Seniors in good standing. Recent subjects include The Sonnet, Postmodern Fiction, The Blues, and Dramatic Structure & Lyric Form.
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Discussion with visiting writers and regular excursions to readings and performances throughout the Boston area. Recent guests include John Irving, Derek Walcott, Brad Leithauser, Glynn Maxwell, Lloyd Schwartz, and Gjertrud Schnackenberg. Excursions include participation in the Geraldine R. Dodge Poetry Festival, the Massachusetts Poetry Festival, and the Massachusetts Young Playwrights’ Project.
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Writers who embrace the studio’s long-run approach win awards along the way— National Scholastic Prizes, Princeton Poetry and Playwriting Prizes, the Foyle Poetry Prize, and more.
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Publishing
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Hands-on instruction and mentorship in practical criticism, editing, and publishing, online and on paper, from a faculty with more than 20 years’ combined
experience with professional journals.
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Cooperative and independent work for
three entities: The Blue Pencil
(an award-winning traditional print magazine in its 75th volume),
The Blue Pencil Online, and
The Blue Pencil Press.
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Practical “round table” experience with development and maintenance of
a challenging, ethical, and sustainable editorial vision, the main focus of which
is to publish the best literary work in English by teenage writers
living anywhere in the world.
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Shared tasks, co-teaching, and graduated co-responsibility for soliciting new work from and corresponding with
young writers around the globe.
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Participation in the annual judging of
The Elizabeth Bishop Prizes and training
in the use of state-of-the-art online submission-management software.
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Reviewing and making group editorial decisions on submitted pieces; editing and copy-editing writers’ work; scheduling and composing feature articles; recording audio performances; conducting interviews;
and more.
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Discussion with visiting professional editors from national publications, such as
The Atlantic, Poetry, The Paris Review,
and The Best American Short Stories.
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Editors in the program graduate
with demonstrable, refined, practical skills and with résumés that reflect their
creativity and responsiveness to a
variety of editing and publishing
situations and opportunities.