Courtney and Writopia Writers in Publishers Weekly!

The following blurb appears this week in Publishers Weekly! Yay, Courtney!

Thinking ‘Positive’

On the other side of the river, the launch party for author Courtney Sheinmel’s new novel, Positively (S&S, Sept.), was also held last Sunday, at Books of Wonder in Manhattan. Positively tells the story of Emmy, an HIV-positive 13-year-old who has just lost her mother to AIDS; Sheinmel is donating a portion of proceeds from the book to the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation. Sheinmel read from and signed copies of Positively at the event, which also featured a performance by 13-year-old singer/songwriter Jessarae. Here, Sheinmel signs copies of her book for a group of her students from the Writopia Lab, where she teaches fiction writing to aspiring authors.

And here is the rest of it.

Read more!

Writopia Lab Fall News!

We had a wonderful summer of workshopping and are gearing up for the fall. Some important, exciting news:

Fall Schedule
The Fall Workshop schedule is posted online. Workshops begin Monday, September 21st!! Kids join throughout the semester but register soon to make sure there is a spot for your child!

New Conveniences
You can register and pay for workshops online! If you haven't ever mailed up a registration form or registered online, please fill out our new online registration form at www.writopialab.org/sign-up.html. While checks are still preferred, you can now use your credit card or PayPal account to pay for all workshops and memberships at .

New Tax Benefits
We obtained our 501(c)3 status! This means that the amount paid for a workshop above $175 can be claimed as a tax deduction. For example, if you pay $525, you can claim $350 as a donation. This applies to all workshops you've taken in the past, too, and yes, you can file for the deduction retroactively! For our tax ID, please e-mail Jeremy.

New Forms of Writing Support
Writopia teachers will be available to work privately with 8th graders, helping them prepare for the essay component of high school tests. They will also be available to help high school seniors prepare their college essays. And we are thrilled to announce that Writopia Fellow, Courtney Zoffness, who taught at Yale through spring 2009, and currently is a professor of creative writing at Allegheny College, will serve as an adviser (free of charge) to Writopia alumni and Writopia high school seniors transitioning to the college writing and publishing scene.

New Location
We are in the process of negotiating a lease for our new, permanent Upper West Side location. If all goes well, workshops this year will be held on West 81st Street, between Columbus and Amsterdam Avenues. (We may also run a few workshops at our summer location, 550 West 110th street. Please inquire.)

New Challenges
Like everyone else, we were hit hard by this recession. We are growing in numbers, but but more and more families are choosing to pay reduced fees. If you can, please help us get through this challenging time by making a tax-deductible donation to Writopia Lab. Thank you so much.

Let Us Hear From You!
As always, please let me know if you have any questions or any special requests. Read more!