SOUTH COAST WRITERS CENTRE
YOUNG WRITERS PROGRAM
For young people aged 10 to 25, since 2014.
The Young Writers Program at the South Coast Writers Centre is a thriving program that has been running since 2014, founded by SCWC member and local multi-award-winning author Helena Fox. The YWP offers creative writing workshops for young people from 10 through to 25 years of age and is built on active, workshop-based learning and practice.
In each workshop, writers respond to creative writing prompts, learn about elements of craft, share their work, and critique their peers. The aim of the YWP is to be both a class and community, where young writers can develop their craft and create work they are proud of, all in a relaxed, inclusive, and supportive space.
Junior and Intermediate Young Writers Groups
Mondays at Shellharbour Library (ages 10-13) and Coledale Hall (ages 12-15)
Tuesdays at Wollongong Library (ages 10-13)
In these workshop groups, students respond to prompts every week, read out their work and give each other feedback. There is a focus on developing the craft of writing, learning new ideas and techniques, and exploring all kinds of writing in a fun and supportive way.
Senior Young Writers Group
Thursdays at Wollongong Library and University of Wollongong (ages 14-18)
In these workshops, students delve deeply into the craft of writing through a broad range of writing prompts, and further develop their editorial skills by creating longform work and revising works in progress. They read and critique each other's work and the work of diverse authors and continue to build their unique writer's voice, all in a safe and inclusive space.
Young Writers Collective
Fortnightly Sundays at University of Wollongong (ages 18-25)
Co-founded by Helena Fox and YPW graduate Rhys Lorenc, the YWC is a self-directed writing group, where emerging creative writers collaborate, write together, share their work, offer and receive feedback, and explore elements of craft they love. The philosophy of the Collective is to offer stimulating writing prompts, provide thoughtful and constructive feedback, support each other's writing, and build a diverse and inclusive community of young writers in the Illawarra. YWC writers also get the opportunity to lead workshops, participate in public readings, and be published in the YWC Anthology.
This is a closed group. Those interested in enrolling should contact Helena at helena.fox@southcoastwriters.org
We accept Service NSW Creative Kids vouchers for YWP enrolments
Single trial sessions available; late enrolments welcome
Meet the Team
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HELENA FOX
FOUNDER AND FACILITATOR
Helena Fox is the founder of SCWC’s Young Writers Program and the co-founder of the Young Writers Collective. Her debut novel, How It Feels To Float, won the 2020 Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Young Adult Literature and the Victorian Premier’s Award. Her second novel, The Quiet and The Loud, was shortlisted for the CBCA Children's Book of the Year Award for Older Readers and the ABIA Book of the Year Award for Older Children. Her latest novel, Loneliness is a Molecule, was recently released by Picador Australia to widespread acclaim.
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RHYS LORENC
FACILITATOR AND YWC CO-FOUNDER
Rhys Lorenc is a local writer, teacher, graduate of University of Wollongong (with a double major in Creative Writing and English Literatures) and art nerd, with a particular interest in speculative fiction. A long-time member of the Young Writers Program, Rhys co-founded the Young Writers Collective with Helena Fox in 2020 and has been leading workshops for both the Collective and the YWP for over two years. Their writing can be seen in the Young Writers Collective anthology, Uncommon Words, and in Altercation Magazine.
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REBECCA MONTELEONE
FACILITATOR
Rebecca Monteleone is an avid reader, aspiring writer, and lifelong grammar nerd. She studied Creative Writing, French, and Linguistics at the University of Wollongong and has worked as a French tutor, freelance editor, and bookseller. Rebecca has loved participating in writing workshops since she was in university and was recently published in the Young Writers Collective anthology, Untestable Questions.
The SCWC Young Writers Groups and Collective regularly publish their work in zines, available to read for free online, and three anthologies to date, all available to purchase from the SCWC shop:
