Young Adult Writers Program (YAWP): It Came From Right Next Door! Horror Generator

This class will be hosted remotely! You will be able to participate in class via Zoom videoconference from wherever you’re most comfortable. All you’ll need is a laptop or a phone! About 15 minutes before your class is scheduled to begin, you'll receive an email from your instructor with a link to join the class meeting via Zoom–no need to download anything or sign up for Zoom in advance! If you have questions about remote learning, please feel free to reach out to [email protected] for more information.

Class Description: From the Detroit of Lauren Beukes's Broken Monsters to the small-town America of Stephen King's Maine (perhaps most famous in It), from Jordan Peele's Get Out to Netflix's Stranger Things, it seems like the scariest monsters are always right next door. Why is it that so much horror focuses on the entry of the unknown and terrifying into the safety of the suburbs, the basement of the apartment, the attic of the rural farmhouse?

In this course, we'll explore the stereotypes and social forces that create and perpetuate these tropes. After that, we'll practice brainstorming short horror stories of our own. We'll break through the genre clichés in ways that should defamiliarize the familiar, invite the spooky into the every day, and leave you with ideas for writing short horror stories that make your reader afraid of what might be right around the corner—without the troubling tropes that so often befall writers in the genre.

Takeaways: Writers should expect to come away from this workshop with a new appreciation for the way horror can reflect our world in interesting and engaging ways. Writers will also have new brainstorming and drafting strategies, generate several story concepts, and write at least one strong start to a potential horror story. 

Who Should Register?
For writers ages 13 - 18 ONLY. Writing notebooks are available, but feel free to bring your own.

Remember, parents/guardians must also complete this permission form online before the start of the class. Otherwise, registrations could be voided and the cancellation policy will apply. If the student is 18, simply let us know at [email protected]

*If you are registering on behalf of your teen, add their email information in the “For a Friend or Child?” field on the right-hand side of the screen before you check out. This will send them a direct link and reminder to create their own profile with GrubStreet. 

(After adding the class to your cart, click “Checkout” and click “Add” next to “For a Friend or Child?” on the right-hand side to fill in their email. This is an easy way of linking the class to your child and encourages them to create their own account.)