July 7 – August 8, 2025 | 1 pm – 4 pm| Ages 8 – 13 | Tuition-free
Writers & Books’ tuition-free SummerWrite in the Branches Reading & Writing Camps for Youth are hosted by your neighborhood RPL branch libraries: Arnett, Lincoln, Phillis Wheatley, and Sully. Families facing economic challenges are especially encouraged to participate.
SummerWrite campers of all levels of ability find and share their unique voices, exercise creativity, grow in self-confidence, and make new friends. Along the way, they fine-tune the mechanics of writing, sharpen observation and critical thinking skills, and grow in empathy.
July 7 – 11: Young Authors Club
Phillis Wheatley Community Library | Taurus Savant, Teaching Artist Imagination takes hold as campers discover their inner authors. Activities include creative writing, drawing, team building, and exploring the library as a resource. An anthology created by the group will be displayed in the library’s Story Walk. Learn more and register to attend
July 14 – 18: Tales From Your Mind
Sully Branch Library | Wendy Low, Teaching Artist
Do you like fantasy, superhero adventures, sci-fi, animal tales, or realistic problem-solving stories? They all use many of the same skills of creating compelling characters, writing clear descriptions and exciting dialogue, and creating a series of scenes that move a plot along. Learn more and register to attend
July 28 – August 1: Graphic Novels–The World in Pictures & Words
Phillis Wheatley Community Library | Tracy Cretelle, Teaching Artist
With the library at their fingertips, campers immerse themselves in graphic novels focused on relevant, inspirational themes. They learn about storyboarding and more, then tell their own stories and design their own illustrations. Learn more and register to attend
July 28 – August 1: It Could Happen Here
Lincoln Branch Library | Wendy Low, Teaching Artist
Find the magic in the Lincoln Branch Library and the attached Toy Library. Give your character special abilities and/or powers. We will use our own magical, mystical, mythical, and/or sci-fi elements to put our characters into a plot filled with surprises. Learn more and register to attend
August 4 – 8 | Playwrights and Puppeteers
Arnett Branch Library | Simmi Wallace, Teaching Artist
Join us for a week-long exploration into the world of puppetry through hands-on making. We will learn all about puppetry, from its function as both an art form and a storytelling tool, to the mechanics of making our own marionettes. Learn more and register to attend
Learn more about, or register for, SummerWrite in the Branches, along with another 16 scholarship-supported SummerWrite camps by visiting the Writers & Books website
Accessibility
We welcome and encourage participation by people with disabilities and individuals from the Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing communities. To request accommodations, such as captioning, please email us at clarao@wab.org at least 10 days before the camp begins.
Group Size and Instructor Ratio
Camp sizes are kept small, generally with a ceiling of 12, to maximize group interaction and individual attention. Most camps are led by one adult teaching artist and one apprentice.
Final Presentations and Anthologies
Many camps have creative ways to celebrate participants’ works, including showcase presentations and digital anthologies. We email families about these opportunities to engage with campers’ achievements.
Questions? Please don’t hesitate to get in touch! Email clarao@wab.org.
MISSION Writers & Books promotes reading and writing as lifelong activities for people of all ages and backgrounds to enrich their lives and the intellectual, social, and cultural vibrancy of their communities.
VALUES We believe in the power and importance of the written word; in celebrating the written word as a tool for communication and an art form; that storytelling is a vital aspect of the human experience that unites humanity; that reading builds empathy and brings people together; and in creating a safe space for voices of all backgrounds, beliefs, origins, and
abilities.
JUSTICE, EQUITY, DIVERSITY, ACCESSIBILITY & INCLUSION STATEMENT Writers & Books commits to an antiracist philosophy and practice. We commit to making our programs welcoming and accessible to readers and writers from all backgrounds. We commit to continually educating ourselves and to transforming our organization in support of justice, equity, diversity, accessibility, and inclusion. In our program of literary services, we commit to amplifying marginalized voices throughout our community and resisting the legacies of systemic racism and discrimination that have both formed and undermined our city. As a literary arts organization, we understand that silence is complicity.
WRITERS & BOOKS | 740 UNIVERSITY AVENUE, ROCHESTER, NY 14607 | WWW.WAB.ORG
