Ann Arbor publisher prints young people's work through free workshop series

Local youth will see the fruits of their literary efforts in print soon, thanks to Ann Arbor-based publisher Dzanc Books. The publisher is wrapping up its first season of Dzanc House youth programming, in which young participants create postcard poems and zines through a series of games, prompts, and activities.

Both the three- to five-week Roots & Wings program for elementary youth and the EmpowerED program for middle and high school students are free and offered seasonally throughout the year. This fall, both workshops took place at the Whittaker branch of the Ypsilanti District Library. This winter, and the upcoming spring and summer, workshops will be running at Dzanc House and Gallery Space near downtown Ypsi.

The elementary school students learn collage and other techniques to produce postcard poems, while the high school students write, illustrate, and edit a zine. Dzanc was able to offer these youth workshops with funding from the Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation and curriculum from the Flying Object Initiative for Young Writers.

Charlene Choi, Dzanc House's director of youth programs, calls it a "remarkable opportunity to provide free arts literary programs for kids."

She says the first cohort's zine had gone to press as of the first week in November. The program will host a concluding reception and reading Nov. 10 at the Whittaker Road branch of the library.

Choi says the short timeframe of the workshop series is meant to provide an introduction and a chance to "uncover a love of literature."

"For five Sundays, we just give kids the time and space and permission to play with language," Choi says. "And being attached to Dzanc Books, it means that, each session, we can actually publish their work with a real press."

Upcoming winter and spring workshops are still open, but there are limited spots. Choi encourages interested youth to sign up as soon as possible. For more information, visit Dzanc Books' youth programs page or email youthprograms@dzancbooks.org.

Sarah Rigg is a freelance writer and editor in Ypsilanti Township and the project manager of On the Ground Ypsilanti. She joined Concentrate as a news writer in early 2017 and is an occasional contributor to other Issue Media Group publications. You may reach her at sarahrigg1@gmail.com.

Photo courtesy of Dzanc Books.