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Writing Summer Camps for High School Students

Emerging Writers Institute 10th-12th


The Emerging Writers Institute™ creative writing camp is a summer writing program for teens. Rising 10th-12th graders experience a unique curriculum designed to develop and support students’ imaginative writing across literary genres. Immersive workshops in fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry encourage students to challenge themselves technically and artistically as they discover their own literary voices. Through our intensive MFA-style workshops and engaging literary outings, EWI offers a rigorous and challenging writing experience for students. Supported by the guidance of experienced authors and instructors, young writers hone their craft in a collaborative environment. Students will learn through guided daily writing workshops, one-on-one instructor evaluations, group editing sessions, and creative presentations of their work. Our unique program lets young writers from around the world form and sustain literary friendships that can last a lifetime.  The program culminates in students presenting their work and having it published in our literary anthology.  


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Note: In order to attend the EWI, students must demonstrate their potential as writers by submitting a creative writing sample in any of the four major areas of focus. This program assumes that its students possess a significant understanding of the English language and are prepared to employ this familiarity in inspired and inventive ways. Students should be writing at or above grade level and be eager to continue to hone their literary skills and voice.  

Education Unlimited offers both in-person and online options of its popular Emerging Writers Curriculum.


ONLINE: Online Emerging Writers 10-12 attendees may choose between three majors: fiction, non-Fiction, and poetry.  Students may repeat the course up to three times during the summer doing each of the three majors once.  The online courses are each one week in length. To learn more about the online version of this program,click here.

In-Person: In-person Emerging Writers 10-12 courses are each two weeks in length and will be held at UC Berkeley, Stanford, and UCLA in Summer 2024.  During the course, students will explore all three majors (fiction, non-fiction, and poetry), but will select one major to focus on.  They will complete their final capstone work in this area.   Please read below to find out more about our on-campus Emerging Writers program. 


Emerging Writers Institute creative writing camp is a two-week summer writing program for teens. Rising 10th-12th graders experience a unique curriculum designed to develop and support students’ imaginative writing across literary genres. This creative writing summer program encourages students to challenge themselves technically and artistically through guided daily writing workshops, one-on-one instructor evaluations, group editing sessions, and creative presentations of their work. Similar to our program for younger writers, students are challenged through small group seminars. In these seminars, and at daily writing workshops, students investigate the fundamentals of storytelling and discover how to read like writers. Writers will also read and experiment with new sub-genres in a safe, exploratory environment. Scheduled writing time and one-on-one instructor evaluations help students develop good writing habits that will serve them year-round. By the end of the two-week , students will share polished pieces for publication in our literary anthology.  Copies of the anthology will be mailed to families at the end of the summer. 

What makes our summer creative writing programs so distinctive?
  • With a curricular emphasis on expressive writing as a process rather than in rules or formulas - students will discover and refine their own voices

  • The inclusion of critical reading exercises as an essential tool for growth

  • Seminars to ready students' work for professional submission to youth publications, such as The Claremont Review, The Writer's Slate, Stone Soup, and Teen Ink

Specific Skill Development

This creative writing summer program encourages students to challenge themselves technically and artistically through guided daily writing workshops, one-on-one instructor evaluations, group editing sessions, and creative presentations of their work. Emphasis is placed on expressive writing as a process rather than in rules or formulas. Instructors consistently encourage students to discover and refine their own unique voices. We know that successful writers are also critical and voracious readers; as a result, the inclusion of reading exercises and analysis are woven into the program as an essential tool for growth.

Curriculum & Environment


Students have three blocks in the day. The first block is called Read Like a Writer; Write Like a Reader. They build skills, do generative writing exercises, read mentor texts, and practice with different types of voices and styles. The second block is called Genre Exploration where students learn about, read and try out the writing of different sub-genres, such as Science Fiction and Thriller. Finally, each day ends with Writers Block, where students work on their capstone piece, have one on one conferences with their instructor, and workshop their piece with peers.

This Year's Writers Blocks

In EWI, Students select a major focus area called a Writer’s Block. In each Writer’s Block, students read classic and contemporary examples of the genre, craft and hone their writing composition, and prepare to present their piece to an audience of readers and listeners.

    • Short and Sweet: Short Story Seminar (includes playwrighting) 
    • Well-Versed: Poetry Seminar
    • The Real Word: Nonfiction Seminar
















For maximum options in summer 2024, this program will be offered in-person at West coast locations, as well as online!

To register for the Emerging Screenwriters Institute, please follow the below steps

  • Click "Apply Now" on the top right of this screen.
  • Follow the prompts to enter parent and student information on screens 1 and 2.
  • On screen 3, select the following options:
    • Camp Category: Emerging Writers Institute
    • Camp Name: Emerging Writers Institute 10-12
    • Camp Session: Select the Session you prefer
    • Camp Major: Select a Camp Major: Fiction/Non-Fiction/Poetry
    • Price Option: Select Online Camp, Extended Day Camp or Overnight Camp




Program Grades Location Start Date End Date Price Options Register
Emerging Writers Institute 10th-12th 10 - 12 Online Jun 10, 2024 Jun 14, 2024 Enroll
Emerging Writers Institute 10th-12th 10 - 12 UC Berkeley Jun 23, 2024 Jul 6, 2024 Enroll
Emerging Writers Institute 10th-12th 10 - 12 Online Jun 24, 2024 Jun 28, 2024 Enroll
Emerging Writers Institute 10th-12th 10 - 12 UCLA Jul 7, 2024 Jul 20, 2024 Enroll
Emerging Writers Institute 10th-12th 10 - 12 Online Jul 8, 2024 Jul 12, 2024 Enroll
Emerging Writers Institute 10th-12th 10 - 12 Stanford University Jul 21, 2024 Aug 3, 2024 Enroll
Emerging Writers Institute 10th-12th 10 - 12 Online Jul 22, 2024 Jul 26, 2024 Enroll

Price Options for Emerging Writers Institute 10th-12th

Day Camp $995

Price Options for Emerging Writers Institute 10th-12th

Extended Day Camp $4,585
Overnight Camp $5,350

Price Options for Emerging Writers Institute 10th-12th

Day Camp $995

Price Options for Emerging Writers Institute 10th-12th

Extended Day Camp $4,585
Overnight Camp $5,350

Price Options for Emerging Writers Institute 10th-12th

Day Camp $995

Price Options for Emerging Writers Institute 10th-12th

Extended Day Camp $4,585
Overnight Camp $5,350

Price Options for Emerging Writers Institute 10th-12th

Day Camp $995

Click here for a downloadable information sheet. 

Don’t see a class you want in your time zone? Check other time zones to flexibly fit your needs!

Click Here to View Sample ON-CAMPUS Schedule Click Here to View Sample ONLINE Schedule

Online Camp Schedule High School Emerging Writers Institute

Pacific TimeEastern Time
Monday - Thursday9:00 am to 3:00 pm
10:00 am to 4:00 pm
Includes a 1-hour lunch break plus shorter 10-15 min breaks
Friday9:00 am to 12:00 pm
10:00 pm to 1:00 pm
Includes 10 min breaks as needed

*Poetry and Non-Fiction courses may run 11am to 5pm EST and 8-4pm PST in order to merge Pacific and Eastern time zone students.

*Schedule subject to change - Final schedule posted in Google Classroom the Wednesday prior to the start of class.



On-Campus Sample 10th-12th Grade Schedule

8:00 am Breakfast in the dining hall (overnight campers)
9-9:15 am Extended day camper check-in
9:15 am "Major: class (fiction, non-fiction, poetry, or play-writing)
11:0 am Writing Workshop
12:30 pm Lunch in the dining hall (included for all campers)
1:45 pm Elective #1
3:15 am Elective #2
5:30 pm Dinner in the dining hall (included for all campers)
6:30 pm Group Seminar
8:00 pm Evening recreation activities
9:00 pm Extended day camper check-out
10:00 pm Floor check
10:30 pm Room check

Education Unlimited believes in small-group, immersive learning with subject matter experts and experienced teachers. We strive to provide industry-leading instruction to all of our students and hold all staff to the highest possible standards. Staff assignments vary by program and location. Some of our recent staff members for this program include:

Elizabeth Bull, MFA - Camp Director

Elizabeth Bull is a writer and filmmaker. Her writing has been published in various journals, including the Los Angeles Review of Books, H.O.W. Journal, Third Coast Magazine, and Gulf Coast; her work has been nominated for two Pushcart Prizes.  Her involvement in television and film began at AMC Networks, where she worked in original series development during the creation of “Mad Men” and “Breaking Bad.” In addition to writing and directing several short films, she co-wrote the feature film “Song of Sway Lake,” released in the fall of 2017. Elizabeth has also co-produced two feature films and a television series for Fuse.

Elizabeth received her Bachelor’s degree from the School of Theater, Film, and Television at the University of California Los Angeles. She also holds a Master in Fine Arts degree in Creative Writing (Fiction) from The New School in New York City.  In addition, she has studied directing at the Dun Laoghaire Institute of Art, Design, and Technology in Dublin, Ireland on a Rotary International Fellowship.  She has taught writing at the University of Zadar in Croatia on a Fulbright Fellowship.  Elizabeth has been with Education Unlimited since 2010.

Arlene Plevin, PhD - Instructor

Arlene Plevin is an Emerita Professor at Olympic College where she taught creative writing, technical writing, and composition. She received her Ph.D. in English from the University of Washington and her MFA in Poetry from the Writer’s Workshop at the University of Iowa. Plevin was awarded two Fulbrights (India and Taiwan), where she taught writing, ecocriticism, and the literature of immigration and diaspora. Nominated for Washington State Environmental Educator of the Year, she has presented at numerous national and international conferences on sustainability and modern slavery. Her poetry, creative nonfiction, and academic work has appeared in journals, anthologies, and academic collections. Recently, one of her poems circled the city of Seattle as part of their Poetry on the Buses program. As a former travel writer, Plevin’s work includes a column on bicycling and a now very-out-of print book on bicycling for a division of Fodor’s. Her background also includes being editor for both the National Wildlife Federation and the League of American Wheelman (now the League of American Bicyclists). She is an open water swimmer and has swum in Alaska.

Ploy Pirapokin, MFA - Instructor

Ploy Pirapokin is a writer and instructor currently teaching Nonfiction for the Creative Nonfiction Foundation.  She is also an adjunct instructor for the University of Los Angeles Extension program and does freelance training for The Writer, a global brand language agency.  Ploy has a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from San Francisco State University and a Bachelor’s degree in Communication Studies and English from the University of San Diego.  During her time at SFSU, Ploy lectured in Creative Writing and also worked as a Creative Writing Admissions Reader for the MFA and MA program.

Ploy’s own work has been featured in Tor.com, Apogee Journal, Entropy Magazine, the Bellingham Review, HYPHEN Magazine and more.  She has received multiple Pushcart Prize nominations for her work. She is a Writing by Writers Workshop at Tomales Bay fellow, a Community of Writers at Squaw Valley scholar, and was a Visiting Writer at the New York Mills Regional Cultural Center.  She has been the recipient of grants and fellowships from the San Francisco Arts Commission, the Ragdale Foundation, the Anderson Center, the Brush Creek Foundation for the Arts, Kundiman and others.

Brett Shanley, MFA - Instructor

Brett Shanley is a writer and English lecturer currently pursuing a PhD at Columbia University in New York City.  Prior to his doctoral work, Brett received his Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing - Nonfiction from The New School in NYC.  In addition to his dissertation research, which looks at methods of promoting sincere engagement between undergraduate writers and the work that they produce, Brett lectures in advanced writing at Pace University.  Brett has been teaching in the classroom and at academic camps since 2012, and it was these experiences that inspired his dissertation topic. He has been an instructor with Education Unlimited since 2014, teaching both creative and academic writing.

In addition to his advanced degrees, Brett also has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Anthropology and German from University of Oregon.  In the rare moments that Brett is not working on his research or teaching, his favorite thing to do is enjoy time in New York City’s famed Central Park with his fiance and their dog Huxley.