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  • Stories of Becoming: Crafting Young Adult Romance (Summer 2026)

Summer 2026

Stories of Becoming: Crafting Young Adult Romance

This Journey invites you to dive into the world of young adult romance, exploring the joys, challenges, and complexities of love in adolescence and young adulthood. Through creative writing exercises, character development, and plot crafting, mentors and mentees will learn how to create authentic, relatable stories about identity, friendship, and emotional growth that capture the heart and imagination of YA readers.

Pre-Enroll in a Fall 2026 Journey Now!

Though Summer 2026 enrollment is not currently open, you may express your interest for another Journey by filling out the form below.

You may also sign up for Mentorship on Demand and/or membership at any time.

Stories of Becoming: Crafting Young Adult Romance Community Experiences

Mentees and mentors must attend one Journey Live Meetings each month. 

Summer Cycle Journey Meetings:

  • Saturday, July 25 , 2026, 1-3 PM ET
  • Saturday, August 22, 2026, 1-3 PM ET
  • Saturday, September 19, 2026, 1-3 PM ET

If you’re unable to attend a Journey meeting, you must notify your Staff Lead in advance and attend a community event to make up for it—recommended options for this journey include Community Studios, Career Chats, and Salon Experiences..

Journey Circle: Community

Stories of Becoming: Crafting Young Adult Romance Courses

Stories of Becoming: Crafting Young Adult Romance
In this course, participants explore the world of young adult romance, crafting authentic stories about love, identity, and emotional growth. Through character development, plot design, and creative writing exercises, they will create heartfelt narratives that resonate with YA readers.

 

Writing

Stories of Becoming: Crafting Young Adult Romance Mentoring

Mentees and mentors in this Journey will be matched for a minimum of one cycle. Pairs will meet for at least two hour-long sessions each month. This Journey is open to both mentor/mentee pairs and peer-to-peer pairs.

Journey Teaching Artist

Arriel Vinson

Alum, Mentor

Arriel Vinson is a Midwesterner who writes about being young, Black, and in search of freedom. Her debut YA novel-in-verse, Under the Neon Lights, is a 2026 Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Award winner, a Reese’s Book Club LitUp selection, and a Junior Library Guild Gold Selection. Arriel earned her MFA in Fiction from Sarah Lawrence College and is a Tin House YA Scholar, Highlights Foundation scholarship recipient, and Walter Grant recipient. Her sophomore novel, If This World Were Mine, is forthcoming in spring 2027. You can connect with her on social media at @arriwrites and find her work at arriwrites.com.

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Multigenre 360

Journeys in the Multigenre 360 Adventure focus on writing in a particular genre. It is perfect for mentees and mentors who want to focus on a specific kind of creative writing.

Stories of Becoming: Crafting Young Adult Romance is a Journey in the Multigenre 360 Adventure.

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Civil Discourse Connection & Persuasion; two girls speaking with a mic

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