Kids are born storytellers. Writing courses for kids help them master this art.

They have the unique ability to create stories out of nothing. Be it while playing blocks. Or while chatting with their friend. Their stories are endless. Writing is a life-skill today – a core skill for any field a child may choose. A great written piece, and an average one can be the difference between success and failure in many fields. It is important for parents to encourage and hone this talent in their children early.

Introduction

Writing courses are a great way for kids to learn. They help them expand their thinking ability. Create new characters. Tell effective stories. Interact with fellow writers of the same age. And much more!

Schools are online for the year. With the pandemic, the kids are stuck at home. These writing courses for kids can be a great way to keep them occupied productively. And also for them to enjoy and stay productive.

In this blog post, we have collated a list of writing courses for kids. Most of them are online due to the pandemic.

Some disclaimers before we share the list of writing courses for kids in India.

1. Himalayan Writing Retreat (HWR) has only collated this list of writing courses for kids in India for reference purposes.
2. HWR has no affiliation with any of these writing courses for kids (except it’s own). Parents &/ Guardians are requested to do the requisite checks at their end before enrolling their children in these writing courses.
3. HWR will not be responsible for any losses/ issues arising after registering for any of these writing courses for kids.
4. For any queries regarding any of the writing courses for kids mentioned below, please contact the hosts directly through the link/ numbers shared below.
5. The list is shared in random order. It does not denote their rank or preference.
6. N.A stands for Not Available. The details against which we have mentioned N.A. are the ones for which the respective websites did not have any details mentioned.
7. As always, this list of writing courses for kids in India is dynamic. We will keep updating it from time to time.
8. If you are hosting/leading writing courses for kids in India and want to be a part of this list, do let us know in the comments below.

List of Writing Courses for Kids in India

Young Author Program

The Young Author program led by Neelima Vinod is certified by Pothi.com, a self-publishing company based in Bangalore.

During the workshop, participants work on a story and submit it to the mentor on the last day. Selected stories written by the children are published in the Young Author Program Anthology.

• Age group: 8- 16 years
• Instructor: Neelima Vinod
• Mode of instruction: Live & Interactive
• Class Size: N.A
• Fees: Not Available on the website
• Duration: 4 days
• Apply: https://neelimavinod.in/YoungAuthorReg.php

Himalayan Kids Writing Workshop

This workshop is held only at our retreat in Satkhol as we do not believe the online mode of workshops works well with this age group.

The Himalayan Writing Retreat is set in Satkhol amongst oak and fruit trees. May is when we usually host this workshop every year. It is also the time when most fruits begin to ripen. The weather is nice (no fans are needed). The air is always clean. And the views are lovely.

The workshop is fun for kids and adults, alike. As the grown-ups relax, the kids express their creativity. They learn the framework for writing a good story. Writing sessions are mostly held in the mornings. The entire family then goes for fun forest hikes and walks, they pluck and eat organic fruit off the trees and enjoy picnics and bonfires.

The stories developed during the workshop by the participants are then published into an anthology.

• Age group: 10-12 years
• Instructor: Chetan Mahajan, a Penguin Published author (profile here)
• Mode of instruction: In-person, live (not recorded)
• Class Size: 6-8 participants
• Fees: INR 26,000/- per participant plus INR 16,000/- for every accompanying adult (Includes stay + food + taxes)
• Duration: 12 hours of learning + 3 days of stay at the retreat with fun stuff like hikes and bonfires also.
• Apply: The Himalayan Kids Writing Workshop (himalayanwritingretreat.com)

Himalayan Teen Writing Workshop

Explore the writer within, through this online workshop hosted by the Himalayan Writing Retreat. We limit the age for this workshop to 16 as the difference in maturity between a 13-year-old and an 18-year-old is huge. We sift applicants to ensure they form a uniform cohort, and for that, we ask all applicants to share a writing sample. We accept participants above 16 into our Creative Writing Workshop.

• Age group: 13-16 years
• Instructor: Chetan Mahajan, a Penguin Published author (profile here)
• Mode of instruction: Live & Interactive
• Class Size: maximum 10 participants
• Fees: INR 18,000/-
• Duration: 22 hours spread over four days. The next workshop is on July 18-19 & 25-26, 2021
• Apply: 13-16-Year-olds, apply at The Teen Writing Workshop (himalayanwritingretreat.com).  16+ please apply for the  Creative Writing Workshop.

Living Bridge – Creative Writing Workshop for Kids (Virtual)

Living Bridge is a platform that aims to bring talent and training on an even keel. They offer workshops in film, writing, and photography.

• Age group: 9-13 years
• Instructor: Chetaan Joshii
• Mode of instruction: Live & Interactive
• Class Size: 15 participants
• Fees: INR 2400/-
• Duration: 6 hours
• Apply: Creative Writing for Kids Virtual Workshop | Living Bridge

Write Now

This is a writing program designed by Scholastic in collaboration with Quill Writer’s Club to identify writers who have the special gift of telling stories. Through a two-stage selection process, they will select the most talented storytellers and take them through an 8-day mentoring program that will culminate in each of the selected writers having completed his/her short story manuscript.

• Age group: 9+ years
• Instructor: Hemant Kumar, Alisha Attarwala, Ruchira Mittal, and Swati Rajgarhia
• Mode of instruction: Live & Interactive
• Class Size: N.A
• Fees: INR 395 /- (Registration fees) + Mentorship fees of INR 11,000 (if selected)
• Duration: 16 hours
• Apply: Scholastic: Writing Program

Bambinos Live – Creative Writing

Bambinos focuses on extracurricular profile-building classes for students across the globe by offering various online activities across age groups.

• Age group: 6-8 years
• Instructor: Koyel Ghosh, Sangeeta Sidhu, and Poorva Bajaj
• Mode of instruction: Recorded Videos
• Class Size: 
• Fees: INR 25,200
• Duration: 72 sessions
• Apply: Keep your child forever curious with live online classes and activities (bambinos. live)

Gotham Writers – Teen Classes

Established in 1993, Gotham soon became a New York City institution, then a virtual home to writers from almost every country in the world.

• Age group: 12+ years
• Instructor: N. A
• Mode of instruction: Recorded Videos
• Class Size: 
• Fees: $309
• Duration: 6 weeks
• Apply: Teen Writing Class Catalogue – NYC and Online – Gotham Writers Workshop (writingclasses.com)

Quill Club

Quill Club Writers enables school children to become published writers of mainstream fiction. Under the close guidance of highly experienced mentors, the young authors develop original ideas, write their stories and refine and edit their manuscripts.

• Age group: 9 +years
• Instructor: Hemant Kumar and Ruchira Mittal
• Mode of instruction: Live & Interactive
• Class Size: 
• Fees: N.A
• Duration: 15 hours
• Apply: About Us – quill club writers

Bangalore Writer’s Workshop for Young Writers

The Bangalore Writer’s Workshop for Young Writers will help young writers hone their writing and editing skills.

• Age group: 11-14 years
• Instructor: N.A
• Mode of instruction: N.A.
• Class Size: N.A
• Fees: N.A
• Duration: N. A
• Apply: Apply for our Courses (bangalorewriters.com)

British Council – Creative Writing Course for Kids

• Age group: 11-12 years & 13-14 years
• Instructor: N.A
• Mode of instruction: N.A
• Class Size: N.A
• Fees: INR 6,500
• Duration: 18 hours
• Apply: Creative Writing Course for Kids | British Council

Planet Spark – Creative Writing for Kids

PlanetSpark platform leverages powerful technology to provide live online classes to K8 learners on Public Speaking and Creative Writing skills.

• Age group: 6 to 16 years
• Instructor: N.A
• Mode of instruction: N.A
• Class Size: N.A
• Fees: N.A
• Duration: N. A
• Apply: Registration | PlanetSpark

Zen of Good Writing

Suma Varughese offers to hold your hand for a full month after the workshop. By the end of the course, you will have learned to make your sentences simpler, clearer, crisper, more elegant, and more eloquent.

• Age group: 10 to 16 years
• Instructor: Suma Varughese
• Class Size: N. A
• Fees: INR 3500/-
• Duration:  8 hours approx
• Apply: Send a WhatsApp message on 9819030781

Bound – Online Children’s Summer Camp

BOUND India offers writing workshops, mentorship, and other services like editing to writers in India. This is a hands-on workshop for children conducted by them which includes creative writing, poetry zine-making, comic strips, and summer reading lists.  

• Age group: 9-12 years
• Instructor: Tara Khandelwal, Michelle D’costa, and Aishwarya Javalgekar
• Mode of instruction: Live & Interactive
• Class Size: 20 participants
• Fees: INR 6499/-
• Duration: 9 hours
• Apply: Online Children’s Summer Camp 2021 – BOUND (boundindia.com)

Online Creative Writing Workshop

• Age group: 7 to 10 years
• Instructor: Anuradha Dev
• Class Size: 
• Fees: N.A
• Duration:  N.A
• Apply: Send a WhatsApp message on 9893130199

Apart from attending these writing courses for kids, encourage them to read. A lot. Do check out these reading lists to explore interesting titles for kids.

Reading and writing are two recommended practices we cannot emphasize enough for your kids. You can also consider submitting their works to any of these 16 Places to Submit Children’s Writing in India.

Seeing their work published always boosts the confidence of young writers.

Has your child attended a writing course for kids in India which is not on this list? Or have a recommendation that you feel would be a great fit here?

Do share the details and your experience with us below in the comments.