This 4-Day/3-Night in-community symposium engages in the rich and important discussions of what it means to grow as Jewish writers, tending to our Jewish joy with care, intention, and faith. There will be ample time for your own work and community building throughout this program.

• This is an in-person symposium for Jewish storytellers and professionals in the children’s book industry, with inspiring and engaging presentations focused on Jewish storytellers, and amplifying stories from the Jewish community. In addition, there will be time to work on your own stories, connect with fellow creatives, and retreat.
• Lodging and meals are included.
• Begins with dinner at 5:30pm Eastern on Sunday, May 5, 2024.
• Ends after lunch on Wednesday, May 8, 2024.
• 22 participants max

Kindly be aware that the Highlights Foundation does not possess a kitchen with kosher certification. However, we have the capability to procure meals from a caterer who holds kosher certification. During the registration process, you will be provided with the opportunity to specify your dietary preferences, including the request for meals from the kosher-certified caterer. Roughly one week prior to your scheduled arrival, you will have the chance to make your selections for pre-packaged lunch and dinner options. Additionally, snacks and breakfast items will be presented in packaging that carries kosher certification.

Feedback Expected

• No formal feedback will be provided. Our symposiums focus on deep conversations that inform our craft and place in the greater context of writing for kids and teens.

It’s a Great Fit If…

• You are a Jewish writer or Jewish publishing professional interested in engaging in an exchange of ideas about Jewish stories with other Jewish writers and publishing professionals.
• You write or illustrate in any genre for youth. This program centers on discussion, ideas, and community. You can take what has been offered and apply it to your stories and career.
• You’d appreciate some retreat time. This course has plenty of built-in time to write, draw, hike, or rest–whatever you need.

Tentative Agenda

All Times are Eastern Standard Time.  Click on the headings below to explore the agenda in more detail.

How It Impacts Kids

We will gather in-community, so that more books will be written and published that provide Jewish children the opportunity to see themselves in books, and so all children can see Jewish people represented in the stories that we read and tell.

Testimonials from Our Community

“This retreat was both a chance to spend hours alone, diving deep into my manuscript, and an opportunity for long conversations — both serious and silly — with other kidlit writers who share the varied experience of being Jewish.”

“Faculty were both incredibly generous with their time and inspiring and informative as experts. And the mix of participants — spanning levels of publishing experience and experiences with Judaism — blended into an egalitarian, no-cliques, supportive, respectful, thoughtful (and often hilarious!) atmosphere that opened the door to thoughtful, often-difficult, and ultimately clarifying conversations. I left with a great sense of community, which I will feel at my back as I move forward, writing *my* stories.”