Teen Novelist To Host Writing Workshop

Author and Severna Park High School senior Sabrina Richter will host a workshop on writing and publishing at the Severna Park Library on November 23 from noon to 1:30pm.

Dubbed “How To Write a Book: A Teen Author’s Guide,” the event will allow Richter to guide participants through the step-by-step process of writing a book, from plot conceptualization to publishing.

“I think it’s really important for people of all ages, especially young people, to start writing for fun and to explore that creative side of them,” said Richter, who self-published her debut fantasy novel, “Gift of the Fallen,” earlier this year.

Richter will walk participants through how to get started on a first draft and navigating its difficulties, editing, and whether or not to solicit opinions from others and make plot changes based on that feedback. She will then explain the administrative process to include time management and file organization.

Beyond the writing process, she will get into self-publishing – how to and whether to enlist freelancers, what software to use and creative marketing, if time allows.

If this approach to teaching writing and publishing seems like a more methodical take on the creative process, perhaps that’s due to Richter’s academic focus: she intends to major in engineering after high school.

That someone with a STEM background pens fantasy novels should not be so shocking, Richter said.

“I don’t think it should be strange at all to like all of those things,” she said. “I meet a lot of kids in my engineering classes who say they hate writing, and I don’t know if I believe them. I don’t know if they’ve really been exposed to just writing for the sake of exploring.”

The workshop is open to anyone interested, but it is tailored to teens and young adults.

Richter was inspired to write her first book after she finished reading the “Lord of the Rings” series. She remained deeply interested in the fantasy genre but couldn’t find anything with a plot that she deemed satisfying. So, she created her own.

Her hope with this workshop is to not only inform future authors on the nuts and bolts of writing a book, but also to jumpstart the creative juices for those who may not even deem themselves writers.

“When more people start to write for fun … the level of writing increases for mass media,” said Richter, who would like to see a return to deeper, more thought-provoking writing across the board.

In addition to her work as an author, Richter is the president of the tech crew for the Severna Park High School drama club, takes two classes at Anne Arundel Community College and works part-time as a math tutor. She also has a fantasy trilogy in the works.

“Gift of the Fallen” is available for purchase on Amazon, and to borrow from the Anne Arundel County Public Library.