'Good Morning America' Features Fairfield Writing Program

FAIRFIELD, CT — A Fairfield-based program for young writers was recently featured on “Good Morning America.”

The program, called Written Out Loud, offers several genre-themed day camps over Zoom, as well as a weekly writing program, and partnerships with schools.

Written Out Loud began in 2007 as a seminar for undergraduates at Yale University, where program Founder and CEO Josh Shelov is an adjunct professor, according to the organization’s website.

From there, Shelov, a Fairfield resident and Emmy-winning screenwriter, re-envisioned the program as an in-person offering for middle school and high school students in Fairfield and Chicago. When the coronavirus pandemic hit, Written Out Loud became an online program, reaching hundreds of children across the country and internationally.

“As soon as you get them talking about their actual influences, the stories that they love most — not just books, of course, but movies, TV shows, video games — then they just start spouting absolute joy at the creative process,” Shelov said in the “Good Morning America” segment, which aired earlier this week.

The segment discussed how Written Out Loud has offered catharsis and personal connection to young people amid the isolation of the pandemic.

The two-week online day camps cater to children ages 7 to 17 with topics such as “Harry Potter,” “Marvel” and “Hamilton.” Each camper ends the session having coauthored a published book.

Day camp registration is open. The camps cost $499, but groups of four to six friends who sign up together get 20 percent off.

To watch the “Good Morning America” segment, go to https://gma.abc/3n5HV3X. For more information about Written Out Loud, visit https://www.writtenoutloud.org/.