Ages 10 and up. Stories are about people with burning needs or desires. Choose a character from an array of photos provided (a teenager? An old curmudgeon? An unhappy fairy?), and spend 45 minutes getting to know him or her through lightning-fast writing prompts. Maybe you’ll go home with a story to write! Participants should bring a laptop or a writing implement. Paper will be provided.

Ellen Booraem spent 20 years as a Hancock County journalist before she quit her day job to write three fantasies for readers age 10 and older (The Unnameables, Small Persons with Wings, and Texting the Underworld). A fourth book is due out in 2021. She volunteers as a writing coach for middle-school students at the Brooklin School.