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Meet THe Team
This class is for anyone who loves a good young adult (YA) story, one that cracks your heart open and makes you feel all gooey and alive inside. The kind that speaks to your inner teen and gives voice to big feelings, bold choices, and hard-won growth. We’ll read excerpts from contemporary YA novels like Clash of Steel, The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School, and The Stars and the Blackness Between Them to see what makes them sing—then use those insights to spark our own stories. Whether you’re just beginning your YA novel or returning to a draft that needs new energy, this class will help you tap into your teenage voice and write with honesty, imagination, and heart.
• In-Class Writing Lift: Medium
• Homework: Optional
• Workshopping Drafts: None
Gabby Rivera is a Bronx-born queer Puerto Rican babe on a mission to create the wildest, most fun stories ever. Gabby is the first Latina ever to write for Marvel comics, penning the solo series AMERICA about America Chavez, a portal-punching queer Latina powerhouse. Gabby’s critically acclaimed debut novel Juliet Takes a Breath was called “f*cking outstanding” by Roxane Gay and was re-published by Penguin Random House in 2019.
Gabby presented before the United Nations in 2020 as an invited speaker to their Unstereotyping Alliance Conference, and she has collaborated with groups such as the Ford Motor Company, the Makers Women’s Conference and Somos Familia, to uplift joyful storytelling and the magic of queer diasporicans everywhere.
In 2022, Gabby became a Sundance Screenwriters Fellow and received an Advancing Justice Award from Catalyst California, alongside activist Dolores Huerta. She currently resides on the West Coast.
"Gabby creates a warm and welcoming online community for her students where everyone's voice is heard and affirmed. She also knows her craft and provided writing challenges with support and encouragement. I so recommend any class or workshop with Gabby! You will learn a lot and have fun and definitely get more words written."
"Gabby is an inspiration. I hope to see more of her work and take more of her classes through the Porch. She's one of the best teachers I've ever had. I always felt energized. Her personality is magnetic and the passion she has for the subject matter is addicting. Gabby has done a tremendous job with making class fun and the prompts thought-provoking. The whole class was a great community of diverse writers that I always wanted to be a part of and I'm deeply grateful for all the connections I made and the work I've accomplished through this class. I'm deeply grateful to Gabby for making it all possible."
"Gabby Rivera and all of the class participants were so amazing. I joined The Porch thanks to this Gabby Rivera class. The pace of the course, the prompts, the guided writing was all so robust and engaging. The care and thoughtfulness that Gabby uses when instructing is so magnetic and encouraging. I felt supported by Gabby and welcomed by all my peers. As a new writer in this area, I feel like I was really fortunate to start here."
