"...I keep hearing how The Telling Room believes in these students. That the teachers don’t tell them they’ll be a writer one day, but that they are right now."
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The Portland literary arts education nonprofit celebrated the anniversary at a fundraiser October 18th 2024.
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Join us for an evening filled with friends, food, stories, classic Telling Room activities, and music as we honor 20 years of our community empowering young writers and lifting up youth voices.
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Did you catch Calla James' poem, "Things That I Wanted to Write Poetry About but That Are Already Poems on Their Own" from SWIMMING BETWEEN MOUNTAINS on Maine Public Radio's Poems from Here segment?
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The Telling Room is thrilled to welcome Joe Conway, Brita Loppnow, Meredith McCarroll, Matty Oates and Jordene Trueh to the Board of Directors, and current Board member Libby Lauze into a new role as the incoming Board Vice President.
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Join us at Words that Change the World, a novel fundraising event to benefit The Telling Room. This first-of-its-kind night at Ocean Gateway on Thursday, May 16th will feature world-changing wordsmiths and storytellers—both emerging and established—whose work has a tangible impact on our community.
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“As a child, writing was a way to dream up a better world. Ultimately, I hope my words help us see a happier healthier future for our planet and our people too.”
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Poet Megan Grumbling and the Portland Press Herald featured Statewide Writing Contest grand prize winner Lily Jessen and her poem in this week's Deep Water column.
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Christina Nelson wrote “It’s Not as I Once Dreamed.” She is a junior at Spruce Mountain High School.
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Nevyn Harvey is a senior at Belfast Area High School and wrote “Our Last Encounter.” Imogen Esmé Egenson, age 11, of Hope wrote “A Cow Named Horse.”
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Lily Jessen, age 15 of Cape Elizabeth, Maine, is the grand prize winner of The Telling Room's 17th Annual Statewide Writing Contest!
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Check out the February issue of Down East Magazine to read their profile on Telling Room Executive Director Kristina Powell and find out why the Portland Public Library’s atrium is one of her favorite places in Maine.
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A tenth grader rolls her eyes at Thornton Wilder’s Our Town in an English class on the eve of the end of the world. A hunting party of teenagers braves the perilous Canadian desert in search of food. A robotic entity surfaces longingly from degraded ocean waters it was created to clean up. A girl whose family was displaced to Ohio by a hurricane returns to an all but deserted Casco Bay.
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Leela Marie Hidier was chosen to speak at the first Girls Leading Change event in October.
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“With our newly launched three-year strategic plan [entitled] 'Reading Ahead,' we’re strengthening how we elevate youth voices through our partnerships with alumni, schools, libraries, and other organizations.” — Executive Director Kristina Powell
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Our hearts are with the many families impacted by last week’s events in Lewiston, which have been felt in every corner of our State.
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A Maine teen from Yarmouth is among a handful of young women who were honored at the White House Wednesday as part of the International Day of the Girl.
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Leela Marie Hidier is one of 15 young women leaders being celebrated Wednesday,
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Leela Marie Hidier, 18, was one of 15 young women honored at the White House on Wednesday for their advocacy work.
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Leela Marie Hidier, 18, is a climate social justice advocate and author of an award-winning debut novel, 'Changes in the Weather.'
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