The Athenaeum Press at Coastal Carolina University is a student-driven publishing lab that focuses on telling stories of our region in new and innovative ways.
We are currently working on several initiatives, including Gullah Geechee Foodways, Uncharted: Working Creatives in South Carolina, and the Communal Pen.
WRITE HOME: LETTERS TO A YOUNGER ME is a collaboration with the #whatshesaidproject and will be an anthology filled with wisdom, compassion, and challenge.
What would you like to tell your younger self? What have you learned about caring for your body, mind, and soul? Does she need a hug or a push? What would you reveal to her about the future? What secrets or surprises might be helpful?
We want your creativity. Feel free to experiment (lists, poetry, metaphor, story) while formatting your entry as a letter. Humor is welcome. Hear from one of our editors about her vision for this project IN THIS VIDEO.
As part of the WRITE HOME: Letters to a Younger Me anthology, we’re offering four virtual workshops designed to spark reflection, connection, and creativity. Each 90-minute session will weave together Shannon Ivey’s expertise in storytelling and transformation with Melanie McGehee’s generative writing practices. Together, we’ll create a playful and supportive space where your letter can begin to take shape.
Possible explorations include:
- Identity – Who were you then? Who are you now? We’ll explore the names, roles, and identities we’ve carried—and those we’ve shed—through writing prompts that honor both past and present selves.
- Imagination – Letters can cross time, place, and even possibility. This session opens the door to creativity and play, encouraging you to speak to your younger self from the wildest corners of your imagination.
- Growth – What lessons, scars, and strengths mark your journey? Here, we’ll reflect on resilience and change, using guided exercises to uncover the wisdom you’ve earned along the way.
- Gratitude – In our final workshop, we’ll focus on appreciation—for the younger self who got us here, for the stories we carry, and for the chance to write them into the world.
Each workshop includes guided prompts, time to write, and optional sharing in community. You can attend one, some, or all—there’s no requirement to participate in order to submit your letter, but the workshops are designed to help you uncover and shape the words only you can write.
You'll find links to the free workshops here:
October 20, 7-8:30pm EST
October 27, 7-8:30pm EST
November 3, 7-8:30 EST
November 10, 7-8:30 EST
We believe writing these letters will be powerful for the author, bringing comfort and confidence, and that readers will be encouraged as they read with a resounding sense of “Me, too!”
FORMATTING:
12 pt font, double-spaced
Maximum word count 1500.
SUBMISSIONS CLOSE on November 30. Notifications will be sent out by December 15. Chosen pieces will go through an editing process. Anthology is slated for publication by summer 2026. Authors to receive lots of our love and social media hype (if desired), and will be invited to a release party in late summer 2026. Anthology sales will support the mission of The Athenaeum Press and provide scholarships for future #whatshesaid workshops.