YWP’s hub of inspiration: All our challenges are here!
Challenges
Weekly
Visual Art
Deadline
Garden
Draw or paint the most beautiful garden you can imagine.
Writing
Deadline
Writing
Deadline
Favorite Animal
Imagine you are your favorite animal for a day. What would you do? Write from this perspective.
Tomorrow Project
Writing
America?
The fatal shootings of U.S. citizens Renee Good and Alex Pretti by ICE agents on the streets of Minneapolis have induced fury, disbelief, sadness, and an overwhelming sense of betrayal. This isn't America. Is it? Share your thoughts.
Writing
Hope & Resilience
Poetry steps in where uncertainty and chaos take root. Poetry lifts us up and moves us forward with determination. Explore these poems of hope and resilience. If you are inspired, share your own.
Writing
Minnesota Strong
Thousands of people filled the streets of Minneapolis on Jan. 23, peacefully and in sub-zero weather, to protest against ICE and show solidarity with their neighbors. The next day, federal agents killed a second Minnesotan. Share your thoughts.
Great Artists
Visual Art
Simon Beck
On frozen lakes and sandy beaches, Simon Beck makes beautiful art that lasts only until the next snowfall or rising tide takes it away.
Visual Art
Jacob Lawrence
During the civil rights movement in the mid-1950s, this leading Black artist re-examined early American history through radical art.
Visual Art
Jeffrey Gibson
Native American artist combines an abundance of color with messages of freedom, human rights, and struggle.
Great Writers
Writing
Cornelius Eady
Cornelius Eady tells the truth about the world through poetry, says New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who asked the poet to write and read a poem for his inauguration. Eady's recent poetry also includes a tribute to Renee Nicole Good.
Writing
Toni Morrison
Toni Morrison was the first Black woman to be awarded the Nobel laureate in literature. Her unvarnished exploration of Black identity in America brought her worldwide acclaim. Have you read her work?
Writing
Mary Oliver
Clear, evocative, simply beautiful – words that describe this poet's work.
Online Workshops
Visual Art
Photo Workshop: Lighting
Lighting is crucial in photography as it defines the appearance, mood, and texture of the subject, ultimately shaping the visual impact of the photograph. Join photographer and YWP alumni Kevin Huang for this online workshop.
Visual Art
Photo Workshop: Composition
Composition is one of the key elements of photography. Learn more about composition in this online workshop.
Writing
Writing Workshop: Free Verse Poetry
Free verse is freeing! You can write any way you like, break lines wherever you decide, and end a poem whenever you want.
Contests
Visual Art
Deadline
Winter 2026 Art Contest
With your artist's eye, observe, interpret, and create. Choose a subject — an everyday object, a person, a landscape — and give yourself time and space to study it. Use the medium of your choice to convey the subject the way you uniquely see it.
Opinion & Commentary
Writing
Wonder
What is something that makes you stop and wonder.
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Writing
Sen. Bernie Sanders' Annual Essay Contest
Vermont high school students: Write an essay about the state of the union for the Congressional Record. Deadline: Jan. 12, 2026.
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Writing
YWP is ...
In a sentence or two, what does YWP mean to you? What impact does it have on your life? We'd love to pass your comments along to the good people whose donations keep YWP running! Please tell us so we can tell them! YWP is ...
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