Mission Statement:
Guided by political anger and black radical tradition, Taiwana’s mission is to empower queer, trans, and disabled youth voices, through both her writing and by facilitating storytelling skills for others.
Taiwana performing at Poets & Pints in 2024, photo by Bethany Mae.
Where She Teaches:
Taiwana primarily teaches with Saint Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists (SPCPA), the Loft Literary Center, Upstream Arts, and COMPAS, as well as her client list. You can check out her upcoming community classes at the “Events” tab, contact her to dream up and teach classes for your community (“Contact” tab), or book her exclusive COMPAS offerings below.
Taiwana co-facilitating the End Youth Prisons MN Launch at Open Book, Minneapolis, 2022.
Workshops & Residencies
Alternatives to the Youth Carceral System
An Intro to Abolition Thru Theory, Story, & Creative Writing
Applying Abolition
Contemporary Mythology
Fiction for Social Change
Life After Burnout: Lessons from Abolition & Social Movements
Classes
10th Grade English Language Arts (18 weeks)
Abolitionist Fiction (12 weeks)
Fiction for BIPOC Writers (2 weeks)
First Year Writing 1120: Composition and Research (15 weeks)
Intro to Creative Writing (9 weeks)
Intro to Fiction (18 weeks)
Intro to Poetry & Performance (12 weeks)
Speculative Fiction by Women (6 weeks)
Writing Radically Imaginative Futures (4 weeks)