In the fall of 2006 I applied to COAHSI (Council on the Arts and Humanities for Staten Island) for a grant to lead a workshop that would enable me to encourage and guide young adult writers living on Staten Island. Applications were sent to all middle and high schools on Staten Island and eight students were selected. Over the course of several months these students wrote stories and were critiqued by myself and their fellow writers. Writing is 99% revision. After each critique session, the writers went home and rewrote their stories until they were ready for publication in Staten Island Stories.