826

Dave Eggers could live like any author of his growing stature: the parties, the talk shows, the lucrative speeches.

Instead, the best-selling author of "A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius" decided to help create the 826 Valencia writing lab, investing his time and money to help less privileged young people learn the craft that has fueled his career.

826 Valencia helps students, ages 8–18, to develop their writing skills. Whether the students are working in the realm of fiction, nonfiction, or English as a second language, we are here to help them explore their love of writing. They offer free drop-in tutoring, workshops, and storytelling. We also help students create their own story collections, zines, and other publications.

In addition to drop-in tutoring, they offer a number of in-depth workshops, in which professionals teach a variety of topics to the students interested in learning additional skills. These include, but are not limited to: creative writing, journalism, film, design, photo manipulation, comics, and publishing to the Web.

826 Valencia’s facilities are also available as a free publishing resource, and their volunteers are available to assist with school and extracurricular student publications.

Of course the Valencia project could have stopped simply with its mission, but that is only something one would assume if they didn't know Dave Eggers. Each of their centers are tied into online and brick and mortar stores whose profits go towards the center's needs. And these are no ordinary stores, with San Francisco concentrating on the everyday needs of Pirates and New York focusing on just what the superhero needs to defeat his arch enemy. And I'm sure we can expect much more in this vein in the future.

In addition to our founding site at 826 Valencia in San Francisco, and the popular site in Brooklyn New York, there also have 826 chapters in Los Angeles, Michigan, Seattle, and Chicago.

In San Francisco
826 Valencia
The Pirate Store

In Brooklyn
826 NYC
Superhero Supply Company