Since 2016
Changing Lives For the Better
Our History
David Chappell wrote his own novel, Age of the Great Prophets, as an escape from, and healing mechanism for, the severe impact of illness on his life. The writing of his novel was the first major step in a full recovery. He was able to infuse his experience with illness into his characters, giving him the ability to empower himself through empowering them in his novel.
He decided that he wanted to share this effective tool
Total Books Sold
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Completed Books
Published Books
What Drives Us
Our Goal
Literary Legacies was built on a vision of service to the community and a desire to enact a cultural revolution that gives young people new avenues of self-expression. We will do this through teaching youth, step-by-step, how to write a fiction or nonfiction book. Additionally, we will guide students to create self-created performance and artistic pieces that reach into the depths of their inner-selves. Our mission is to give a voice to the voiceless by teaching disadvantaged youth to express themselves through the written and spoken word. Word by word, page by page, piece by piece, and book by book, we will be changing lives for the better.
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Why Literary Legacies?
No cost to you
Our program is 100% free!
Diversity in our organization
We have a diverse Board of Directors, diverse student population, and diverse volunteer base.
Diversity in our writers
We serve a diverse array of students from all ethnic, cultural, economic and religious backgrounds.
Background in Education
Many of our volunteers and Directors have a background in education and academia.
Customized for you
We will cater our writing program specifically to your child!
Who We Are
Our Team & Leadership
Our Founder: David Chappell
President
David is from Morgan Hill, California. He is a graduate of Arizona State University class of 2008 and a masters graduate from San Jose State 2017. Currently, he is studying for a masters degree in Nonprofit Leadership and Management from Arizona State University Online. He is also the author of the novel Age of the Great Prophets. His mission in life is to educate, captivate, and motivate people of all ages through teaching, writing, and speaking. He started this nonprofit to make a meaningful impact on the local community and the next generation of authors.
Executive Board
Carly Hanson
Board Member
Carly Hanson is a devoted writer and native Chicagoan. She currently works at UCAN where she works diligently to impact the lives of youth and families on the west and south sides of Chicago. Her current role for Literary Legacies is Director of Volunteering.
Kulvinder Arora
Vice President
Kulvinder Arora known as “Kay” has a Ph.D. in English and American Literature and taught for many years in University Women’s Studies departments. What she enjoyed most about teaching was mentoring first-generation college students and students of color to overcome barriers to success. She is passionate about helping young people achieve their dreams. On the board of several non-profits, she enjoys working with people committed to the arts and social justice. In addition to tutoring kids at Literary Legacies to write their own books, Kay runs a creative writing group for women and hopes to write a novel herself. Her favorite pastime is to read crime and detective fiction.
Natalia Shudruk
Board Member
Natalia is originally from Ukraine. She is an educator and passionate about helping children. She published her own book in 2020 named: Wildflower Kiss from Heaven: a story of loss, grief, and growth. She uses her literary talent to help children and adults expressed themselves through the written word.
Jordan Rosenfeld
Board Member
Jordan E. Rosenfeld is the author of the novels Women in Red and Forged in Grace, and six books on the craft of writing including How to Write a Page Turner. Writing the Intimate Character; A Writer’s Guide to Persistence; Writing Deep Scenes; Make a Scene (Revised and Expanded), and Write Free: Attracting the Creative Life (with Rebecca Lawton). Her freelance articles and essays have been published in hundreds of publications, including The Atlantic, Mental Floss, New York Magazine, The New York Times, Ozy, Salon, Scientific American, Writer’s Digest Magazine, The Washington Post and many more. She’s the creator and former host of the literary radio program “Word by Word” on KRCB Radio, which won an NEA Chairman’s grant in 2004. She is also a freelance manuscript editor.
Advisors
Michelle Jenkins
Robert S. Alexander
Copeland Bryan
Shyanne Bennett