by Jenna Kalinsky.
Upending your regular schedule by going to writing residencies, retreats, and conferences is the perfect way to energize a stale practice, infuse yourself with new ideas, network with fellow writers, and focus on your writing in a way you simply can’t in your real life.
When you’re ready to start or finish a book, learn from the the best in the field, participate in workshops, meet with agents and editors, and talk shop with other writers, that’s the time to break out your calendar, check the resources below, and start applying!
Whether you should apply for writing residencies, retreats, or conferences depends on your needs and goals. This guide will help you decide which to aim for by clarifying:
Importantly, taking time away from the hustle of your normal schedule to bask in writing or focus on a project will do wonders for your creativity, mind, and soul.
Reorganizing your office is a great way to reinvigorate your creativity, but when you’re ready for a new environment altogether—and dedicated time to write in amongst other writers—writing residencies are ideal.
Lasting anywhere from a week to a few months or even longer, writing residencies provide writers with housing, meals, and a space to work. All you need to worry about is getting your ideas onto the page. (Yes, it is heaven!).
Residencies provide the ideal balance of alone time at your desk during the day and hang-out time with your fellow writers in the evenings when you can relax, exchange ideas about writing, and attend lectures or visit local sites.
Some writing residencies encourage group breakfast and lunch to break up the solitude, while others such as Yaddo and Ucross famously deliver each writer a basket lunch on their writing studio doorstep, so you can carry on until evening uninterrupted.
There are also typically gatherings and programming such as readings from fellow residents or visiting artists, master classes with faculty, and/or engaging with the community.
Many name writers credit their time at residencies for completing book projects, finding their creative centers, or simply rejuvenating as artists in creative company.
In the U.S. some of the most famous writing residencies include:
Other lower-profile but very good residencies include:
In Canada, the big writing residencies are:
While the words “residency” and “retreat” are often used interchangeably, the industry tends to use “residency” for a more formalized type of stay geared toward writers whereas “retreat” can be a little more elastic, ranging from experiences that are as formalized as a residency to informal or even self-created opportunities.
(This elasticity can be a little confusing, so you want to pay attention to the type of experience it is in the fine print.)
On the more formal end of the spectrum, a retreat will offer what a residency offers (meals, programming, etc.); on the more casual or independently run, they are simply be a place for a writer to stay and get work done.
Residencies are often run by established organizations who receive funding or grants from the government and private donors, so they’re largely a tight ship with long-standing reputations. Many also offer scholarships.
Being accepted to a residency (and getting some-to-all of your stay funded) boosts your résumé in addition to it being a highly valuable experience personally and professionally. The friendships and peer connections you make at a residency may last your whole life.
Residencies can be competitive to get into and the application process rigorous. They can also be expensive without a scholarship.
Retreats tend to be privately funded, meaning the writer pays for the experience (unless the retreat is akin to a residency, offering the same style of programming and application process).
But if your primary goal is to get away for a period of time to write, then finding writing residencies that suit your schedule and budget is not too difficult as there are many throughout the world, all offering a variety of stays and options.
For the retreats that are mostly rentals geared toward writers (or retreats you create yourself by booking a place with the express purpose to write), there’s no application process, flexible dates, and you decide how much you want to fraternize with other guests—if there even are any!
Writers’ conferences are the most structured of the three experiences. These are typically packed multi-day events where literary professionals (writers, editors, agents, and publishers) share insights in panel discussions, readings, speeches, and conversations on a variety of topics.
Often it’s possible to pitch agents; attend or present at a book fair; and go to after-hours social or networking events.
Conferences may be a few days, such as the largest in North America, AWP (Associated Writers and Writing Programs). This annual conference for writers and pedagogues begins at 7:30 a.m. and ends at 8:15 p.m., but then the keynote speaker comes on at 8:30-10:00 p.m. and after that, there’s the poetry slam!
Others go on for far longer. The venerable summer Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference in Middlebury, Vermont is 10 marvellous days in the country with barn dances, swimming in the lake (don’t mind the leaches!), abundant readings and talks, all anchored by regular morning workshops.
Other longer well-known conferences in the U.S. are Sewanee, Tin House, Cave Canem, Yale Writers’ Workshop, and Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown.
In Canada, there’s Banff Centre, International Festival of Authors and Humber School for Writers Summer Workshop in Toronto, and numerous other regional conferences.
These events provide participants with a hefty dose of learning, networking, and intellectual engagement in a short span of time. You’re kept so busy, there’s rarely an opportunity to write (though taking copious notes during the sessions still counts!)
The application deadlines for residencies and longer conferences happen typically quite a bit in advance (8 months to a year is the norm), particularly for those that provide funding or scholarships.
Retreat applications will vary, but well-known ones with few spots will be competitive.
Shorter single day or few-day conferences may be the easiest to attend with little notice and won’t require an application for a participant to attend, but the larger/more prominent the conference, the faster the nearby hotels fill up.
Each organization’s website will give application deadlines, submission guidelines, scholarship opportunities, and fees.
Interested in attending a residency, retreat, or conference? Follow these steps:
To stay organized and on top of the various deadlines, make a spreadsheet including columns for:
*These experiences and scholarships can be quite competitive, so your submission materials must be airtight.
Begin preparing early on then get beta readers and/or a professional editor to give you constructive editorial feedback (we would be very happy to help you there!) to ensure your submission is engaging, compelling, and showcases your unique voice best.
Certain conferences and residencies with a workshop element, such as Tin House and Bread Loaf, not only accept participants based on the strength of their submitted manuscripts, but also how they dole out funding and/or work placement positions.
Then add columns for:
and rank the residencies, retreats, and conferences based on those criteria.
Regardless where you go to refuel and restore your creative and intellectual center, you’ll find—as do most writers who take part in writing residencies, retreats, and conferences—that they’re addictive.
They’re always incredible for giving you a huge dose of inspiration, connections (both professional and personal) and lasting friendships; and the chance to get to listen to your writer’s heartbeat away from the daily grind.
✎ This blog lists 34 U.S. residencies’ details, application criteria and dates, and testimonials
✎ This blog from Dreamers Writing Canadian Residencies lists many known residencies and retreats in Canada
✎ Retreats: Poets & Writers 22 of the Most Inspiring Writing Retreats
✎ Conferences & residencies: Poets & Writers: comprehensive database
22 U.S. & international residencies, conferences, and grant and scholarship opportunities
✎ Highlights Foundation Workshops & Seminars- continuously updated + has a content calendar you can add to your own!
✎ Writing Conferences (continuously updated)
(Tip: subscribe to this database website to get up-to-date lists sent to your inbox)
January Deadlines
We will be happy to review your submission materials to ensure they’re engaging, clean, and submission-ready. Residencies, retreats, and conferences are highly competitive, so make sure your work stands out so it can secure you a coveted a scholarship or acceptance. Reach out to let us help!
Our 4-month Mentored Book Programs, Online Courses, & Writing Coaching and Editing Hours. From November 21-27, 2023
6 Responses
Your insights have really helped me, thank you.
The differentiation you make between a “residency” and a “retreat” seems very odd. I’ve attended several residencies, including some mentioned here, and they were entirely “self-guided” – as indeed are all the residencies listed. I know of no residency that is not. As for retreats being a place where “conversation with anyone else present will likely be writing-friendly or arts-welcome”, what strange thing do you imagine the artists at residencies talk about? Foot fungus? I also don’t believe my stay at Yaddo was any less “generative” or less warming to my soul – but then I am warm-souled to begin with.
hi there – I have been running Creation Writing Retreats in Costa Rica, Mexico and England for the past decade – would there be a way to be included in your lists? Here is a link to my website, with the 4 retreats we currently have open:
https://www.centauriarts.com/retreats/
Thank you!
Julie Hartley, Centauri Arts
Sure thing, Julie! Your retreats look lovely. If you’d like to send me an imaged sized for IG, I’d also be happy to share across our socials with any deadlines coming up. Thanks for reaching out and all the best ~Jenna
Hi Jenna — I’m reaching out on behalf of Bridget Cook-Burch, who runs the Inspired Writers Retreat, an all-inclusive 4-day immersive writing retreat for fiction and nonfiction writers, hosted twice a year in Bear Lake, Idaho, plus international retreats in Ireland, Italy, and Norway. The retreat has been running for 12 years, with past keynote guests including William Paul Young (The Shack) and Hyrum Smith (co-founder of Franklin Covey). Would there be a way to be included in your list? Here’s the site: https://inspiredwritersretreat.com — happy to send an image sized for IG too if helpful. Thank you!
This retreat sounds lovely! I’ve included your info in the article. Thank you for being in touch to let me know. All the best ~ Jenna