Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Writing Residencies!

Have you ever longed to get away to write? Do you have a manuscript that needs uninterrupted time and attention away from your everyday life? Is your writing practice in a rut? Writing residencies are ideal for focusing time on large projects, meeting other artists, and re-booting your creative life.

In this two-day workshop, we will explore how writers can benefit from different residency opportunities and how to put forward the strongest application possible. From sharing resources on where to find the best residency experience for your needs to drafting your artist statement, we will discuss the benefits and pitfalls of both national and international residencies. During the workshop sessions, we will also touch on available grant funding for residencies. Participants will leave with a shortlist of residencies (with deadlines), a draft of an application, and a submission plan.

In the first session we will discuss:

·      The purpose of residencies

·      Different kinds of residency experiences and what to expect

·      Where and how to find out about residencies

·      Opportunities in Canada and internationally

·      The basic components of an application

·      Budgeting for a residency and funding

Between sessions, you will choose a residency and draft your application. At the second meeting, you will share your project description or artist statement. Through group discussion, we will hone and help each other strengthen and clarify goals.

Marcia Walker’s writing has appeared in Electric Literature’s Recommended Reads, The Chicago Review, The New Quarterly, Fiddlehead, The New York Times, PRISM International, Room, EVENT, The Globe and Mail, CBC radio, and elsewhere. She has been shortlisted for the Commonwealth Short Story Prize, PRISM’s fiction and non-fiction prize, and the Writers’ Union of Canada short prose competition. She has attended residencies at Yaddo (U.S.), the Banff Centre (Canada), Saari (Finland), Can Serrat (Spain), KH Messen (Norway) and others. Before becoming a writer, Marcia worked in theatre and as a lawyer. Find her online at www.marciawalker.ca.