It’s back: Rhythm on the Rails

Want a rolling start on your next piece of writing? Consider spending a day on the train. Back for the first time since February 2020, Rhythm on the Rails is an immersive, intimate, and inspirational one-day writing retreat on the train, facilitated by writer (etc.!) Johnnie Mazzocco. This year’s ride, from Portland, Oregon, to Seattle, Washington, and back, will roll on Saturday, April 1, 2023. Enrollment is VERY limited and today, Monday, March 13, is the last day for early-bird pricing. So if you’re interested, visit the ROTR website, read all about it, and sign up!

a season to dream

Snowed in? Perhaps this is a good time to dream of a getaway. The mission of the Cascadia Artist in Residence Network (CAiRN) is to support, advocate, and communicate about artist-in-residence programs in the Cascadia region located in the northwestern United States. Have a look at the residencies on offer and the application deadlines.

CAiRN’s list is a great start, but not comprehensive. Other residencies include The Margery Davis Boyden Wilderness Writing Residency, The Helen Riaboff Whiteley Center, Voices of the Wilderness, Writing Between the Vines, Oregon Caves Artist-in-Residence, the Creative Residency program at Bloedel Reserve, and Rockland, among others.

Residencies vary widely in timing, costs/support, and facilities. Applications for 2023 or 2024 may be available or you can get on a mailing list to be notified of upcoming application deadlines. Happy dreaming!

applications open

Applications for Hedgebrook’s Writer-in-Residence Program are now open.

Hedgebrook’s mission is to support visionary women-identified writers whose stories and ideas shape our culture now and for generations to come. The Writer in Residence (WiR) program is Hedgebrook’s core program, which, for 35 years in 2023, has supported fully-funded residencies for women-identified writers. We welcome applicants, published or not, who embrace the mission and opportunity to be a member of Hedgebrook’s community.

Applications are currently being accepted for two WiR cycles: Cycle 1: Feb-June 2023; Cycle 2: July-Oct 2023. The deadline to apply is September 12, 2022.

Learn more about Hedgebrook and other programs, including the Hedgebrook Virtual Writers Conference 2022 (September 22-25, 2022).

getaway

Perhaps you feel ready to attend conferences and festivals. Or maybe not. If the idea of writing in a less populous setting appeals to you, why not consider a residency? Residencies vary widely in location, duration, and costs, and while some are well established, some are little more than an attractive cottage rental.

Some regional residencies, current and future:

• Caldera
• Chinquapin Center for the Arts
• Hedgebrook
• Helen Riaboff Whiteley Center
• Hypatia-In-The-Woods
• The Margery Davis Boyden Wilderness Writing Residency
• Mineral School
• Oregon Writers Colony
• Playa
• Poets on the Coast
• Spring Creek Project
• Voices of the Wilderness Artist in Residence Program
• Willapa Bay AiR

You can find many more on the Poets & Writers Conferences and Residencies Database (to narrow the field, click Residency in Event Type and then Filter).

And if you are considering applying for a residency, take a moment and read Sandra Marchetti’s article, “Give Me the Time and Space: How to Land a Writing Residency,” from the University of Arizona Poetry Center.

Rhythm on the Rails

Attention, Portland-area writers: Rhythm on the Rails is back for another immersive round trip. On Saturday, February 22, 2020, Johnnie Mazzocco will guide a group of writers from Portland to Seattle and back to Portland, by rail, writing all the way. In addition to six hours of writing (three up, three back), the journey also includes lunch at Matt’s in the Market, a visit to the Seattle Art Museum (with prompts), as well as free time to explore Pike Place Market or other Seattle sights of your choice. It’s a rolling writing retreat and it sounds pretty swell.

time to get away?

Sometimes, as another short gray day dawns, even twinkling holiday decorations aren’t enough to cut through the gloom. When that happens, it’s time to start thinking about getting outta town. A writing retreat may be solution, and looking forward to an upcoming retreat may be just enough to lift you from the doldrums.

This list is not comprehensive. The residencies, retreats, workshops, and other getaways vary widely in locale, cost, activities, competitive entry, expectations, and other variables. Some programs do not yet have dates posted but you can usually get on a mailing list for updates. Dates are 2020, except as noted.

• January – March (various dates) – Manzanillo, Mexico – Vancouver & Victoria Schools of Writing Winter Retreats in Mexico
• January 9-19 – Tepoztlán, México – Under the Volcano
• February 1 – Kingston, Washington – Intensive Poetry Manuscript Workshop & Two Sylvias Press Tour
• 28 February – 1 March – Kāpiti Coast, New Zealand – Kāpiti Writers’ Retreat
• February 28 – March 1 — Astoria, Oregon — the FisherPoets Gathering
• Spring – Orcas Island, Washington – Artsmith residency
• April – November – Austerlitz, New York – The Millay Colony for the Arts
• April 5-11; July 19-25; October 4-10; November 15-21 – Kauai, Hawaii – The Kauaʻi Writing Studio Residency
• April 29 – May 3 – Dolores River valley, Colorado – Writing Round the Trees transformational writing retreat
• May – September – Mineral, Washington – Mineral School residencies
• May 8-15 – Brittany, France – Verse Kraken Writing Retreats
• May 15-16 – Portland, Oregon – PDX Writers Spring Retreat at the Lyle Hotel with Jennifer Springsteen
• May 25 – June 1 – Corfu, Greece – TLC writing retreat with Tammy L. Coia (one of many retreats on her site)
• May 29 – June 7 – Patmos, Greece – Freeing the Written Self: Poetry & Writing Salon on the Isle Of Revelation
• June – October – Blue Mountain Lake, New York – Blue Mountain Center month-long residencies
• June 7-13 – Greensburg, Pennsylvania – Cave Canem’s annual week-long retreat at the University of Pittsburgh
• June 18-21 – Tucson, Arizona – CantoMundo retreat at The University of Arizona Poetry Center
• July 6-12 – Wallowa Lake, Oregon – 33rd Summer Fishtrap Gathering of Writers
• August – Greenough, Montana – Beargrass Writing Retreat
• August 23-29 – Victoria, BC, Canada – Victoria Summer Writing Retreat
• September 25-27 – Tieton, Washington – LiTFUSE
• October/November – Port Orchard, WA – Northwest Writers’ Weekend
• October 29 – November 1 – Seabeck, Washington – Seabeck Haiku Getaway, sponsored by Haiku Northwest
• November 6-9 – Tahoe City, California – Writing By Writers Manuscript Boot Camp
• December 26-30 – McCormick, South Carolina – The Watering Hole
• Year-round – Saratoga Springs, New York – Yaddo
• Year-round – Lower Piney Creek, Wyoming – The Jentel Artist Residency Program
• Year-round – Lake Forest, Illinois – Ragdale 18- and 25-day residencies

Future opportunities (2020 application deadlines are past):

• February through October – Whidbey Island, Washington – Hedgebrook residencies for writers
• Djerassi Resident Artists Program in Woodside, California
• Writing Between the Vines offers retreats in California, Oregon, and Canada
• Writing By Writers has future retreats in Oregon, Minnesota, Idaho, and Colorado

Even visiting these websites will make you feel better…

. . . . .
photo

last minute

If you happen to be in the area of Portland, Oregon, here’s a great idea for a writing intensive: Rhythm on the Rails Writing Retreat. Board the train in Portland at 8:00am on Friday, November 1, 2019, travel Business Class with writer/editor/teacher/coach/facilitator Johnnie Mazzocco and a group of writers. Write your way north, then de-train in Seattle for lunch at Matt’s in the Market and a visit to the Seattle Art Museum. Re-board in the evening, write your way south, and be back in Portland by 10:00pm with a bunch of drafts.

The caveat: sign-ups end October 25.

Mighty Tieton awaits

If you’ve been putting it off, it’s time to start planning for LiTFUSE. The annual weekend-long poets’ workshop held September 27-29, 2019, in Tieton, Washington (near Yakima), combines writing, exploration, improvisation, meditation, camaraderie, natural beauty and readings to ignite your muse.

The complete schedule is now online, registration is open, and this year, for those who book a room at the Oxford Suites in Yakima, there will be daily shuttle service to and from the Mighty Tieton Warehouse.

It will be a memorable weekend packed with poetry.

Becoming Cascadian

Interested in the intersection of poetics and bioregionalism? There are a limited number of openings for participants in Becoming Cascadian, a community-building retreat designed for poets, artists, and bioregionalists to gather, share strategies, and discuss “roles as humans in this time of ecological crisis and end-stage empire.” Keynote poet Andrew Schelling has published 20 books, including seven of translation from India’s early poetry.

Becoming Cascadian will take place Thursday, May 31 through Sunday, June 3, 2018, in Seattle. Poetry writing experience is not necessary. Advance registration is required no later than Tuesday, May 29.

Visit the Becoming Cascadian page for full details.

Looking ahead

If an autumn 2017 writing retreat or conference strikes your fancy, here are a number of events coming up in Cascadia and beyond.

• September 8-10 – Cumberland, BC, Canada – Cumberland Poetry Festival
• September 8-10 – La Conner, WA – Poets on the Coast
• September 13-17 – Santa Fe, NM – Haiku North America Conference
• September 14-17 – Newport, OR – Oregon Coast Guided Writing Retreat
• September 15-16 – Anchorage, AK – Fall 2017 SCBWI Writers and Illustrators Conference
• September 22-23 — Bellingham, WA — Bellingham SeaFeast presents the 2nd Annual FisherPoets on Bellingham Bay
• September 22-23 – Crescent City, CA – North Coast Redwoods Writers’ Conference
• September 22-24 – Tieton, WA – LiTFUSE
• September 23-24 — Kalispell, MT — Flathead River Writers’ Conference
• October 5-8 – Nampa, ID – Death Rattle Writers Festival
• October 6-8 — Edmonds, WA – Write on the Sound Writers’ Conference
• October 6-8 – Oceanside, OR – PDX Writers Autumn Retreat
• October 12-15 — Tacoma, WA — Cascadia Poetry Festival
• October 13-15 — Bellevue, WA — Emerald City Writers’ Conference
• October 13-15 — Portland, OR — The Oregon Poetry Association Annual Conference 2017
• October 19-22 — Sublimity, OR — Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) Annual Fall Retreat
• October 19-22 — Surrey, BC, Canada — 25th annual Surrey International Writers’ Conference
• October 20-22 – Lummi Island, WA – TLC Women’s Writing Retreat
• October 26-29 2017 — Seabeck, WA — Haiku Northwest’s Seabeck Haiku Getaway
• November 3-5 — Port Orchard, WA — Northwest Writers’ Weekend
• November 11 — Portland, OR — Wordstock: Portland’s Book Festival