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Northern California Writers’ Retreat

Start Your Application: Poppy

Please be sure you’ve familiarized yourself with our upcoming retreats before applying and writing your personal statement. To apply, please fill out the form below.

Financial aid is available because of the great generosity of our alumni. When we send out acceptance letters on December 2nd, we will give you the option to apply for financial aid.

All rooms are SINGLE rooms with bathroom ensuite. The bathroom includes a toilet, sink, and shower stall. All linens and towels are provided by the retreat center. Retreat fees are $2,997 for 4 nights and 5 days, all meals, snacks, and beverages included.

Upon acceptance, we will require a $1000 non-refundable deposit, due by January 5th, 2027. The remainder of the payment will be due by February 4th, 2027.

We can’t wait to read about you and your work!

Applications are open now until November 5th.

We will get back to you with our decision on December 2nd.

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Full Name*

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Phone Number*

Your Pronouns*

Where are you from?*

City State

How did you learn about Northern California Writers' Retreat?*

Which retreat(s) would you like to be considered for?*

Session 1: March 17th-21st, Author-in-Residence Katy Hays; Guest Agents Allison Hunter from Trellis Literary Management and Mina Hamedi from Janklow & Nesbit Associates

Session 2: March 31st-April 4th, Author-in-Residence Natalie Baszile; Guest Agents Kristyn Keene Benton from Empire Literary and Ariele Fredman from United Talent Agency

Session 3: April 14th-18th, Author-in-Residence Shirin Yim Leos; Guest Agents Heather Jackson from Heather Jackson Literary Agency and Annie Hwang from Renegade Literary

You may apply to any and all retreats by clicking the boxes next to the one(s) you'd like above. After November 7th we will reach out to confirm you are still interested in the retreat, as well as to confirm the sessions you'd like to attend. You will only be accepted into one session.

Personal Statement + Writing Sample*

Personal Statement: Please begin your pages with a 400-word (max) personal statement. This is your moment to tell us why you want to join us and why this retreat interests you. We want to get to know you, so please be candid! Be sure to include what you hope to gain from this experience, if there are Authors-in-Residences or Guest Agents you hope to connect with, and what other retreats or conferences (if any) you've attended in the past. Writing Sample: Please upload a MAXIMUM of 5,000 words--double-spaced, 12 point font, Times New Roman. Because of the number of submissions we receive, we cannot read more work, even if you're about to get to the good part. You may submit published or unpublished work from a novel or short story you've written. Our goal is to see your writing talents and be sure you are a good fit for the retreat. These pages do not have to be what you decide to workshop at the retreat if accepted. The total word count for the submission should not exceed 5,400 words.

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Accepted file types: doc, pdf, docx, Max. file size: 5 MB, Max. files: 1.

Application Fee*

I understand to be considered, my application requires a non-refundable $25 fee.

Total Due Today

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