top of page
2 - Vista from Knoll copy.jpg

Our spring
conference

June 4 - 9, 2023
Bell Valley Retreat Center
Boonville, CA

The Craft of Writing

Part writing retreat, part MFA-style intensive, our spring conference focuses on the craft of writing.

 

Over the course of the five days, you will have plenty of uninterrupted time to write...because one of the best ways to get better at writing is to sit down and write!

 

There will also be prompted free writing sessions to motivate and inspire you, as well as daily afternoon master classes taught by some of the most accomplished writers and instructors in publishing.

In the evenings, we'll gather to read a sampling of what we've been working on.

Welcom.JPG
Limited to 25 writers

Our faculty

Ingrid Rojas Contreras

A Finalist for the National Book Award, Contreras is the author of the novel, 'Fruit of the Drunken Tree,' as well as the memoir, 'The Man Who Could Move Clouds.' She is a visiting writers at University of San Francisco, CA.

Ingrid_Rojas_Contreras_2021_credit Jamil Hellu_square_fullsize (2).jpg

Janis Cooke Newman

Newman is the author of 'Mary; Mrs. A. Lincoln, which was an LA Times Book Prize Finalist, as well as 'A Master Plan for Rescue' (an SF Chronicle Best Book of the Year). She is the founder of Lit Camp.

Janis Full-resolution (1 of 4).jpg

Susan Straight

Susan Straight's new novel is Mecca, a Finalist for the Kirkus Prize.  Her memoir, In the Country of Women, was a national bestseller.  She is Distinguished Professor of Creative Writing at UCRiverside.

NewSusanSphoto_edited.jpg

Daniel Torday

Torday is a two-time winner of the National Jewish Book Award for fiction and the Sami Rohr Choice Prize, His stories and essays have appeared in Tin House, The Paris Review, The Kenyon Review, and n+1. He is a Professor of Creative Writing at Bryn Mawr College.

DanTorday.jpg

Pricing

Cottage.jpg

Prices for the 5-day conference range from $1095 to $2095, depending on accommodation chosen.

This fee includes accommodations, all 5 days of the conference, all talks and master classes, plus meals, provided by our amazing vegetarian chef.

For more information on accommodations, click the button below.

TentInterior copy.jpg

We offer partial scholarships to the conference. Scholarships provide a $500 discount on the conference fee.

Please note that we will preference BIPOC, differently-abled, and other underserved writers when awarding these scholarships.

Please indicate in your application letter whether you would like to be considered for a scholarship.

How to apply

Apply by submitting (through Submittable) a one-page letter describing yourself as a writer, and telling us a little bit about what you're working on.

Please also include a writing sample of no more than 250 words.

There is a $10 fee for applying. Please write to us if that represents a hardship.

We will begin accepting applications on

February 1, 2023.

 

All applications must be received no later than March 18.

 

We will let you know if you have been accepted to Lit Camp's Spring Conference by April 15, 2023. 

Bunkhouseext.jpg
bottom of page