Spring deadlines have a sneaky way of arriving right when life gets full again, with taxes, Easter plans, travel and the general feeling that the year has finally started moving. That is exactly why I want them on your radar now. Some of the most beloved residencies in the country, including Hedgebrook, a women-only retreat with a chef and private cottages (!!!), take applications between March and May, and a little planning in the winter makes those applications so much calmer. Here they are in rough date order, with a couple of “watch for the call” programs at the end.
Last checked November 2026. Deadlines and fees change every year, so always confirm on the official site before you apply.
Millay Arts Core Residency
- Where: Steepletop, Edna St. Vincent Millay’s estate in Austerlitz, New York
- Deadline: March 1, 2027 (late deadline March 8), for August–November 2027. A second round closes October 1. Check the site, dates change yearly.
- Cost to apply: $45 ($60 late)
- Cost to attend / stipend: Free, apart from a $100 deposit, with groceries and communal dinners. Stipends are offered only as funding allows.
- Length: Two weeks or one month
- Who it’s for: Writers at any career stage
- What they look for: Merit alone, judged by a blind jury
KHN Center for the Arts
- Where: Nebraska City, Nebraska
- Deadline: March 1, 2027, for July 12–December 17, 2027 (a second round closes September 1). Check the site, dates change yearly.
- Cost to apply: $35
- Cost to attend / stipend: Free, with a $175 weekly food stipend
- Length: Two to eight weeks
- Who it’s for: Writers from the US and abroad, with two professional references
- What they look for: The quality of anonymous work samples and a clear purpose for the residency
Banff Centre: Comics and Fantastic and Futuristic Writers
- Where: Banff, Alberta, Canada
- Deadline: March 3, 2027 for Comics and Graphic Novels, and April 14, 2027 for Fantastic and Futuristic Writers (speculative fiction). Check the site, dates change yearly.
- Cost to apply: CAD $65
- Cost to attend / stipend: Partly covered by an automatic scholarship, with more aid on application. Room and all meals included.
- Length: Usually 12 days
- Who it’s for: Writers anywhere with a project in English
- What they look for: A specific project and self-directed focus on new work
Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center
- Where: Bellagio, on Lake Como, Italy
- Deadline: The last expression-of-interest deadline was March 20, 2026, so expect the 2028 call around March 2027. Check the site, dates change yearly.
- Cost to apply: Free
- Cost to attend / stipend: Free room, board and studio, plus travel funding
- Length: 26 days
- Who it’s for: Accomplished writers with significant recognition in their field
- What they look for: Work that can “inspire change and action” and reach the public
Vermont Studio Center
- Where: Johnson, Vermont
- Deadline: The window runs February 15 to March 31, 2027 (a fall window runs August 15 to September 30). Check the site, dates change yearly.
- Cost to apply: $25
- Cost to attend / stipend: Everyone gets at least a partial fellowship and 35% get full ones. With a partial, two weeks costs $2,700, including meals and a studio.
- Length: Two, three or four weeks
- Who it’s for: Poets and prose writers from around the world
- What they look for: Strong work, read by a rotating jury of working writers
Hedgebrook Writer-in-Residence
- Where: Whidbey Island, Washington
- Deadline: The last window ran February 17 to April 17, 2026, so expect a similar one in 2027 for the 2028 season. Check the site, dates change yearly.
- Cost to apply: A fee (the amount wasn’t listed on the pages we checked), with up to 50 waivers per cycle
- Cost to attend / stipend: Free, with your own cottage and chef-made meals. No stipend.
- Length: Two to three weeks
- Who it’s for: Women-identified writers 18 and over, published or not, who haven’t been before
- What they look for: An authentic voice and a heartfelt answer to “Why Hedgebrook? Why now?”
The Kerouac Project
- Where: The house in College Park, Orlando, where Kerouac wrote The Dharma Bums
- Deadline: The 2026 window ran February 7 to April 14, so expect a similar window in 2027. Check the site, dates change yearly.
- Cost to apply: $50, with a fund that helps cover fees
- Cost to attend / stipend: Free, with a $600 food stipend
- Length: About four to seven weeks
- Who it’s for: Writers from anywhere
- What they look for: Writers who need focused time to finish a project
Thoughts so far? Leave a thought
The Hambidge Center (Fall Session)
- Where: Rabun Gap, Georgia
- Deadline: The window runs March 1 to April 15, 2027, for September–December 2027. Check the site, dates change yearly.
- Cost to apply: $30
- Cost to attend / stipend: $300 a week, while Distinguished Fellowships are free and pay $700
- Length: Two to eight weeks
- Who it’s for: Emerging to established writers, with no publication required
- What they look for: Strong samples and a clear sense of why this residency matters now
Write On, Door County Residency
- Where: Door County, Wisconsin
- Deadline: Applications for 2028 open February 1, 2027, and earlier rounds closed around May 1. Check the site, dates change yearly.
- Cost to apply: Not shown on the page we checked
- Cost to attend / stipend: Free in exchange for a community project. Groceries aren’t included.
- Length: One week to one month
- Who it’s for: Emerging and established writers in any genre
- What they look for: A focused project and a thoughtful community engagement plan
Anne LaBastille Memorial Writers Residency
- Where: Twitchell Lake, in New York’s Adirondacks
- Deadline: The 2026 window ran April 13 to May 18, so expect a similar window in 2027 for a fall residency. Check the site, dates change yearly.
- Cost to apply: $30
- Cost to attend / stipend: Free, with family-style dinners. No stipend.
- Length: Two weeks
- Who it’s for: Poets, fiction and nonfiction writers (three of the six places are open to writers from anywhere)
- What they look for: The writing sample first, then your work plan
Ragdale
- Where: Lake Forest, Illinois, near Chicago
- Deadline: May 14, 2027, for 2028 residencies. Check the site, dates change yearly.
- Cost to apply: $35, with waivers on request
- Cost to attend / stipend: A sliding scale you choose ($35–280 a day, no proof needed), and fellows stay free with at least $1,000
- Length: 18 days
- Who it’s for: Emerging and established writers, with no publication required
- What they look for: “Original, inventive and exciting work” and a real sense of urgency
Gladstone’s Library Writers in Residence (watch for the call)
- Where: Hawarden, Wales, at the UK’s only residential library
- Deadline: Past windows ran in February and March, and no new call is posted yet. Check the site, dates change yearly.
- Cost to apply: Free
- Cost to attend / stipend: Free, with meals and (in past rounds) a weekly stipend and travel
- Length: Up to one month
- Who it’s for: Recently, emerging authors with at least one traditionally published book
- What they look for: Work engaging with social justice, religion, history or politics
The Mastheads (watch for the call)
- Where: Herman Melville’s Arrowhead, Pittsfield, Massachusetts
- Deadline: No 2027 call yet, and past calls opened in late winter or spring. Check the site, dates change yearly.
- Cost to apply: Not yet posted
- Cost to attend / stipend: Free, with a $600 stipend and travel reimbursement
- Length: Three weeks
- Who it’s for: Writers in any genre
- What they look for: A letter of intent that responds to Pittsfield’s literary history
Spring applications reward the writers who start early, so use these quiet winter weeks to polish a ten-page sample you love and draft a project statement that sounds like you on your best day. You deserve a room of your own, and a few of these programs will even cook dinner while you’re in it. Go get it, delighters.
Which of these spring residencies feels most like your kind of place?
Did this one delight you? Tap the heart.
Did this one stay with you? I’d love to hear what you think.
Leave a thought
