2025 Yearlong Book-Writing Workshops

The 2025 application deadline has now passed. Applicants will be notified of their initial status by December 27, 2024. Waitlisted applicants will receive final notification no later than January 5.

Night School Bar is excited to announce the return of our yearlong book-writing workshops! We are offering two separate sections: Fiction Writing and Personal Non-Fiction Writing. Both of these sections will meet in-person at Night School Bar in Durham, NC. We are accepting applications on a rolling basis, and will finalize the cohorts—maximum of 10 people each—by December 20.

Fiction (Apply Here):

Participants at any stage of development are welcome, as are participants working on longer works of fiction in any genre including collections of short stories and flash fiction, novels, novellas, and graphic novels. However, we particularly encourage submissions for fiction writing that blends or transcends genre, and/or that experiments with form.

Personal Non-Fiction (Apply Here):

Participants at any stage of development are welcome, as are participants working in any personal non-fiction form, including personal essay, memoir, prose poetry, historical re-interpretation, intertextual writing, and autotheory. However, we particularly encourage submissions for non-fiction writing that blends or transcends genre, and/or that experiments with form (including use of visual imagery).

Structure:

Overview

One 3-hour Saturday workshop meeting per month
One 2-hour generative co-working and accountability support session per month
Quarterly craft discussions
3-day intensive retreat with one-on-one support with instructor (mid-year)
Three workshop meetings for sharing final works (December)

Participants will meet once a month from January-November (non-fiction will meet on the 3rd Saturday of each month, fiction on the 4th Saturday). They will also be invited to participate in a once-a-month generative co-working and accountability support session (2nd Saturday of each month), and a quarterly craft discussion. We will also offer a 3-day intensive retreat in July, including a one-on-one with the instructor, and 3 workshops per section in December for sharing final works (dates TBD). Each participant will be offered the opportunity to share and workshop up to 20 pages of work five times over the course of the year. Each person will actively share supportive feedback with other classmates monthly. You will be expected to read up to 100 pages per month, and you will be able to share up to 100 pages of completed work in our December meeting. In previous years, many students completed full-length manuscripts, while others developed and refined shorter sections. Previous workshop participants have seen their work published by a variety of journals and presses.

**Bi-monthly submissions will be due two-weeks before the meeting date. Participants should expect to spend 3-6 hours per month reading other participants’ work, in addition to their own writing time. While you are not expected to prepare written comments on others’ written work, you should be prepared to discuss it in detail, and you should aim to read each submission at least twice before the monthly meeting.**

The fiction section will be facilitated by Christa Westaway. The non-fiction section will be facilitated by Lindsey Andrews.

Tuition:

Tuition for the entire yearlong program is offered on a sliding-scale: $2000 (full tuition), $1750 (mid-level tuition), $1500 (lowest tuition). We will also work to secure 1-2 full scholarships per section in our end-of-year fundraiser, and will offer those to successful applicants as they become available. A $350 non-refundable deposit will be due by January 1 for accepted students (except full-scholarship students). The remaining tuition will be due one week before the first class session. Students may opt to check-out with Pay-Pal if they would like to pay in installments. If, after the first class session, you decide the class is not for you, we will offer your spot to a wait-listed student and will offer a partial refund if your spot is taken. No refunds will be offered after the second class session.

Applications questions (please answer these in the linked form):

1. What do you plan to work on over the course of the year? (e.g. essays, stories, novel, revising existing manuscript, etc.) Please briefly describe what you have in mind.

2. Do you already have work-in-progress? If so, where are you in the process?

3. Why do you feel like now is the time to commit to a yearlong program? How will it help you on your writing journey?

4. Please list any previous writing workshop experience you have.

5. (Optional) Include a short writing sample from your work-in-progress to give your instructors an understanding of your vision for your project and to help them prepare methods of support.

6. Tuition for this yearlong program is offered on a sliding scale for the year: $2000 full tuition, $1750 mid-level tuition, or $1500 lowest-tuition. All successful applicants will be able to choose whichever level works for them. We are also trying to raise funds for several full scholarships. Will you be requesting a full scholarship ($50 registration fee only, if selected) for this course? Y/N

Apply to the Night School Bar 2025 Yearlong Personal Non-Fiction Writing Workshop — Instructor: Lindsey Andrews | Monthly January-November | 3rd Saturday 6:30-9:30 PM | 3 December meetings (TBD) | Optional 2nd Saturday support meeting | Optional mid-year 3-day retreat