Retreat FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions About
The Emerging Writers Retreat for LGBTQ Voices
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What is a fellow?
A fellow is an emerging writer who attends the Retreat in the role of a learner. Fellowships are awarded to about 96 applicants each year. Fellows work closely with their genre-specific cohort and faculty members during the length of the Retreat, and have chances at a variety of opportunities during the full year their fellowship takes place in.
What is a cohort?
Fellowships are organized into 8 cohorts with 12 fellows each, where each cohort relates to the genre-specific writing the fellows do. That means there are 12 fellows in the fiction cohort, 12 fellows in the nonfiction cohort, 12 fellows in the playwriting cohort, etc.
What is a member of faculty?
A faculty member is a writer who attends the retreat in the role of a teacher and leads their genre-specific workshop and cohort of 12 fellows. These are the writers who have published acclaimed books/plays/screenplays, who are well-known authors and educators, who have often been recognized for their writing through awards (i.e. the Lammys!) or have attended the Retreat in the past as an emerging fellow, and are now welcomed back as a celebrated and recognized member of the writing community.
What is a writer in residence?
Writers in residence are Retreat alumni, former fellows that return to the Retreat.
Writers in Residence are meant to be more independent members of the Retreat community and do not attend daily workshops. However, they have a one-on-one 30-minute workshop meeting with the faculty member leading their genre, attend panels, generative writing sessions, craft talks, participate in the reading series, and all other supplemental programming outside of the daily workshops. Writers in residence are encouraged to use their independent time to create and write.
Please note, this program is on pause while we have virtual retreats, and will become available again when we return to an in-person retreat. If a Retreat alumni is interested in attending the virtual retreat, they can apply for a fellowship.
What do you mean by “emerging”?
We welcome writers at all stages of their career in the belief that we are always learning and growing as writers in community. Though we loosely define an emerging writer as someone who has published fewer than two full-length books, plays, or screenplays, publications do not disqualify you from eligibility. Just like us, definitions of emerging writers are fluid, and we do not deny this special opportunity based solely on how many published works someone has or does not have.
Is there a maximum number of times a person can attend the retreat?
We do not set a limit on how many times someone can attend the retreat as a fellow or writer in residence.
How are applications reviewed?
Applications are reviewed in three stages by a panel of retreat alumni and Lambda staff. Reviewers are given comprehensive guidelines and a rubric to evaluate each application for craft, inventiveness, voice, and form. Within that, we strive to serve a variety of writers with varying backgrounds, ages, sexual orientations, genders, religions, races, ethnicities, socioeconomic statuses, and localities.
In the first round of review, the top 50 fellowship candidates in each genre are identified. In the second round, the top 30 fellowship candidates and the top 2 writers in residence in each genre are identified. In the third round of review, the genre-specific faculty member makes final decisions and chooses 12 fellows and 1 writer in residence out of the top 30 pool.
What do I need in order to apply?
1. An artistic/biographical statement (max 500 words).
2. A writing sample matching the genre of the workshop you’re applying for:
- A writing sample in .DOC, .DOCX, or .PDF format.
- For prose please double space and use a 12 point font.
- For Screenwriting please use standardized scriptwriting format.
- The sample you apply with does not have to be the same sample you plan to workshop at the Retreat.
- Page limits per workshop:
- For Fiction, Nonfiction, Romantic Fiction, Speculative Fiction, and Young Adult Fiction: 15 pages maximum. This maximum applies to cross-genre samples as well as samples in verse.
- For Playwriting and Screenwriting: 15 pages maximum from a full-length work, short play/script, or piece of theatre/film. This page limit includes dramatis personae/cast list/setting/description.
- For Poetry: 8 pages maximum
- Any publications of your work during the past two years, including anthologies, literary journals, magazines, websites, and books.
- Any other writing conferences, retreats, and workshops have you attended.
- Some scholarships, financial support, and additional opportunities require a scholarship statement (max 500 words).
What do tuition payments look like?
Tuition for the 2026 retreat is $1,100. We typically ask that you make 2 separate payments over the course of 2 months. However, we have payment plans available for those who need it.
The typical payment plan will look like:
- 1 deposit of $500 due in May 2026
- 1 final payment of $600 due in June 2026
Another option for payments can look like:
- 1 deposit of $366.66 due in May 2026
- 1 payment of $366.66 due in June 2026
- 1 final payment of $366.66 due in July 2026
These are not the only payment plans available, we can work with you on a different plan as long as your tuition is paid off by the start of the Retreat.
Does Lambda offer scholarships or financial support?
You may apply to as many scholarships and/or opportunities as you are eligible for.
Where does the retreat happen online? How do you communicate during the retreat?
The retreat uses Slack as the main communication hub and all group events happen on Zoom.
What is your virtual accessibility strategy?
We work to make the retreat accessible by addressing individual and collective needs. When we welcome all attendees to the retreat, we begin by surveying to find the accessibility needs each individual requires for participation and comfort. We use the survey responses each year to shape the accessibility strategy.
Some examples of accommodations built into the program’s practices each year are:
- Real-time captioning for all virtual meetings
- ALT text is provided for all images
- ASL interpreters are available for fellow and faculty readings upon request
- Built into the schedule are multiple breaks each day, faculty provide at least two 5-minute breaks during workshops
- Fellows have the option to keep their cameras on or off during workshops and events to reduce screen time and invite movement
- Faculty provide time during workshop orientation to discuss accessibility needs specific to the group and workshop format
- Craft talk and lecture recordings are made available the same day of the recorded event and for 6 months after the Retreat so fellows can opt to watch asynchronously during the retreat or at a later date
What do I need to do to prepare for the retreat?
You must submit an excerpt of the manuscript you want to workshop within the group. These excerpts are due to your cohort and faculty member around 6 weeks before the start of the retreat.
We ask that you come prepared having read the manuscript excerpts of your cohort members, and are ready for discussion with written critique notes to be given to the fellows being workshopped that day. More information on manuscript and critique guidelines are given upon acceptance.
What are the genre-specific workshop cohorts like?
The genre-specific cohort workshops span three hours each day from Monday-Friday. Here, you meet with your cohort of fellows and faculty member to workshop manuscript excerpts from 2-3 members of the cohort each day. Though the daily workshops are primarily critique and feedback driven, faculty members are invited to spend a bit of time with generative writing or craft lecture/discussion as they find appropriate.
Do fellows get a chance to interact with the faculty outside of the workshop?
Yes, each fellow will have a 20-minute one-on-one meeting with their faculty member. Additionally, the faculty are encouraged to (and do) attend the nightly fellow readings.
What else happens at the retreat?
A lot! We offer programming aimed at developing craft, demystifying the publishing industry, networking, celebrating the talent at the retreat, and building community.
- Each faculty gives a 45-minute craft talk (including Q&A) open to the whole group
- Every cohort is invited to attend an hour-long group meeting with an agent and/or industry professional who is an expert in their genre
- Whole-group generative writing sessions led by visiting authors
- Panels and talks from publishing professionals such as public relations groups, editors, marketing teams, etc.
- The nightly reading series where faculty and fellows read excerpts of their work amongst retreat attendees and family and friends
- Socials and mixers with fellows, retreat alumni, and/or representatives and members from partner literary organizations
- Social events such as virtual game nights, coffee chats, mealtimes, reading practice sessions, dedicated hangout zoom rooms open 24-hours a day
- Affinity group private chat channels and meetings
- Closing ceremony where fellows present a special thank you to their faculty member
What does a sample schedule look like?
Over the course of one week, we have a mix of synchronous and asynchronous programming.
The daily cohort workshops take place on Monday-Friday from 12:00 pm Eastern Time-3:00 pm Eastern Time. Supplemental programming such as faculty craft talks, industry professional meetings, and panels happen throughout the day, and the nightly reading series occurs each evening. Programming spans the whole day with ample breaks between.
The days can be packed, and we encourage fellows to take as many breaks as they need. To support this, all programming outside of the daily workshops and industry professional meetings are recorded and made available to fellows during and after the Retreat.
What about after the retreat?
After the retreat ends, we continue working with fellows throughout the year in a number of ways.
- We publish our yearly anthology, Emerge, edited by the Emerge Editorial Scholarship fellow.
- Fellows have chances at a number of opportunities through our partner organizations. Some examples of opportunities we offer include scholarships to attend other programs, conferences, workshops, and retreats; manuscript consultations; fee waivers for submissions to literary publications; and referrals for readings and publications
- We offer fellows the chance to facilitate a writing workshop through our For Fellows, By Fellows workshop series. Fellows are invited to submit a proposal for a workshop to be offered to the retreat community on a topic of their choice. This gives them the chance to test-run a workshop concept, to gain experience in facilitation, to receive feedback in a care-centered learning environment, a workshop facilitation with Lambda Literary on their CV, and the opportunity to continue learning and building community with the retreat cohorts.
- Opportunity to attend and read at various events with Lambda Literary and partners
What is the Emerge anthology?
The Emerge Anthology is a collection of work from Lambda Literary’s Retreat fellows edited by a fellow selected for the Emerge Editorial Scholarship. It is meant to showcase the vast talent of the Lambda Literary Writers Retreat for Emerging LGBTQ Voices, to serve as an archive for this once-in-a-lifetime experience. Each year, this collection cements in history our fellows’ groundbreaking work, and shows that these are the people who prove to the world that queer stories need to be told.
When will the retreat return to an in-person event?
In 2026, as we did in 2025, we are holding our Writers Retreat online. This format allows for us as an organization to continue building our resources while offering the same high-quality programming that remains accessible to folks who may not otherwise be able to attend in-person programs.
While we are reveling in the possibilities our virtual space holds, we are also excited to announce that we plan to return to an in-person Retreat in 2027 at our home, Chestnut Hill, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. However, this does not mean our virtual offerings will end. Our staff is hard at work dreaming up a new Virtual Retreat model that is expected to launch in the Winter of 2027/2028. We can’t wait to share all of the magic we’re cooking up.
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