Dates
Application Deadline: May 28, 2025
Program Dates: October 29 – November 18, 2025
Overview
Mountain Writers Intensive is a three-week residency for nine writers working on mountain narratives, environmental journalism, stories of adventure, or projects with an environmental theme. Writers can work in any genre (fiction, nonfiction, journalism, or poetry), and will enjoy dedicated, uninterrupted writing time in a spectacular mountain setting, the communality of a small group of artistic peers and support from renowned faculty.
This program overlaps with the Banff Centre Mountain Film and Book Festival where visiting authors, editors, and publishers will offer inspiration.
Description
In the niche genre of mountain literature, the journey of self-exploration and the psychology of extreme endeavours is as much a focus as the physical accomplishments involved. This program will emphasize literary quality and the development of narrative. Writers will be encouraged to meet regularly with faculty and other writing participants to share work and projects for review.
During this program writers will take part in scheduled workshops with faculty and guests to:
- explore and learn the elements of a strong narrative.
- hear topics related to mountain and wilderness writing.
- receive feedback on unfinished work from faculty.
- share best practices and ideas with other participants.
Writers will have access to uninterrupted writing time and a personal studio space.
Requirements
The program is designed to cater to emerging and established writers in all genres— fiction, nonfiction, poetry, essay, history, biography, and memoir—working on mountain narratives, environmental journalism, stories of adventure, or projects with an environmental theme.
Participants will benefit most if they are comfortable working autonomously in an unstructured environment. The program suits those focused on:
- working on a specific project.
- creating new works.
This program is run in English and only accepts projects that are being written in English. English is the language of Banff Centre correspondence.
Residency Eligibility
Residency Experience Summary
Application Information
Each residency has specific eligibility requirements; please visit our website for our current and available programs open for application.
Total fee per person (Tuition, Accommodation and Meal Plan): $5 734.05
Scholarship Amount Applied*: $4 024.65
You pay (fee after scholarship applied): $1 709.40
Application Fee
$65 for individuals, $35 for applicants who identify as Indigenous.
The application fee is non-refundable. 100% of this fee goes towards the cost of administering the application in SlideRoom.
Scholarships
We are pleased to offer scholarships to support participants in our program. Below are details regarding the scholarship amount and how they are applied.
- Standard scholarship: covers 100% of tuition fees, and 50% of meals and accommodation costs
- Canadian Indigenous scholarship: covers 100% of tuition fees, meals, and accommodation costs
If you would like to be considered, please complete the Financial Aid section when uploading your supporting materials.
Banff Centre offers a range of scholarship and funding opportunities for each residency. If you would like to be considered, please complete the Financial Aid section when uploading your supporting materials through the application portal.
Please visit the Fees & Financial Aid section of the program page to learn more about individual program's specific fees and funding availabilities.