Five Summer Residencies at the Herman Melville Museum in Pittsfield, Massachusetts

[Plot Device]

Hi Guys, Here's the link, and the rundown. (Mac said I could post this.)

- Pittsfield, Massachusetts
- Herman Melville Museum
- July 1 through July 21
- Five writers are going to get to spend 3 weeks as Residents
- Multiple disciplines are acceptable
----- poetry
----- fiction
----- non-fiction
----- translation
----- playwriting
----- comic books
----- etc.
- Certain expenses will be paid for by the museum
----- travel
----- room
----- board
----- private writer's studio at the museum

DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION: March 15, 2023.

Link below, with application information.

Good luck!

https://mailchi.mp/4dc87b2b711c/announcing-our-2020-writers-in-residence-20280950?e=[UNIQID]

 

[capricornair]

Hi Guys, Here's the link, and the rundown. (Mac said I could post this.)

- Pittsfield, Massachusetts
- Herman Melville Museum
- July 1 through July 21
- Five writers are going to get to spend 3 weeks as Residents
- Multiple disciplines are acceptable
----- poetry
----- fiction
----- non-fiction
----- translation
----- playwriting
----- comic books
----- etc.
- Certain expenses will be paid for by the museum
----- travel
----- room
----- board
----- private writer's studio at the museum

DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION: March 15, 2023.

Link below, with application information.

Good luck!

https://mailchi.mp/4dc87b2b711c/announcing-our-2020-writers-in-residence-20280950?e=[UNIQID]

Hey Plot Device, is there anything we can follow for 2024 applications? Ty

 

[Plot Device]

Hey Plot Device, is there anything we can follow for 2024 applications? Ty

OMG! I am so sorry I missed this question! (I am almost never here anymore!)

Let me check with my cousin (she is a curator at the museum). More than likely the deadline has gone by.

EDIT
Okay, so I wet snooping around the web site for the annual residency program. It appears they are taking this year off and not having a residency program at all for 2024. But applications for next year (2025) will be accepted starting in January of 2025.


CLICK HERE for details on this info:

https://www.themastheads.org/residency

 

[Plot Device]

Hi Guys, I am bumping this thread tonight. I will see if the 2025 season is going to happen this year after all. According to this link from last year, the 2025 applications will be accepted in January of 2025.

https://www.themastheads.org/residency

Stay tuned.

 

[kaitie]

Has anyone ever done a residency like this? If so, could they give their experience? It occurs to me that I have summers off (at least for now, might be the last one) and my kids are old enough that I could conceivably do something like this and I just wonder what the experience was like for those who might have gone.

 

[Maryn]

I've never done this myself, but an acquaintance of yore (lost touch more than a decade ago) did one. (Not this one.)

Parts of it were perfect--the place was quaint, very quiet, her time largely unstructured. She had a good place to set up her laptop and notes, the area was walkable for thinking time, and the other people in the program seemed pleasant enough.

Their set-up involved shared meals and optional social time, IIRC in the evening after dinner. Those who chose to drink were to BYO.

What didn't work out for her was that problems with her living space were not quickly addressed (I don't remember for sure, but I think some kind of plumbing issue?), some people's dietary needs were not met at mealtimes so all they could eat was the salad or vegetable, and there was nobody who would/could have dealt with a program member who wasn't pleasant. A cook served the food and cleaned up after, but they wouldn't have wanted to manage someone drunk or high, hitting on the ladies, or whatever else might go awry. The program director was not generally present or available.

That might just mean an understaffed or poorly run program, or one just getting started and learning as they went. This one's not new, so maybe it's great.