Byron Writers Festival is excited to announce our first initiative to disseminate funding from the Create NSW Restart program.

Our Restart program is beginning with two major residential retreats. Each retreat will offer participants a five-day, expenses-paid literary retreat in northern NSW, shared with four other artists, enriched by the mentorship of an acclaimed NSW author.

Applications for these two residential retreats will open Monday 1 March 2021 and close 5.00pm Friday 19 March 2021. The successful applicants will be informed via email on Friday 2 April 2021.

Open Writers and Illustrators Residential Retreat

The writer or illustrator will be working on a major work; it may be at any stage of progress. They need to submit:

• A description of your major work of fiction, memoir, poetry or book illustration, no more than 250 words; illustrators may submit a storyboard or narrative outline
• A major work is considered to be a novel, novella, anthology of short stories or poetry, picture book or graphic novel illustrations
• A sample of the major work, 20 pages (double spaced, 12-point font) for writers
• A rationale describing what you hope to gain from this retreat – no more than 250 words
• A short bio/cv – no more than 150 words
• Evidence of your residential address in NSW (rental agreement, rates notice, utilities bill, drivers licence)
• You must be available to travel to Byron Bay to take up the residency from 4-8 May 2021
• Applicants must be over 18 years of age
• Artists will be paid a professional fee of $1000 for retreat participation pro rata

First Nations Australia Writer/Illustrator Residential Retreat

• A description of your major work of fiction, memoir, poetry or book illustration, no more than 250 words; illustrators may submit a storyboard or narrative outline
• A major work is considered to be a novel, novella, anthology of short stories or poetry, picture book or graphic novel illustrations
• A sample of the major work, 20 pages (double spaced, 12-point font) for writers
• A rationale describing what you hope to gain from the retreat – no more than 250 words
• A short bio/cv – no more than 150 words
• Information of the First Nations community/ies to which you have connections
• Proof of your residential address in NSW (rental agreement, rates notice, utilities bill, drivers licence)
• If your application is successful, you may be asked to provide evidence of your status in your First Nations community
• You must be available to travel to Byron Bay to take up the residency from 9-13 May 2021
• Applicants must be over 18 years of age
• Artists will be paid a professional fee of $1000 for retreat participation pro rata

Application Guidelines

• Applications for both retreats must be submitted as ONE PDF file, including a cover page that states the applicant’s name, email contact, telephone contact and the title of their major work.
• Submission will be to [email protected]
• Applications will be assessed and chosen by a panel of industry professionals; all decisions are final and at the discretion of the panel.

After notification of a successful submission, participating artists will have five working days to confirm their participation by email.

On completion of each retreat, participating artists will be invited to submit their work/manuscript for assessment from a publishing industry professional.

In partnership with