essay 30
a virtual fall writing residency
October 5 – November 6, 2026
This fall, join a group of nonfiction writers committed to writing an essay or chapter in 30 hours, over 33 days.
This isn’t a workshop or class, but a spookily effective combination of deep focus, just enough community, structure, inspiration, and good advice. For essayists, journalists, and memoir writers seeking to shape a regular practice, folks with article or book deadlines who also work too much, experienced nonfiction writers who want sparks, company, surprise. And for writers who are stalled and despairing: don’t despair. Click below.
Community-based and asynchronous options:
Daily prompts to inspire and challenge you from note-making to drafting and revision
Monday evening (6:30-8 ET) generative writing workshops on Zoom
Friday morning craft workshops: Working with Inner Critics, Scene Revision
Friday afternoon office hours
Daily or weekly deadline to share work
Individual coaching/editing meetings
Encouragement in the margins of new pages — but no obligation to read or give feedback to others
Final reading/celebration
Suggested fee: $600 (sliding scale and long-term client discounts available)
Application deadline: Friday, September 18
Acceptance notifications: Monday, September 21
EXPLORE + APPLY
From past participants…
Essay 30 created time where I didn’t think I had any. I finished two essays and fell in love with sentences again. And I established a daily writing practice I can actually sustain, even on my busiest days. Writing feels alive to me again. This was transformative!
—Stephanie H.
Essay 30 made me write, rather than wait for the urge, and it made me think about the craft in ways that expanded my ideas around what my project could be.
—Heather G.
Essay 30 was life changing for my process. By coming back to the page each day for 30 days, I went beyond the "class" to begin developing a practice that is informing my writing in more nuanced and unspoken ways.
—Melissa S.
So very thankful I did this. It showed me how to better integrate writing into my daily routine and re-ignited my enthusiasm for the craft of writing. Essay 30 proved to me that I don’t need perfect conditions or my special place to write, that I can make a ritual of spending time with myself, no matter where I am, to do what I love.
—Amanda P.