WELCOME TO MARSHSONG COTTAGE
In March 2023, the nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center will offer our sixth Conroy Center Writer's Residency, available to writers of all genres. Located on a salt marsh, the residency at MarshSong Cottage provides an inspirational, creative space in the heart of Pat Conroy’s beloved lowcountry. The residency location is a guest cottage on St. Helena Island, South Carolina, approximately 15 minutes from downtown Beaufort and 15 minutes from the beach at Hunting Island State Park.
The residency dates will be February 28 to March 7, overlapping with the Conroy Center's annual March Forth program at historic Penn Center, which the selected writer will have opportunity to attend.
TO APPLY FOR THE WRITER'S RESIDENCY
1) Tell us a story. Fiction, non-fiction, memoir, or poetry, your story must include the following: pickled shrimp, a particular attribute of the salt marsh, an anecdote about the same sweet girls you once knew, and your favorite southern phrase. Up to 250 words, in the body of the email. Have fun with this prompt!
2) What are you seeking? Tell us how being in the lowcountry for a residency will benefit your writing, and how your presence will benefit the people you meet here. If you live in the lowcountry, help us understand why you should be chosen over someone who has never been here. Be specific and tell us in 200 words (no more) in the body of the email.
3) Who are you? Send us a short bio, along with your contact information, up to 100 words, in first person please.
4) Do you have a favorite Pat Conroy book? If so, tell us which one, and why. Don’t have a favorite Conroy book? Then tell us which book by another author is closest to your heart and why in about 50 words.
5) Let’s have a look. Include a writing sample of your work, 3–5 double-spaced pages of prose or 3-5 poems (collectively no more than 5 pages), attached as a PDF.
Submissions will be reviewed by a panel of Conroy Center advisors. The selected writer will be notified by January 17, 2023. The residency will start on February 28, ending on March 7.
The residency is open to both published and unpublished writers. If you have applied before but not been selected, we encourage you to apply again. Pat Conroy was a mentor to writers in all stages of their careers and we wish to honor that legacy.
ABOUT THE COTTAGE
WRITERS, WE LOOK FORWARD TO YOUR SUBMISSIONS!
