Colgate Writers Conference

The Program

Intensive Workshops: Transform your manuscript through focused, intimate workshop sessions limited to just five participants. Receive feedback on your full manuscript from experienced faculty and peers.
Standard Workshops: Meet two hours daily with your cohort and workshop leader. Genres include: novel, short fiction, creative nonfiction, memoir, poetry, playwriting/screenwriting, and young adult.
Jumpstarter Workshops: No manuscript needed — just bring your creativity and let our structured workshop experience help you launch your next writing project. Perfect for both new writers and experienced authors looking to start something fresh.
Retreater: Write while in community with other writers and enjoy craft talks, agent and editor panels, and daily write-in sessions with other retreaters. (No workshop)
Additional programming: Craft talks, agent and editor panels, faculty and participant readings, morning and evening activities.
Optional add-on: One-on-one agent consultations, where you’ll have the opportunity to discuss your query letter and first pages with industry professionals. (Please note: this is included with the Intensive Workshop fee.)

This is my second Colgate Writers Conference. I completed a manuscript based on a piece I did in the Jumpstarter program in 2022. Workshopping my novel in 2025 is like a homecoming. Our group of five engaged in lively discussions about each other’s work, as well as the craft of writing. Our leader, Brock Clarke, a distinguished professor and author, waded in with the rest of us, rounding out honest, insightful critiques. I have plenty of ideas to take back home to make my novel the best it can be.

Sandra Lee Fenske ‘77 2022, and 2025 attendee

The Program

Scenes from Previous Writers Conferences

Faculty and Staff

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