“The lectures and craft classes with all top-notch, exceeding my expectations for quality and rigor. I found each faculty member extremely warm and welcoming to participants, regardless of educational backgrounds or prior publication history. The atmosphere for all activities were collegial and non-competitive. I found the publishers and editors I met were likewise: encouraging of me to be in touch regarding a number of project ideas I have. I walked away with multiple connections and ideas for future community building activities as well as publication ideas.”
Carole Symer
Ann Arbor, MI
Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference
With a distinguished literary and intellectual tradition dating back to its founding in 1926, the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference will bring emerging writers together to work with a diverse and talented faculty. Our Centennial celebration started last summer will continue through the year and culminate in special events planned for summer 2026. We hope you’ll be able to join us.
For ten days in August, Participants and Fellows will experience the opportunity of working under the guidance of notable writers, including MacArthur Fellows, U.S. Poets Laureate, and recipients of the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award.
Our rural and scenic setting amid the Green Mountains on Middlebury’s Bread Loaf campus provides an ideal environment for discussing manuscripts, sharing insights, getting to know agents and editors, and becoming acquainted with the next generation of significant writers.
Overview
Workshops are at the core of the conference. Each faculty member conducts a workshop in fiction, poetry, or nonfiction that meets for five two-hour sessions over the course of the 10 days.
- Groups are limited to ten writers to facilitate discussion.
- Participants meet individually with their faculty mentors.
- Faculty offer lectures on literary writing and classes on specific aspects of craft.
- You can attend daily readings by the faculty, participants, and guests.
- All participants meet with visiting editors, literary agents, and/or publishers.
The 2026 Session
This year’s conference will take place from Wednesday, August 12 to Saturday, August 22. Find out more about dates and fees.
In addition to their literary accomplishments, writers on faculty have been specifically chosen for their skill at guiding developing writers. Find out more about faculty and guests.
Financial Aid
Thanks to the generous support of Middlebury College and to an endowment fund established by past Bread Loafers and other donors, financial aid is available for both published and unpublished writers. Financial need has no bearing on decisions, except as noted. See Financial Aid Information.
Apply
Applications are accepted between December 1 and March 15. Notification letters will be sent via Submittable in late May. See Application Information.
What Past Participants Say:
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“This was such a welcoming experience. It was diverse, writers were brilliant and curious, and the feelings of comradery was genuine.”
Bettina Judd
Decatur, GA -
“A wonderful community. Full of love. Dancing in the barn with everyone— all the geniuses among the participants, fellows, instructors— this was a particular highlight. I feel deeply influenced. I feel I’ve been expanded into a more knowledgeable, complicated, varied, and more loving person, which is the metamorphosis that I’m always praying for. I think everyone will leave the mountain ready to put finishing touches on their masterpieces and ready to begin their new ones.”
Mark Ray Lewis
Brookline, Massachusetts -
“This is what I mean by community. People negated doubts about whether people were writers right before their agent/editor meetings. People celebrated folks becoming recent parents. People shared phones so others could call home. People checked in on folks if they didn’t see them where they were supposed to be. These are the gestures that cannot be taught, but they were exemplified nearly every moment during the 2026 Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference.
Dana Tenille Weekes
Washington, DC