All applicants (except for Fellowship applicants) follow the guidelines below to submit a writing sample with the online application. The writing sample can be work that is published or unpublished.

Manuscript Format 

All applicants (except for Fellowship applicants) follow the guidelines below to submit a writing sample with the online application. The writing sample can be work that is published or unpublished.

  • Electronic file names must consist of the writer’s last name followed by the manuscript title. For example, YourLastName__TitleOfYourManuscript. Poets and those with a longer manuscript title can simply use something like YourLastName__manuscript for Bread Loaf.
     
  • If the manuscript was published online, please submit a copy of the piece as it appears online and include a link to the web site. If the copy of the page captured from the screen is unreadable, please instead submit a Word or PDF version of the typed text with the publication information and a link to the web site.
     
  • The applicant’s name and page number must appear on each sheet of the manuscript; for example, YourLastName, p.1.
     
  • Prose manuscripts must be double-spaced with 12 pt. font and margins of at least 1.25”. The total word count should be noted at the top of the first page. Applicants may include one or more stories as long as the total number of pages is within the 6,000-word limit. Please include a brief note to let readers know if the piece stands on its own as a short story or essay or if it is an excerpt from a longer project. If the sample has been published, please note the publication details at the top of the first page. Manuscripts excerpted from a longer project should include a one-page synopsis placed at the back of the piece (the synopsis can be single-spaced and does not count toward the 6,000-word limit).
     
  • Poetry manuscripts should have 12 pt. font and can be either single- or double-spaced. A poem can exceed one page, as long as the complete manuscript submission is within the ten-page limit. Please do not squeeze more than one poem to a page. If a poem has been published, please note the publication details at the top of the page.
     
  • Applicants should send their strongest work. Those accepted will have an opportunity to send a replacement manuscript of unpublished work for workshop critique.

Please do not send children’s or young adult literature, newspaper journalism, coauthored work, or self-help literature.

Upon acceptance, all writers invited to attend (with the exception of fellowship recipients) submit a manuscript of unpublished writing for workshop critique. The guidelines at that time will be similar to the guidelines included here. Acceptance letters will include more information.