The Nook Farm Writers Collaborative
To get the right word in the right place is a rare achievement.
The Mark Twain House & Museum is now accepting applications for the Summer 2024 Nook Farm Writers Collaborative. This six-week, on-site creative writing program in Hartford for Connecticut students grades 9-12 takes its inspiration from Mark Twain’s own career as a working writer, someone who wrote in a variety of genres and cultivated a range of skills in order to sustain a career in a challenging publishing world. The program is free to applicants selected for participation.
Under the guidance of writer and teacher Victoria Nordlund and program coordinator Dr. Erin Bartram, participants in the Nook Farm Writers Collaborative produce a variety of pieces in forms inspired by Twain’s writing career. They explore travel writing, journalism, personal essays, poetry, short stories, and creative non-fiction, culminating in a polished personal portfolio and several collaborative pieces. The program concludes with a showcase of that work, including live reading and performances.
Participants also work collaboratively to publish the summer issue of the NWFC’s online literary journal Journey 75, featuring a selection of the writing produced during the program. As the editorial board for the summer issue, participants select the pieces to be published, engage in extensive peer review, design a marketing campaign for the issue, and learn how to publish new pieces to the journal’s website. Three participants in the summer program are then selected to serve as the editorial board for the winter issue of the magazine, which is open to student writers throughout the state.
Applications are now open for the 2024 program, which runs June 25-July 31. Please read the eligibility requirements below carefully before completing your application:
- Participants must be between the ages of 14 and 18 when the program begins on June 25, 2024.
- The program meets on-site at The Mark Twain House & Museum in Hartford. Participants must be able to be at the museum Monday-Wednesday and Friday each week of the program from 9 AM to 3 PM; Thursday is a work from home day.
- Participants must be able to commit to the full six-week program to be considered for acceptance.