Jampolis Cottage
Self-Directed Residencies
Twenty weeks—January through May, 2025—are now available for self-directed residencies at Jampolis Cottage (Avonport, NS). Applications are open to NS, Canadian, and international writers.
Apply by Oct 24
Fundraiser
Writing Rumble on the Road
For the first time, our competitive-writing-relay-&-fundraiser hits the road for New Glasgow! Sponsor a Pictou-area author (or a whole team, or BOTH teams) to support sponsored residencies at Jampolis Cottage—and join us on Oct 24 for the main event!
Sponsor by Oct 24
Awards
Nova Scotia & Atlantic Book Awards
If your book was (or will be) published between Nov 2, 2023, and Nov 1, 2024, it may be eligible for one or more awards! Traditional, hybrid/partner, and self-publications are accepted.
Submit by Nov 1
Awards
Emerging Writers Prizes
Submissions are open for our three annual prizes for emerging and early-career writers! The Saunders, Venart, and Oliver prizes recognize barriers to literary creation and support the advancement of book-length works-in-progress.
Submit by Nov 7
Resources
NS Literary Festivals & Book Fairs
We're updating our index of NS festivals and expanding it to include book fairs, big and small. Submit or update a listing and help us spread the word!
Submit / update a listing
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Upcoming
Workshops, Talks, Panels, & Meet-ups

Winter/spring 2025 workshops will open for registration on December 1.

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Recommended Experience Levels

The Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia (WFNS) recommends that participants in any given workshop have similar levels of creative writing and / or publication experience. This ensures that each participant gets value from the workshop⁠ and is presented with information, strategies, and skills that suit their career stage. The “Recommended experience level” section of each workshop description refers to the following definitions used by WFNS.

  • New writers: those with less than two years’ creative writing experience and/or no short-form publications (e.g., short stories, personal essays, or poems in literary magazines, journals, anthologies, or chapbooks).
  • Emerging writers: those with more than two years’ creative writing experience and/or numerous short-form publications.
  • Early-career authors: those with 1 or 2 book-length publications or the equivalent in book-length and short-form publications.
  • Established authors: those with 3 or 4 book-length publications.
  • Professional authors: those with 5 or more book-length publications.

Please keep in mind that each form of creative writing (fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and writing for children and young adults) provides you with a unique set of experiences and skills, so you might consider yourself an ‘established author’ in one form but a ‘new writer’ in another.

For “intensive” and “masterclass” creative writing workshops, which provide more opportunities for peer-to-peer feedback, the recommended experience level should be followed closely.

For all other workshops, the recommended experience level is just that—a recommendation—and we encourage potential participants to follow their own judgment when registering.

If you’re uncertain of your experience level with regard to any particular workshop, please feel free to contact us at communications@writers.ns.ca