This exclusive two-week intensive is designed for writers developing book-length projects in fiction or nonfiction. Open only to Yale Writers’ Workshop alumni, the program brings together a select cohort of eight writers for a focused, collaborative experience.
Week one takes place on campus, offering an immersive environment for deep creative engagement. Week two continues virtually, allowing participants to sustain their momentum, share new work, and receive continued feedback.
This highly competitive program is ideal for serious writers ready to push their manuscripts toward completion while receiving personalized guidance and peer support.
During the first week, participants will critique 7,000 words from their fellow writers’ manuscripts and engage in generative and revision-based activities in an energetic, exploratory setting. Exercises and readings will be assigned prior to arrival, and writers should expect to meet online with the group before coming to campus.
In the second week, writers will process and refine their work, meeting virtually for three additional workshops to discuss revision strategies, structural development, and next steps toward a full manuscript. The small cohort size ensures close collaboration and a deep understanding of one another’s projects.
The Work-in-Progress Intensive is best suited for writers who have at least 7,000 words of a draft and a clear commitment to transforming that draft into a book-length work. Priority will be given to writers with confident first drafts.
[quote] “That was a great two weeks. So many of the speakers had unique and useful advice for writing. I think it's the best group of speakers I've experienced. Well done!”
Adelma Gillespie, 2023 Intensive Participant
The application for the 2025 Yale Writers' Workshop is now closed. We encourage you to apply for the Summer 2026 session when applications open in January.
[point] Open to YWW Alumni Only
This unique two-week workshop is designed for writers working on book-length material and is open to YWW alumni. This cohort of just eight writers will meet and write for two weeks. In week one, writers will critique 7000 words from peers’ manuscripts. Week two, which is virtual, will be generative, with writers developing new material, and reading back at least 1500 words in session, and discussing progress and strategies for their next steps.
Our Work-in-Progress Intensive Workshop will focus on a review of fiction and nonfiction manuscripts that are part of book-length work. Writers will receive practical critiques to create tailored strategies for rewriting and restructuring their work. The class will work collaboratively on exercises to sharpen writing skills as well to create new work. We will examine sentence and paragraph structure, narrative voice, suspense, and metaphor. Workshop members will receive the time and focus necessary to take their writing to the next level.
Please submit a 1000-word sample from the manuscripts you plan to submit and answer these questions in your application:
[point] We anticipate strong interest in this intensive workshop and will create a waiting list if necessary. Writers applying for the intensive workshop should include alternative workshop choices on their application in case they are not selected.
[date] Program Dates: June 7 - June 19, 2026
| Tuition | Cost |
|---|---|
| Tuition Without Housing | TBD |
| Tuition With One Week of Housing | TBD |
Kirsten Bakis is author, most recently, of King Nyx, which Esquire magazine named one of the Best Horror Books of 2024 and Victor LaValle called "a novel of delicious disquiet." In a profile in the Washington Post, Jacob Brogan called Bakis "a major talent, a writer of prodigious commitment, capability and imagination." She is the recipient of multiple awards and has been teaching at the Yale Writers’ Workshop since 2012.
Sergio Troncoso is most recently the author of Nobody’s Pilgrims. He also wrote A Peculiar Kind of Immigrant’s Son, which Luis Alberto Urrea called "a world-class collection" and Junot Díaz hailed as “a masterwork.” Troncoso edited Nepantla Familias: An Anthology of Mexican American Literature on Families in between Worlds, which received a starred review from Kirkus Reviews. A past president of the Texas Institute of Letters, Troncoso was inducted into the Texas Literary Hall of Fame. He has taught at the Yale Writers' Workshop since 2013.