The Sewanee Writers' Conference is a writers' conference held every summer on the campus of the

University of the South The University of the South, familiarly known as Sewanee (), is a private Episcopal liberal arts college in Sewanee, Tennessee. It is owned by 28 southern dioceses of the Episcopal Church, and its School of Theology is an official seminary of ...

Sewanee, Tennessee Sewanee () is a census-designated place (CDP) in Franklin County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 2,535 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Tullahoma, Tennessee Micropolitan Statistical Area. Sewanee is best known as the home of ...

. The conference was started in 1989 by founding director Wyatt Prunty and the current director is Leah Stewart. The conference is funded largely by an endowment from the estate of acclaimed American playwright

Tennessee Williams Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the thre ...

. The conference takes place over twelve days, during which participants attend writing workshops, readings, panel presentations, lectures on the craft of poetry, fiction, and playwriting, and numerous social gatherings.

Admission

Admission to the conference is competitive and is decided through a formal application process. All applicants who are accepted to the conference have a portion of their expenses underwritten by the estate of

. Poets, non-fiction, and fiction writers who have published at least one full-length book, whether through a legitimate small press or a major publishing house, are eligible to apply for a limited number of fellowships to cover all tuition, room, and board for the conference. Poets, non-fiction, and fiction writers with a record of publication in periodicals are eligible to apply for scholarships (also limited in number) to cover conference tuition. Playwrights are also eligible for these awards if their work has seen production, either professional or amateur. Publication or production is not required for general admission to the conference.

Faculty and staff

The faculty of the Sewanee Writers' Conference has included poets, fiction writers, nonfiction writers, and playwrights such as Daniel Anderson,

Richard Bausch Richard Bausch (born April 18, 1945) is an American novelist and short story writer, and Professor in the Writing Program at Chapman University in Orange, California. He has published twelve novels, eight short story collections, and one volume of ...

, Venita Blackburn, John Casey,

Claudia Emerson Claudia Emerson (January 13, 1957 – December 4, 2014) was an American poet. She won the 2006 Pulitzer Prize for her poetry collection ''Late Wife'', and was named the Poet Laureate of Virginia by Governor Tim Kaine in 2008. Early life Emer ...

, Daisy Foote,

B.H. Fairchild B.H. Fairchild (born 1942) is an American poet and former college professor. His most recent book is ''An Ordinary Life'' (W.W. Norton, 2023), and his poems have appeared in literary journals and magazines including ''The New Yorker'', ''The Pari ...

, Debora Greger,

Barry Hannah Barry Hannah (April 23, 1942 – March 1, 2010) was an American novelist and short story writer from Mississippi.Kellogg, Carolyn (March 2, 2010)"Author Barry Hannah, 67, has died" ''Los Angeles Times''. Retrieved May 18, 2013. Hannah was born in ...

Robert Hass Robert L. Hass (born March 1, 1941) is an American poet. He served as Poet Laureate of the United States from 1995 to 1997. He won the 2007 National Book Award and shared the 2008 Pulitzer Prize for the collection ''Time and Materials: Poems 199 ...

Beth Henley Elizabeth Becker Henley (born May 8, 1952) is an American playwright, screenwriter, and actress. Her play ''Crimes of the Heart'' won the 1981 Pulitzer Prize for Drama, the 1981 New York Drama Critics' Circle Award for Best American Play, and a ...

, Vanessa Hua, Andrew Hudgins,

Mark Jarman Mark F. Jarman (born in Mount Sterling, Kentucky) is an American poet and critic often identified with the New Narrative branch of the New Formalism; he was co-editor with Robert McDowell of '' The Reaper'' throughout the 1980s. Centennial Prof ...

Donald Justice Donald Rodney Justice (August 12, 1925 – August 6, 2004) was an American teacher of writing and poet who won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1980. In summing up Justice's career, David Orr wrote, "In most ways, Justice was no different from an ...

Randall Kenan Randall Kenan (March 12, 1963 – August 28, 2020) was an American author. Born in Brooklyn, New York, at six weeks old Kenan moved to Duplin County, North Carolina, a small rural community, where he lived with his grandparents in a town named ...

, Katie Kitamura,

Margot Livesey Margot Livesey (born 1953) is a Scottish-born writer. She is the author of nine novels, a collection of short stories, a collection of essays on writing and the co-author, with Lynn Klamkin, of a textbook. Among other awards, she has earned a Gug ...

, William Logan,

Maurice Manning Maurice Manning (born 14 June 1943) is an Irish academic and former Fine Gael politician. Manning was a member of the Oireachtas (Irish Parliament) for 21 years, serving in both the Dáil and the Seanad. Since August 2002 he has been President ...

, Charles Martin,

Alex Marzano-Lesnevich Alex Marzano-Lesnevich is an American author and former lawyer. Biography Marzano-Lesnevich received their B.A. from Columbia University, M.F.A. from Emerson College, and J.D. from Harvard Law School. Marzano-Lesnevich is the author of ''The Fa ...

Claire Messud Claire Messud (born 1966) is an American novelist and literature and creative writing professor. She is best known as the author of the novel ''The Emperor's Children'' (2006). Early life Born in Greenwich, Connecticut,van Gelder, Lawrence. "Foot ...

, Jill McCorkle,

Alice McDermott Alice McDermott (born June 27, 1953) is an American writer and university professor. For her 1998 novel ''Charming Billy'' she won an American Book Award and the U.S. National Book Award for Fiction. McDermott is Johns Hopkins University's Ric ...

Erin McGraw Erin McGraw (born 1957) is an American author, known primarily for works of fiction, both short stories and novels. Her generous, genial works often depicts familial relations with cold-eyed optimism. Work Her first book, the story collection ...

Dan O'Brien Daniel Dion O'Brien (born July 18, 1966) is an American former decathlete and Olympic gold medalist. He won the Olympic title in 1996, three consecutive world championships (1991, 1993, 1995), and set the world record in 1992. Early life O' ...

, Elena Passarello,

Carl Phillips Carl Phillips (born 1959) is an American writer and poet. He is a Professor of English at Washington University in St. Louis. Early life Phillips was born in Everett, Washington. He was born a child of a military family, moving year-by-year unt ...

Mary Jo Salter Mary Jo Salter (born August 15, 1954) is an American poet, a co-editor of The '' Norton Anthology of Poetry'' and a professor in the Writing Seminars program at Johns Hopkins University. Life Salter was born in Grand Rapids, Michigan and was ...

Christine Schutt Christine Schutt, an American novelist and short story writer, has been a finalist for the National Book Award for Fiction and the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. She received her BA and MA from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and her MFA from Co ...

, Dave Smith, A.E. Stallings,

Mark Strand Mark Strand (April 11, 1934 – November 29, 2014) was a Canadian-born American poet, essayist and translator. He was appointed Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress in 1990 and received the Wallace Stevens Award in 2004 ...

Mona Van Duyn Mona Jane Van Duyn (May 9, 1921 – December 2, 2004) was an American poet. She was appointed United States Poet Laureate in 1992. Biography Early years Van Duyn was born May 9, 1921 in Waterloo, Iowa."Van Duyn, Mona (1921–2004)." '' Dictio ...

, Sidney Wade,

Richard Wilbur Richard Purdy Wilbur (March 1, 1921 – October 14, 2017) was an American poet and literary translator. One of the foremost poets of his generation, Wilbur's work, composed primarily in traditional forms, was marked by its wit, charm, and gentle ...

, Steve Yarbrough, and many others. Current and former conference staff members include current director Leah Stewart, Caki Wilkinson, Megan Roberts, Adam Latham,

Gwen E. Kirby Gwen may refer to: * Gwen (given name), including a list of people with the name * ''Gwen, or the Book of Sand'', a 1985 animated film * Gwen (film), a 2018 horror film * Tropical Storm Gwen, several storms with the name Acronyms * AN/URC-117 Gro ...

, Amy Arthur, Erica Dawson, Samuel Fox, Juliana Gray, Ananda Lima, Daniel Groves, Jonathan Bohr Heinen, Hastings Hensel, Carrie Jerrell, Jake Ricafrente, Kate Jayroe, Norris Eppes, and Adam Vines.

References

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External links

Sewanee Writers' Conference

Sewanee: The University of the South

SWC on YouTube
American writers' organizations Events in Tennessee Franklin County, Tennessee Recurring events established in 1989 Sewanee: The University of the South Writers' conferences Sewanee, Tennessee