The Sundress Academy for the Arts (SAFTA) is now accepting applications for short-term writing residencies in all genres—poetry, fiction, nonfiction, playwriting, screenwriting, journalism, academic writing, and more—for their summer residency period which runs from May 9th through August 15th, 2027. These residencies are designed to give artists time and space to complete their creative projects in a quiet and productive environment.
Each farmhouse residency costs $300/week, which includes a room of one’s own, as well as access to our communal kitchen, bathroom, office, and living space, plus wireless internet. Residencies in the Writers Coop are $175/week and include your own private dry cabin as well as access to the farmhouse amenities.
Residents will stay at the SAFTA farmhouse, located on a working farm on a 45-acre wooded plot in a Tennessee “holler” perfect for hiking, birdwatching, and foraging. The farmhouse is also just 20 minutes from downtown Knoxville, an exciting and creative city that is home to a thriving arts community. SAFTA is ideal for writers looking for a rural retreat with urban amenities.
Sundress is dedicated to supporting the diversity in the literary community. As part of our commitment to anti-racist work, we use a reparations payment model for our farmhouse residencies which consists of the following:
- 3 reparations weeks of equally divided payments for Black and/or Indigenous identifying writers at $150/week
- 3 discounted weeks of equally divided payments for writers of color at $250/week
- 6 equitable weeks of equally divided payments at $350/week
Black and/or Indigenous identifying writers are also invited to apply for a $350 support grant to help cover the costs of food, travel, childcare, and/or any other needs while they are at the residency. We are currently able to offer two of these grants per residency period (spring/summer/fall).
For the Summer 2027 residency period, SAFTA will be offering the following fellowships:
- Smokelong Quarterly Fellowship for Trans writers: One full fellowship given to a trans writer for a week-long farmhouse residency
- Black & Indigenous Writers Fellowship: One full fellowship for Black and/or Indigenous identifying writers
- Writers of Color Fellowships: One full and one 50% fellowships for writers of color
The application deadline for the summer residency period is February 1st, 2027.
The application fee is waived for everyone during the month of September. Starting October 1st, the application fee is waived for all writers of color. For all fellowship applications, the application fee will also be waived for those who demonstrate financial need; please state this in your application under the financial need section.
