Advice on Your Writing From an Experienced Author
The Virtual Writer-in-Residence (VWiR) program provides opportunities for Saskatchewan writers at all levels of development and genres to receive guidance and advice on a specific writing project from an established Saskatchewan writer.
The program gives SWG members who live in Saskatchewan outside of Regina and Saskatoon access to the services of a VWiR. The VWiR will meet one-on-one with SWG members through a one-hour video call to talk about the individual’s submitted writing and questions they have about writing.
Members may submit proposals, manuscripts or writing samples up to 15 pages in any genre for consultation. The VWiR will read your submission and be prepared to discuss your work and answer your questions during your consultation.
Members can access this free service a maximum of one session per month, up to three sessions per residency period.
Please register by filling out the form under "Participant Registration" below.
Our Winter VWIR service is closed. Thank you to our Winter VWIR Gordon Portman. Stay tuned for an announcement of our Fall VWIR in August: the service will reopen September 2, 2025 for registrations.
Gordon Portman has been a professional writer and teacher for more than thirty-five years. For much of that time, his work has primarily been associated with theatre; however, for the past fifteen+ years he has been a creative writing instructor / mentor at Brandon University, where he introduced students to a range of techniques associated with all four of the main writing disciplines – non-fiction, fiction, drama, and poetry. He is a recipient of several creation / production grants; has twice been shortlisted for the CBC Literary Prize in non-fiction (most recently in 2024), and most recently has been published in the anthology This Is Beyond.
There's a lot of change in the works these days; even though change is a fundamental and inescapable facet of life on this wee planet, the changes in the air (literally) seem to feel particularly significant. One thing that does not really change, though - at least for us humans - is the (idea? fact? experience?) that stories can help us understand, or feel more understood, or just provide comfort. As SWG's Virtual Writer in Residence, I'm here to support Saskatchewan writers outside of the major centres to tell the stories they feel driven/drawn to telling, and to collaborate in the shaping and crafting of those stories so that the author's intent reaches the reader in the clearest, most effective possible way. I'm very much looking forward to encountering the range of writers and ways of storytelling that will be coming through the Program's "doors" this winter. Let's do this.
Who Can Access This Service
You are eligible for this program if you are:
- a current SWG member; and
- living in Saskatchewan outside of Regina or Saskatoon.
This service is open to all Saskatchewan-based members of the SWG in good standing who do not have access to any other Writer-in-Residence programs. Writers of any genre and level of ability are welcome to access the VWiR.
Members who live in Regina or Saskatoon should refer to the Writer-in-Residence programs at their regional library for similar services. Regina writers can work with the Regina Public Library Writer-in-Residence and Saskatoon writers can work with the Saskatoon Public Library Writer-in-Residence.
The VWiR will work with a maximum of 12 writers per month, on a first-come, first-served basis.
If you have any questions regarding your eligibility for this VWiR service, please email programs@skwriter.com.
Submission Guidelines for Your Writing Sample
The writing that you would like to submit to the Virtual Writer-in-Residence should follow the SWG's standard submission guidelines:
- Maximum of 15 pages double-spaced prose or a maximum of 10 poems/10 pages of multi-page poems. Poetry may be single-spaced or double-spaced; please make sure each new poem starts on a new page;
- submissions must be in English;
- all material must be typed in body-text fonts like Times New Roman, Courier, or Arial;
- font size should be 12 pt;
- pages must include 1" margins;
- pages should be numbered sequentially;
- title and your name included in either header or footer;
- Word documents only; we do not accept PDFs, Google docs or other formats
Participant Registration
- Fill out our registration form to confirm your eligibility. Participants are required to register once per term. Your 15 page/10 poem writing submission for your first consultation is required for your registration form. If registered successfully, subsequent meetings and submission of writing for those meetings may be arranged directly with the VWIR.
- Registrations are processed in 2-3 business days; please email programs@skwriter.com if you have not received a response to your registration after 2-3 business days to ensure we've received your registration.
- The SWG will connect you with the Virtual Writer-in-Residence to arrange your virtual consultation.
- The VWiR will respond to your email and arrange a one-hour meeting on a mutually convenient date and time. The VWIR may have specific hours during which they schedule meetings but may be flexible outside these dates/times.
- You will receive an emailed invitation link from the VWiR for your Zoom meeting. Click on the link to join the call.
For more information, please contact:
Program Director
T: 306.791.7743 | E: programs@skwriter.com
