Last week I was at the Artist Communities Alliance Evolving Programs Conference. I was also working in the evening to send out all of the 2025 application notifications for Storyknife. (If you applied and didn’t receive an email from me, please just send me a note and we’ll see where your notification went astray.)
It was a busy week. The days were full of learning how to better support the mission of Storyknife, considering how to provide the writers with what they need to fulfill their goals, how to make the organization as strong and resilient as possible. And in the evenings, I was sending out hundreds of emails that made some people very happy and some people disappointed.
It adds up to wishing that there could be room at Storyknife for all of the writers who need what Storyknife has to offer. I can’t think of one person who has applied in the last five years who hasn’t deserved the time and space to devote to their writing. More than that, I know, as a struggling writer myself, every single writer needs to hear that their story is important, that their writing is worth nurturing.
Each cohort of writers at Storyknife brings a multiplicity of experiences. Katrina Carrasco, 2024 alum, wrote, “My time at Storyknife was exceptional. It was my great privilege to be in community with other women writers and learn from them in our conversations about books, craft, and life. I left Storyknife full of joy, having made progress on my new book and even better, having made friendships with other women artists that I hope to have for years to come.”
It’s that beautiful multiplicity of stories that can evolve the prevailing narrative. That community of voices that makes all stronger.
The Storyknife board and staff are so grateful that we get to be a tiny part of this organization. An even bigger portion of gratitude goes to the individuals and foundations that make it financially feasible to offer these residencies. Last year there were 237 people who found a way to help support the women writers of Storyknife. I know that the 52 writers who were in residency this year appreciate all that you have given them.
Many of you have already given, and next year’s writers (and all of us at Storyknife) are equally grateful to you. But if you’ve been putting it off, and if lifting and nourishing the voices of women writers matters to you, please consider an end-of-the-year gift to Storyknife. We’re still working toward our $50,000 Challenge Match. Time is getting shorter, so I hope you won’t put it off any longer. Please donate to help Storyknife reach that goal and make it possible for us to host fifty women writers in 2025!
Take care and be safe out there,
Erin
Storyknife Executive Director
Storyknife Writers Retreat 