The Clarion 2011 workshop at UCSD La Jolla has just opened up for submissions from writers. Clarion is the original boot-camp-style writing program for science fiction, fantasy and horror writers, with alumni as diverse as Bruce Sterling, Nalo Hopkinson, Jeff VanderMeer, Octavia Butler, Kathe Koja, James Patrick Kelly — and me! The workshop runs for six weeks, and most students write a story every week; all student work is critiqued by the other students and the in-residence instructors, who also meet with each student one-on-one.
Clarion is widely recognized as a premier training ground for aspiring writers of fantasy and science fiction short stories. The 2011 writers in residence are Nina Kiriki Hoffman, John Scalzi, Elizabeth Bear, David Anthony Durham, John Kessel and Kij Johnson. Each year 18 students, ranging in age from late teens to those in mid-career, are selected from applicants who have the potential for highly successful writing careers. Students are expected to write several new short stories during the six-week workshop, and to give and receive constructive criticism. Instructors and students reside together in UCSD campus apartments throughout the intensive six-week program.
Application period: December 1 – March 1. Applicants must submit two short stories with their application.
Workshop: June 26 – August 6, 2011. http://clarion.ucsd.edu
Only 18 students are accepted each year. Here's the FAQ.
(Disclosure: I am an unpaid, volunteer member of the board of directors of the Clarion Foundation, a 501(c)3 charity that oversees Clarion; I am also a sometime Clarion instructor)
