We hold the retreat every two years. Our third retreat will be held July 23-27, 2026 at the Watershed Center, which is located in Millerton, NY.

Go to our Apply page, which contains information about the application and a link to Submittable. Applications will open on February 1. The deadline to apply is February 19, 2026, at 11:59 pm EST.

We do not adhere to any particular style or school of poetry. You do not have to be published. However, we are looking for people with a deep and demonstrated commitment to poetry, especially as a community practice. Applications are open to emerging as well as established writers. 

While we hold a capacious definition of movement-building, we prioritize folks whose work involves building power in directly-affected communities in order to address the root causes of oppression. This may include people working toward—and engaging the intersections between—racial justice, climate justice, carceral abolition, LGBTQ+ liberation, worker power, disability justice and/or indigenous sovereignty. Applications are open to new and experienced organizers!

We're excited to welcome folks who do both! For the sake of our processes, we ask you to choose one primary designation, with the knowledge that many participants straddle multiple worlds and identities.

In order to cultivate a sense of community, we ask that all Fellows attend the full retreat. If you have a conflict, we encourage you to apply for the next retreat!

We accept applications from Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, and DC. Indigenous applicants who are native to those lands are also welcome to apply.

The retreat is for participants who are based in this region, as a way of encouraging the possibility of future collaborations. However, people who are indigenous to these lands are welcome to apply even if they don’t currently live here.

No. The Witches & Warriors Retreat is for BIPOC writers and movement workers only.

Every eligible, complete application is read by two readers (a mix of poets and movement workers) who nominate applications to the final round. Final decisions are made by staff. Faculty are not involved in the application screening process.

Unfortunately, we don't have the capacity to give feedback on individual applications. Our best advice is to make sure your application is complete; to include the work you are proudest off in your work sample; and to make your essay responses as clear, specific, and thorough as possible.

There is no registration fee to attend the Witches & Warriors Retreat! Food and lodging are completely covered. While Fellows are asked to arrange and cover their own travel, we are usually able to assist with partial travel support.

Most participants will be sharing a room with one roommate. There is a limited number of single rooms available for those who have an access need requiring solo accommodations.

We love animals, but we can’t allow pets other than service animals.

Most group activities will be held in a large indoor space or outside. When we have to be indoors, we will try to open doors and use HEPA filters to ventilate. We will require all faculty, staff, and participants to be fully vaccinated as medically able. Additionally, we require you to send us proof of a negative test prior to traveling, and will be conducting rapid-testing multiple times onsite during the retreat. We will determine masking policies closer to the retreat date, based on current guidelines and the needs of our participants.

Some basic accessibility information is listed on the retreat info page. However, our access plan for the retreat will ultimately be shaped based on the needs of our participants (for example, if any accepted fellows need/prefer masking, we will ask everyone to wear a mask indoors). If you have specific questions, you are welcome to email us at hello@brewandforge.com.

Unfortunately, we don’t currently have the budget to provide these access services during retreat sessions. ASL interpretation for our public event will be available if requested.

Unfortunately, we don’t have the budget to provide childcare during the retreat.

Our crew is small, and we’re focusing on our immediate geographical region for now. But if you want to start your own version of this retreat, please do! We’re happy to support your efforts and share what we’ve learned.

Please email hello @ brewandforge.com, and we will be happy to answer!