Background

Thank you for your interest in our Narrative Labs, Writers' Retreats, and Fellowships. Please read this headnote before you start your application. It will help you manage the application process.

By way of background, founded in 2013, Stowe Story Labs is a nonprofit dedicated to helping top emerging and established screenwriters, filmmakers, and creative producers get work made and seen. We look for people from all walks of life and backgrounds. 

We do our work through programs designed to help artists develop skills and projects. We look for people from all walks of life and backgrounds demonstrating talent, a collaborative nature, and presenting a good story worth developing. To be admitted an applicant does not need to have a background in the film and television industry (similarly) it does not hurt to a part of the industry.

Use this application for our 2027 narrative labs and writers' retreats. It is also the application for fellowship and scholarship support. 

Details about our programs can be found here (under the appropriate program tabs). We strongly urge you to study the program descriptions before applying. 

In addition, details about our fellowship program and scholarships can be found here. Similarly, it is worth spending time familiarizing yourself with the programs and criteria before you apply.

Although we charge for our programming, we work to keep the cost of programming as low as possible and we offer dozens of full and partial scholarships and fellowships. 

This Application Platform Supports Your Application to our Narrative Labs and Writers' Retreats 

This application is for admission and consideration for fee-based, fellowship, and scholarship slots to our 2027 Narrative Labs and Writers' Retreats. 

Our 2027 Labs run in Stowe, Vermont, at the Current and are scheduled for:

• June 4 – 7 and  
• September 3 – 6.

You can learn more about our Labs here.

Our 2027 Writers' Retreats dates and locations are:

• The Remote Writers' Retreat will run June 25 – 29, 2027 (online via Zoom)
• The Croatia Writers' Retreat will tentatively run September 20 – 24, 2027 in Lovran, Croatia
• The Connemara Writers' Retreat will tentatively run October 11 – 15, 2027 in Renvyle, Ireland

You can learn more about our Retreats here. 

Dates are subject to change. We may add programs. We will have program dates finalized in early 2027. We will share updates with all applicants during the application review process (as we know them).

The questions on the application ask about you, the project you are submitting, and your intent in making the film or show. Please answer questions as fully as possible.

Fellowships and Scholarships Consideration

If applying for fellowships we will consider you for all fellowships you qualify for, maximizing your opportunity for support. You may certainly guide us to which fellowship most interests you. As each fellowship has its own criteria and benefits please check the website for information about each fellowship before completing the fellowship application.

Please note, all but one of our fellowships are dedicated to the narrative labs, and that one is for both a lab and a retreat. 

That fellowship is the Stowe Story Labs Genre Launch Fellowship, which is dedicated to the June Narrative Lab and Remote Writers’ Retreat. You can read full details about the fellowship here. Though this fellowship program includes retreat participation, you must apply for it through the narrative lab application.

In short, if you would like to be considered for a fellowship, you must submit a narrative lab application. Both applications provide opportunities to apply for scholarships.

To be considered for fellowships and scholarships, you must press "yes" on the question in the application "I am applying for fellowships or other forms of financial support," and fill out the statement of need. Otherwise, you will only be considered for full fee slots.

Our fellowships are awarded based on merit and our scholarships are offered based on merit and need.

Fees

The fee to attend an in-person four-day Narrative Lab in 2027 is currently set to be $2,750. 

The fee to attend an in-person international five-day Writers' Retreat in 2027 is currently set to be €4,250 (this covers the fee to attend, full room and board, but not travel). 

The fee to attend the remote five-day Writers' Retreat in 2027 is currently set to be $1,800.

Fees to all programs include all content and most meals. The fees for our in-person narrative labs do not cover travel or lodging.

In Stowe, we work with lodging partners to secure deep and meaningful discounts to participants (and most include breakfast ...). We keep on the ground costs as low as possible during our programs.

Changes

Please note, fees may change based on developing costs. We will notify all applicants of fee or schedule changes if/when they occur. 

Other Notes 

We do not provide feedback on projects through our submission process.

Again, please familiarize yourself with our programs and fellowships before applying. You can of course reach out to us at info@stowestorylabs.org if you have questions.

As noted above, we look for talented people - regardless of experience or background - bringing us interesting stories and showing the capacity to do the work.

Our mission includes breaking down barriers to entry in this complicated industry. 

Dates and Deadlines

Early Bird Deadline ($49): October 3 (ends midnight US Pacific Time)

Regular Deadline ($57): November 16 (ends midnight US Pacific Time)

Late Deadline ($68): December 2 (ends midnight US Pacific Time)

Thank you again for taking the time to apply and for trusting us with your work. Please be assured we take the same care of your work and application in the review process as you have put into developing the work and applying.

Best of luck in the process.

Team Stowe Story Labs

Thank you for your interest in the Feature Campus and TV Writers Room programs. 

Applications are now being accepted for Stowe's two online longform writing programs: Feature Campus, which is Stowe's feature script writing program, and the Writers Room, which is Stowe's TV writing program. 

The Fall Session for the Feature Campus program will begin on October 26, 2026. 

The Fall Session for the TV Writers Room program will begin on October 18, 2026. 

Admissions are rolling and will be capped at 12 participants for each program. 

The program fee to attend a program is US $2,650. 

The application deadline is 11:59 PM (PST), September 2, 2026

Feature Campus Background:

This program is designed for a new work, not revisions to an existing project.

Ideally, the writing sample should be from a script you have already written.

If this will be your first script (so you therefore do not have a writing sample), please send a five-page sample of new material -- any story you'd like -- so we can evaluate your screenwriting skills. 

Feature Campus will run Mondays from 12 - 3 PM Eastern Time.

You can learn more about Feature Campus here. 

TV Writers Room Background:

This program is designed for a new work, not revisions to an existing television project.

Ideally, the writing sample should be from a script you have already written.

If this will be your first script (so you therefore do not have a writing sample), please send a five-page sample of new material -- any story you'd like -- so we can evaluate your screenwriting skills.

TV Writers Room will run Sundays from 12 - 3 PM Eastern Time. 

You can learn more about the TV Writers Room here. 

Thank you again and best of luck in the review process.

Team Story Labs