A Writer's Paradise
Hone your skills and develop work with expert faculty in contemporary literature.
Nolan Natasha, Winter Writers Residency 2024. Photo by Rita Taylor.
Push your creative boundaries
Banff Centre’s Literary Arts programs provide an inspiring space and focused time for emerging and established writers to push the boundaries of their talent and realize their potential. Our programs prepare writers in all genres for literary success on a national and international scale.
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Our upcoming offerings
Banff Centre's 2025/26 season of Literary Arts offerings consists of nine residencies each focusing on new and dynamic areas of international writing: Horror Writing, Literary Journalism / Creative Non-Fiction, Science Fiction, Comics and Graphic Novels, Early Career Writers of Young Adult and Children’s Books, Contemporary French Writing, and new forms in fiction and poetry offered seasonally from our campus on the side of Sleeping Buffalo Mountain.
Our residencies build community and conversation, mentorship, and professional development— all in the service of supporting national and international authors achieve their writing goals. Each residency features mentors and professional guests who bring the best in contemporary practice, and who are consistently recognized for modelling encouragement alongside their own internationally-recognized writing.
Banff Centre remains dedicated to supporting the best in new prose writing, poetry, journalism, memoir, and translation with those topics reflected in our ever-evolving offerings.
Dr. Derek Beaulieu
Director, Literary Arts
Programs
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This was the first artist residency I’ve ever attended, and I don’t know if I’ll have many other experiences in my writing career that compare to this one. I learned so much from the faculty and my peers, and the feedback I received from both was invaluable to my process. Over two weeks, I went from feeling embarrassingly underprepared about my project to having near-complete clarity and confidence in my artistic vision for this novel, one I hope to publish and share one day.
Bree Taylor, Writers in Residence - Horror Writers
Literary Arts Team
Derek Beaulieu
Director of Literary Arts
Dr. Derek Beaulieu is the author/editor of over twenty-five collections of poetry, prose, and criticism. His most recent volume of poetry, Surface Tension, was published by Coach House Books and his latest book of criticism, Do It Wrong, is forthcoming from Assembly Press. Beaulieu has received the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal for his dedication to Albertan literature and CCWWP Robert Kroetsch Award for excellence in innovative pedagogy and teaching practice. He is the only graduate from the University of Calgary’s Department of English to receive the Faculty of Arts ‘Celebrated Alumni Award’ and the only graduate in creative writing to receive Roehampton University’s Chancellor’s Alumni Award. Beaulieu has served as Poet Laureate of both Calgary and Banff and is the Director of Literary Arts at Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity.
He can be found online at www.derekbeaulieu.ca.
Madeline McCaffrey
Program Manager
Madeline McCaffrey is the Program Manager for Literary Arts at Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, where she develops and oversees residency programs and events designed to support writers at all stages of their careers. She works closely with faculty and the Centre’s resources to create opportunities for literary exploration, community building, and interdisciplinary collaboration. Prior to joining Banff Centre, Madeline worked with leading Canadian arts organizations including the Association of Canadian Publishers, the Toronto International Festival of Authors at Harbourfront Centre, Campbell House Museum, and Massey Hall & Roy Thomson Hall. She has contributed to some of the largest literary events in Canada, including Toronto Lit Up, Word on the Street, Forest of Reading: Festival of Trees, TIFA, Common Readings, and Book Summit, and has managed programs such as Top Grade: CanLit for the Classroom and 49th Shelf. Her professional background spans published works, curatorial projects, advocacy initiatives, fundraising, and literary arts programming supporting both emerging and established voices.
When she’s not helping writers settle into the mountains, you might spot Madeline on a multi day hike with a questionably heavy backpack - because she forgot to charge her Kindle, again.
Literary Arts Stories
Contact Us
For questions about the department and what we offer, please contact:
Email: arts_info@banffcentre.ca
Phone: 403.762.6180