Photo of a person at a desk, writing with a pen on a notepad. Only the person's arms and hands are visible. They wear a heavy watch.

Consultations

Meet with the Canadian Writer-in-Residence to improve your writing

General information

Consultations with our Canadian Writer-in-Residence are free and open to the public.

Writers from across Canada are welcome to submit; however, priority is given to writers located in the Calgary area.

We welcome submissions of work at any stage, but a manuscript is not required. You can request a consultation in order to:

  • receive guidance and edits on your written work,
  • simply ask a question,
  • discuss an idea, or
  • receive general advice pertaining to writing and publishing in Canada.

Booking a consultation

Please fill out the form below to book a one-hour consultation with 2023-24 Writer-in-Residence Francine Cunningham.

Manuscript Specifications

  • Prose: excerpts may be no more than 15 double-spaced pages in 12-point font with standard margins.
  • Poetry: excerpts may be no more than 15 pages in 12-point font with standard margins. 

Please note that your manuscript excerpt must be submitted a minimum of one week before your appointment. Consultation requests that do not meet these specifications will be asked to resubmit.

Consultation Hours

  • Mondays and Wednesdays from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m MST.

Consultations must be booked in advance. If you need to book outside of these hours please select "other," and we will do our best to accommodate alternate schedules, but cannot guarantee availability.

Consultation Format

One-on-one consultations are available via Zoom. Due to high demand for consultations with our writers-in-residence, you are entitled to one individual consultation per academic year.

Accessibility

Zoom’s auto-captions are enabled. You are welcome to retain a copy of the live transcript.

Digital Security and Online Safety

Zoom and phone meetings will not be recorded and will remain private. We ask that you extend the same courtesy and refrain from taking audio recordings, screen shots, or video recordings during consultations. 

Content Advisory

We work to create a safe and supportive environment for all voices and do not accept submissions that contain racist, xenophobic, misogynist, and/or homophobic content.

The Calgary Distinguished Writers Program retains the right to decline a consultation request at its discretion.

Book a consultation

Please let us know how you were introduced to the Calgary Distinguished Writers Program and our services.
Potential appointment times
Please select up to three times that, in general, work best for you. Francine Cunningham's regular office hours are Mondays and Wednesdays from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. MST.  If you are unable to make these regular hours, please choose "Other" and we will do our best to accomodate.

To select multiple appointment times, hold down CTRL (PC) or ⌘ (Mac) while clicking the times.
Are there accommodations you would like to request that could facilitate your consult?
If necessary, please provide additional scheduling information here. (E.g., upcoming dates where you will not be able to make the times specified above, more information if you're unable to make regular office hours, etc.)
Please provide any context you would like Francine Cunningham to have for your consultation. For example, is this an excerpt or a complete work? What genre is it? Do you have specific concerns about the piece that you would like the Writer-in-Residence to address? What is your idea about? What would you like to discuss? What questions do you have?
What is your previous experience with creative writing? What kind of feedback are you looking for from the Writer-in-Residence?
Please upload up to 15 pages in 12-point font with standard margins for poetry and up to 15 double-spaced pages in 12-point font with standard margins for prose. A manuscript excerpt is not required to meet with the Writer-in-Residence.
One file only.
100 MB limit.
Allowed types: doc, docx.

Collection of personal information
Your personal information is collected under the authority of section 33(c) of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. If you have any questions about the collection or use of this information, please visit our Access to Information page.