The Sociological Review
Application deadline: 01/09/2023
Apply now to join The Sociological Review’s annual three-day residential writing retreat for early career scholars, which this year will be held in November at a beautiful rural location in Wales. Fourteen places will be awarded on a competitive basis to PhD students and postdocs, and the retreat is free of charge to attend.
About The Sociological Review’s 2023 ECR Writing Retreat
Since 2016, the Sociological Review Foundation’s annual writing retreat has offered early career scholars the chance to focus on writing a journal article or chapter of a PhD thesis within a supportive and focused environment.
We are delighted to announce that in 2023, our ECR writing retreat will be facilitated by Sociological Review editorial board members Professor Steven Brown and Dr Cath Lambert. The retreat, which will take place at Gladstone’s Library in the village of Hawarden in Wales, will offer participants a wonderful opportunity to spend three days writing in a tranquil environment under the guidance of qualified writing retreat facilitators, as well as the opportunity to rest, socialise and enjoy the beautiful surroundings of Hawarden village.
Strictly Come Writing 2023 will be free to attend for the 14 participants selected in open competition, with all writing sessions, meals and on-site accommodation provided.
Date and location
Strictly Come Writing 2023 will be held at Gladstone’s Library. It will begin at 13.00 on Wednesday 8 November and conclude at 17.00 on Friday 10 November.
Gladstone’s Library is located in Church Lane, Hawarden, Flintshire, CH5 3DF, Wales. The village of Hawarden is 7 miles from Chester and 30 miles from Liverpool Airport.
Founded by William Ewart Gladstone and overseen by a registered charity, this unique institution centres on a residential library that contains over 200,000 volumes of theology and history as well as material on philosophy, classics, art and literature.
Aims and activities
The aim of Strictly Come Writing 2023 is to give participants the opportunity to advance their writing on a journal article or chapter of a PhD thesis within a supportive environment free of surveillance and distractions.
Work during the retreat will be based on the principles developed by Grant & Knowles (2000), McGrail et al. (2006), Murray and Newton (2009) and Murray (2012).
Participants will receive information about the preparation they will be expected to undertake prior to the retreat. Retreat days will comprise timed writing sessions, with all delegates writing in one room at the same time, with facilitators telling participants when to start and when to stop. Facilitators will also provide one-on-one support during breaks, and will moderate peer discussion to review progress during the retreat.
Eligibility criteria
Strictly Come Writing 2023 is a writing retreat for early career scholars: postdocs who are within three years of the award of their doctorate (excluding career breaks for paternity, maternity or health reasons), and postgraduate research students within the final or write-up year of their PhD studies.
There are 14 places available on this year’s retreat, to be awarded on a competitive basis. All applications will be reviewed by members of The Sociological Review editorial board.
Due to the significant cost to the Sociological Review Foundation to run these annual retreats, successful applicants will be required to make a refundable deposit of £50 to secure their place.
Bursaries
Strictly Come Writing 2023 is free of charge to those awarded a place, including all writing sessions, meals, single-occupancy accommodation for the nights of Wednesday 8 and Thursday 9 November 2023, and transportation between Chester train station and Gladstone’s Library.
For early career researchers who meet the relevant criteria, we offer travel bursaries of £100 for UK-based applicants and £200 for non-UK based applicants, and childcare bursaries of £70 per day. Further details about bursaries are provided in the application form for Strictly Come Writing 2023.
Please note that we will consider applications for bursaries only from unfunded students who are not in receipt of scholarships, or funding from research councils or their home institutions to support their studies. Those who are in receipt of a full-time wage are not eligible for the above bursaries, with the exception of ECR teaching fellows who are on a contract of 12 months or less and do not have institutional conference/event attendance funding.
We will seek verification of the employment and funding status of those selected for bursaries.
How to apply
Apply to join Strictly Come Writing 2023 via this form.
If you have any questions about this application process, please email events@thesociologicalreview.com
Deadline
The deadline to apply to join Strictly Come Writing 2023, The Sociological Review’s annual ECR writing retreat, is Friday 1 September, 17.00 BST/UTC+1.
Decisions of the selection panel will be communicated to applicants on Monday 18 September 2023.
Managing Editor: Tong Meng
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