EXTRAMUNDANA 2.0

EXTRAMUNDANA, Switzerland's first national writing group for fantasy writers, is headed into its second year! Last spring, a class of supremely talented up-and-coming writers converged on a 400-year-old house in the center Zürich, looking to stretch their creative muscles, network with other writers, and pick up tips and tricks from authors Bettina Belmont, Jyoti Guptara, and me. They worked through fun prompts, learned how to create a compelling pitch, practiced worldbuilding and character building, did a retreat in the wildly picturesque mountains of Appenzell, and all of it culminated in a wonderful performance of their work at "Zürich Liest" a few weeks ago.

Thanks to the organization and enthusiasm from the Junges Literaturlabor Zürich as well as the generous support of the Carl Spitteler and Otto and Ruth Frei foundations, the application process for next year is now open. For information on how to apply for 2023's group, head over to the website of the Junges Literaturlabor, or check out the flyer. The deadline for application is January 9th.

On a less informercial-y note, this project has been super fun and rewarding for me. I never really connected much with the Swiss writing scene when I was younger, and then I moved to Berlin and found writers there, and… continued not connecting with the Swiss writing scene. So 2022 has been the year of catching up on that, and it’s been lovely to meet these writers and work with them. I’m excited to meet 2023’s group! See you next year!