What is Still Point Field School?
A new program from the Sancho Panza Literary Society, Still Point Field School is an immersive, place-conscious writing residency rooted in attention, observation, and ecological awareness. Based in Missoula, Montana from July 22-30, 2026, Still Point combines writing workshops with professionally guided field experiences, inviting participants to slow down, notice more precisely, and explore how place shapes language, thought, and creative practice.
Still Point is not a productivity bootcamp or a silent retreat. It’s a thoughtfully structured space for curiosity, conversation, and deep engagement with both craft and landscape.
Who is Still Point for?
Still Point is open to writers and non-writers alike. Participants may be working in fiction, nonfiction, poetry, hybrid forms, or simply exploring writing as a practice of attention. The program is especially well suited for people interested in:
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Place-based or nature writing
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Ecology, environmental thinking, or landscape studies
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Hybrid, lyric, or experimental work
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Observation as a creative and ethical practice
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Slowing down in order to see more clearly
No publication history or academic affiliation is required.
What does a typical day look like?
Each day balances structure with spaciousness. A typical day may include:
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A morning writing workshop discussing individual pieces
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A guided field session led by local professionals (ex: wildlife biologist hike, river day kayaking/fishing/rafting, stargazing and planetarium trip)
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Unstructured time for writing, walking, or rest
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Optional contemplative or somatic practices
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Evening discussions, readings, or informal gatherings
What kinds of field experiences are included?
Field experiences are central to the ethos of Still Point. These may include guided ecology walks, river-based sessions, observational hikes, and other place-responsive activities led by writers, scientists, or local experts.
No technical outdoor skills are required, though some excursions may necessitate a degree of physical exertion. All excursions are designed to be safe, respectful, and grounded in care for the land.
All excursions are optional but included in the program fee. If you would prefer to spend your time outside of our morning workshop wandering the town’s art galleries, river trails and breweries, golfing or fishing, or simply recharging in the high-summer sunshine, Missoula offers a host of beautiful and accessible opportunities within easy walking or driving distance of campus.
What does a typical day look like?
Yes, but with an emphasis on listening, curiosity, and craft rather than judgment.
Workshops focus on:
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What the work is trying to do
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How attention and perception shape the writing
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Craft choices and possibilities
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Supporting each writer’s individual aims
The tone is thoughtful and generative rather than prescriptive.
How many participants will there be?
Still Point Field School is intentionally small to foster meaningful conversation, trust, and individual attention. Cohort size is limited to support depth rather than scale. Expect 10-12 participants in your cohort.
Where will participants stay?
Participants may opt to stay in simple, comfortable dorm-style housing in Missoula, within easy access of workshop spaces and surrounding landscapes. If you would prefer to arrange your own housing, Missoula offers many beautiful
AirBNBs and convenient hotel options as well.
How is Still Point different?
Still Point integrates:
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Field-based learning
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Ecological and place-based thinking
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Generative writing practices
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Somatic and contemplative approaches to attention
The emphasis is not on speed, output, or networking, but on depth, presence, and sustained noticing.
Is there required reading?
There will be relevant readings offered as touchstones, but there is no heavy pre-program workload. The primary texts are the landscape, the body, and your own attention.
Will I need to submit work in advance?
Still Point Field School is designed to foster generative writing based on observation and experience in a particular time and place. Therefore, we will devote the bulk of workshop to intentionally discussing pieces generated during
the program. However, the first several days of workshop will also allow for pre-submitted pieces to be workshopped from interested participants. Please indicate in your application email if you will be sending work ahead of time for
scheduling purposes.
Who leads Still Point Field School?
Still Point Field School is a division of the Sancho Panza Literary Society (sanchopanzalit.com). The field school is co-led by two MFA graduates from the University of Montana’s Creative Writing Program: Stephanie Pushaw, a novelist,
editor, and essayist from Malibu, California, and Liana Jahan Imam, a poet and essayist from Southeast Michigan. Guest guides and field leaders will include ecologists, writers, scientists, artists, and local experts connected to the region.
How much does it cost?
The all-inclusive cost of Still Point Field School is $1,500, which includes tuition, program fees, and nine nights of on-campus housing.
This fee covers workshops, guided field experiences, guest instructors, program coordination, and shared materials, along with simple, clean dorm-style accommodations located near workshop spaces and campus amenities. For participants traveling to Missoula, the housing option offers a straightforward and affordable way to stay for the full nine-night program while remaining close to the cohort and daily activities.
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Participants who prefer to arrange their own accommodations are welcome to do so. In that case, the program tuition is $1,000, and you may book outside housing (Airbnb, hotel, short-term rental, or staying with friends or family) according to your preferences and budget.
Why "Still Point?"
The name comes from T.S. Eliot’s Four Quartets, where he describes the “still point of the turning world”—a place of presence at the center of motion. Still Point Field School is built on that idea: that in the midst of busyness, change, and distraction, there is a generative center available through deep attention. The program invites writers to practice finding that center in landscape, in language, and in themselves.
How do I apply?
Please send a brief statement of interest and a little about yourself to:
stillpointfieldschool@gmail.com
Accepted applicants will be notified on a rolling basis.
Sample Itinerary (subject to change)
July 22: Welcome dinner, evening orientation walk around campus and downtown
July 23: Morning workshop: 10-1
Afternoon wildlife biology walk in the Rattlesnake National Recreation
Area and Wilderness, guided by bear biologist Wes Larson (host of the popular Tooth and Claw podcast)
July 24: Morning workshop: 10-1
Afternoon river excursion guided by local kayak / fly fishing guide
July 25: Morning workshop: 10-1
Evening planetarium and stargazing expedition in collaboration with University of Montana astrophysicists
July 26: Morning workshop: 10-1
Afternoon Montana Arboretum tree walk + legendary Montana writers discussion
July 27: Morning workshop: 10-1
Afternoon excursion to Flathead Lake for paddleboarding, swimming or simply sunbathing on the dock (cherry orchard trip also possible)
July 28: Morning workshop: 10-1
Evening craft talk, reading and Q&A with local adventure/nature writers
July 29: Morning workshop: 10-1
Afternoon excursion to Moon Randolph Homestead, one of the region’s largest intact ranches: we’ll bring a picnic, explore the orchards and outbuildings, journal, draw and observe
July 30: Morning workshop: 10-1
Afternoon watercolor nature journaling hike on Mount Sentinel
Farewell dinner and participant reading
MEET THE STAFF
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